Administrative Authorities Should Bear the Responsibility for People’s Suffering Caused by Illegal Administrative Practices

- An administrative authority installed drainage on private property without permission, which is responsible for the payment of land rental fees and boundary measurement expenses -

(October 31 2023, ACRC)

A judgment was made that it is unlawful for the administrative authority not to pay the rental fees for the land and the expenses for boundary measurement, burdened by the land owner, despite having installed drainage on the private property without the landowner’s consent.

The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC, Chairperson Kim Hong-Il) offered a correction recommendation to the administrative authority, which failed to pay the rental fees for the land and compensate for the boundary measurement expenses to the landowner, on paying the rental fees and the measurement expenses.

Person A discovered that ○○-gun had installed drainage on his/her forest and field without permission and carried out a boundary measurement for a fee of 800,000 KRW to confirm that the drainage was placed within the property.

According to the measurement, it was verified that the drainage had been installed within Person A’s property, and Person A requested ○○-gun to pay the land rental fees and the measurement expenses.

However, ○○-gun rejected the request, stating that there were no grounds to cover the rental fees and it does not have an obligation to compensate the measurement expenses.

In light of this, Person A filed a grievance complaint with ACRC in April 2023, asserting “it was ○○-gun that initially installed the drainage without my consent and I conducted the measurement to confirm such fact, which is why I cannot accept ○○-gun refusing to pay the land rental fees and measurement expenses.”

According to an investigation carried out by ACRC, ○○-gun had installed the drainage on Person A’s land without his/her consent and obtained illicit gains by utilizing and benefiting from the land without any legal grounds.

Moreover, the Commission determined that it is justifiable for ○○-gun to pay the rental fees and measurement expenses to Person A since he/she conducted the boundary measurement in order to verify whether the drainage encroached upon his/her property as ○○-gun installed the drainage without permission.

○○-gun accepted the ACRC’s recommendation and decided to pay Person A with the land rental fees and boundary measurement expenses.

ACRC Vice Chairperson Kim Tae-Gyu said, “Expenses resulting from the unlawful practices of administrative authorities should be borne by those authorities. We will be vigilant to ensure that no administrative expenses are shifted unreasonably on the people.”