South Korea wins Permanent Court of Arbitration case against Schindler, damages dismissed
South Korea’s government won an international arbitration dispute against Swiss elevator maker Schindler Holding AG, with the dispute settlement body dismissing Schindler’s claim for about 3,250억원 in damages. The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) ruled in favor of the Korean government, and the state is also set to recover roughly 96억원 in legal costs from Schindler.
President Lee Jae-myung praised the government’s legal team on X (formerly Twitter), linking to a news article about the ruling and thanking officials at the Ministry of Justice for pursuing the case “with responsibility to the end.” He said the government would continue to protect the state and its people’s interests.
The dispute traces back to 2018, when Schindler filed an ISDS claim alleging that the Korean government failed to fulfill its investigative and supervisory duties during Hyundai Elevator’s 2013–2015 paid-in capital increase and related call option transfers, which Schindler said caused losses.
The PCA arbitration panel dismissed all of Schindler’s damages claims, amounting to about 3250억원. The ruling means Schindler did not prevail on its compensation demand under the investor-state dispute settlement framework, which allows foreign investors to sue states under investment treaties.
In addition to dismissing the damages claim, the Korean government is expected to recover about 96억원 in litigation costs from Schindler, a portion of which would be paid back to the state by the Swiss company, per the tribunal’s decision.
For U.S. readers, the case matters because ISDS rulings shape how foreign investors assess risk when doing business in Korea and how Korea defends regulatory decisions in international arbitration. The outcome signals how Korea negotiates and defends governance actions affecting large industrial deals, with potential implications for foreign investment, supply chains, and cross-border contracts linked to Korean industries and multinational manufacturers. The decision also underscores the role of international arbitration in resolving disputes involving corporate governance and state oversight in high-stakes infrastructure and manufacturing sectors.