Long-term Depression Leads to Extreme Choice... Supreme Court Rules "Death Insurance Payment Must Be Made"

1st Trial "Insurance Payment" → 2nd Trial "Aware of Meaning of Extreme Choice"
Supreme Court "State Unable to Make Free Decisions"

The Supreme Court has ruled that death insurance benefits must be paid if a person diagnosed with depression for nine years experienced a worsening of symptoms requiring hospitalization and made an extreme choice, on the grounds that the individual was not in a state to make free decisions.

The Supreme Court's Third Division (Presiding Justice Lee Heung-gu) announced on the 6th that it overturned the lower court ruling, which had dismissed the claim by the family of Mr. A against the insurance company, and remanded the case to the Incheon District Court.

Mr. A, who had been receiving treatment for depression since 2010, died by an extreme choice in November 2019. He had quit his job due to a back injury and faced financial difficulties as he did not receive industrial accident compensation. Just before his extreme choice, he also consumed a large amount of alcohol.

Mr. A’s family filed a claim for insurance benefits but were denied. The insurance company argued that Mr. A was in a state of normal discernment and capable of making free decisions at the time of death, so they were not obligated to pay the insurance benefits.

The first trial ruled that the insurance benefits should be paid, but the second trial found it difficult to conclude that Mr. A made the extreme choice while unable to make free decisions. It was considered that Mr. A was aware of the meaning of his extreme choice while talking with his family shortly before his death.

However, the Supreme Court judged that there is sufficient reason to believe that Mr. A reached the extreme choice while unable to make free decisions and ruled that the insurance company has the obligation to pay.

The court stated, "When evaluating the circumstances at the time of the extreme choice, the overall situation and the series of processes leading to the extreme choice must be comprehensively considered, and the situation should not be hastily judged based on actions at a specific point in time."