Korean Court Rules that Japan Does Not Have to Compensate Comfort Women

This is a big win for Japan because they can point to this ruling in regards to the ongoing diplomatic battle about the Korean court ruling to reimburse forced laborers from World War II:

 South Korean victims of wartime sexual slavery lost their second lawsuit against the Japanese government Wednesday, suffering a setback in their efforts to hold Tokyo accountable for war crimes. 

The Seoul Central District Court dismissed the case brought by 20 plaintiffs, including surviving victims forced to work in front-line brothels for Japanese soldiers during World War II, citing sovereign immunity, a legal doctrine that allows a state to be immune from a civil suit in foreign courts.

“When we recognize exemptions of sovereign immunity, diplomatic clashes will inevitably ensue,” the court said. It also cited a few examples of court cases after World War II that were rejected for deliberations based on sovereign immunity.

It also took note of the 2015 bilateral agreement between Seoul and Tokyo to resolve the dispute. Despite some procedural problems, the agreement was reached after listening to opinions of the victims, euphemistically called “comfort women,” and some of them have received money from the foundation set up under the deal, the court said.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but it seems pretty inconsistent that sovereign immunity applies in this case and not the forced laborer case. Maybe the 2015 comfort women agreement between Japan and South Korea is why sovereign immunity applies in this case and not the other.