SKorea court to rule on Samsung inheritance battle

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA (AP) - A South Korean court is expected to rule Friday on an inheritance battle that has rocked the powerful Samsung conglomerate.

Lee Kun-hee, chairman of Samsung Electronics Co., which is the conglomerate’s flagship company, is facing off against his older brother and other relatives who all want a bigger piece of the Samsung cake.

The court’s decision might upset a dynastic succession in Samsung’s leadership as it could result in the unraveling of a cross-shareholding structure that allows Lee, who is South Korea’s richest person, to control the group as a minority shareholder.

Late last year, Lee’s only son Jay Y. Lee was promoted to vice chairman of Samsung Electronics, putting the 44-year-old closer to the top leadership position at the world’s largest maker of memory chips, smartphones and TVs.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.