 The trial of Samsung Electronics Co. vice chairman Jay Y. Lee began Thursday, as prosecutors try to prove the billionaire conspired to funnel millions of dollars to a confidante of President Park Geun-hye to help secure control of the world’s largest smartphone maker.  Samsung Group heir Lee Jae-yong denied bribery and other criminal charges filed by special prosecutors in the corruption scandal involving President Park Geun-hye at his first court hearing in Seoul on Thursday. Samsung Group heir Lee Jae-yong (Yonhap) 
 
 The special probe team suspects that Lee gave or promised 43.3 billion won ($38.3 million) in kickbacks to Park's friend Choi Soon-sil in return for the government's backing of a merger of two Samsung affiliates in 2015.The business merger was seen as critical to the smooth management succession of the group from ailing Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Kun-hee to his only son Jae-yong.Special prosecutors viewed Samsung's donation of 20.4 billion won in 2015 to two sports and culture foundations controlled by Choi as bribes.Lee has consistently insisted that Samsung's donations to Mir and K Sport foundations were made customarily in compliance with government requests, while its financial support for Choi and her family was forced by the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae.His lawyers repeated the same claims of innocence throughout the opening hearing.The lawyers said Lee's instructions to group executives following his one-on-one meetings in 2015 and 2016 with President Park remained unclear. - Also known as Jay Y Lee, the 48-year-old has spent his entire career in the company. They urged special prosecutors from resorting to presumptions in handling Lee's case.Lee's lawyers also raised questions over the participation of former prosecutor members of the special counsel team in the court hearing, saying the tenure of the special prosecutors already expired at the end of last month.The first hearing was finished after one hour amid fierce confrontation between lawyers and prosecutors.The Seoul district court is expected to give its ruling in late May. Lee’s predicament casts uncertainty over the succession at Samsung, which has been in transition since his father suffered a crippling heart attack in 2014. Lee was indicted last month along with four other Samsung executives, but was the only one to have been detained. Mr Lee was not present at the preliminary hearing, but his lawyer denied all charges on his behalf. If South Korea’s constitutional court approves the president’s impeachment, Park will lose her immunity and an election will follow within two months.
– The "trial of the century" has begun in South Korea, where a vice chairman at Samsung Electronics faces bribery and embezzlement charges after allegedly giving $36 million to President Park Geun-hye and her close friend Choi Soon-sil in order to win government support for a 2015 merger. Lee Jae-Yong, also identified as Jay Y. Lee, faces five years to life in prison if convicted and is expected to learn his fate within three months, though years of appeals could follow. The latest: Samsung has admitted donating about $17.5 million to foundations controlled by Choi, but Lee says it was forced to do so by Park, per Yonhap News. However, Lee says he provided money and a horse to help the equestrian career of Choi's daughter, per the BBC. A prosecutor has described this as the "trial of the century" and a lawyer previously involved with the case explains why: It "will draw attention from around the world, not just for the defendant's fame abroad, but also for the size of the alleged bribe," he says. "Every step will be contentious," reports Bloomberg. In the first court hearing Thursday, Lee's lawyers attempted to show a PowerPoint presentation, only to have prosecutors fiercely object. Defense lawyers then complained about a special prosecutor's involvement in the hearing. In some ways, Park is also on trial. A constitutional court is set to decide whether to uphold her impeachment on Friday, a decision that could lead to an election within two months. Bloomberg reports any decision is "almost certain to provoke protests." It won't be anything new. People have been protesting in Seoul for months, many outraged over what they view as "chronic corruption" in dealings between the government and family-run conglomerates. What does this all mean for Samsung's business? The company has said its strong management team will ensure all runs smoothly. But without Lee at its head, major decisions for the company could be delayed.