Breaking the Cycle of Debt Inheritance... Government Introduces Legal Support System for Minor Inheritance

After Confirming Minor Status Upon Death of Custodian, Connect with Korea Legal Aid Corporation... Tailored Support by Type

[Asia Economy Reporter Bae Kyunghwan] When a custodial parent dies and there are minors among the surviving family members, inheritance-related legal support through local governments will be provided immediately from now on. This measure aims to resolve the issue of 'debt inheritance,' where minors inherit their parents' debts after their death. Last October, President Moon Jae-in instructed improvements to the system, stating, "The number of minors inheriting their parents' debts due to the custodial parent's legal ignorance is increasing."

On the 1st, the Ministry of Justice announced that, to prevent minors from inheriting unwanted parental debts due to lack of legal assistance, it will establish and immediately implement a legal support system for minors in cooperation with the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Ministry of Health and Welfare.

According to the current Civil Act, if an heir does not renounce inheritance or express limited acceptance within a certain period after the decedent's death, it is deemed simple acceptance, and all debts are inherited. Because minors often lack legal knowledge or the ability to respond, they fail to express limited acceptance or renunciation within the period, leading to increasing cases of harm such as filing for bankruptcy.

Therefore, the Ministry of Justice decided to proactively identify minors in need of inheritance-related legal assistance and provide legal support even before the Civil Act is amended.

First, each local government will identify minors when a custodial parent dies, connect them to the Korea Legal Aid Corporation, and ensure they receive legal support. The target cases include: ▲ when only minors survive and there is no custodial parent (including guardians) for the minors ▲ when the custodial parent of the surviving minor is separated ▲ when the custodial parent of the surviving minor is cohabiting but special support is needed. The identification process will be conducted by local government civil and administrative departments through reviewing family relation certificates and resident registration records.

The Korea Legal Aid Corporation will establish a Legal Welfare Team within its Legal Support Division at headquarters to provide specialized legal support for minors. The Legal Welfare Team will oversee the target cases and assign individual cases to branches or field offices convenient for minors to use. The assigned branches or field offices will provide appropriate legal services such as inheritance reporting, appointment of guardians, applications for limited acceptance, and lawsuits to confirm non-existence of debts.

Kang Sung-guk, Vice Minister of Justice, stated, "Since 2016 until March this year, over 80 minors have filed for personal bankruptcy due to debt inheritance, a regrettable situation of inheriting parents' debts," adding, "We will not only immediately implement this multi-ministry cooperative legal support system but also maintain continuous monitoring and steady attention to establish the system."