Court Accepts Application After Confirming Difficulty in Identifying Biological Mother
Constitutional Court Rules Unconstitutional to Deny Birth Registration by Unmarried Fathers
A biological father who had a daughter with a Vietnamese woman without registering their marriage was unable to register the birth because he was an unmarried father, but he became the legal father through a court decision.
According to the Legal Aid Corporation on the 4th, the Daegu Family Court accepted the petition filed by Mr. A in the trial for "confirmation for registering the birth of a biological child."
Mr. A had been dating a Vietnamese woman, a colleague at his company, for over two years and had a daughter with her last September. However, the woman suddenly left home a few days after giving birth and has since been out of contact. Mr. A visited the local community center to register his daughter's birth, but the responsible official refused, saying he was not qualified.
Because he could not register the birth, inconveniences arose such as being unable to receive social welfare benefits. Mr. A made every effort for eight months after his daughter's birth to register the birth, but all attempts were in vain.
Eventually, Mr. A visited the Korea Legal Aid Corporation on a friend's recommendation and requested assistance.
According to the current Family Relations Registration Act, the birth registration of a child born to an unmarried couple is, in principle, to be done by the mother.
However, in cases where ▲ the mother's whereabouts are unknown, or ▲ the mother does not cooperate in submitting the necessary documents for birth registration without justifiable reason, or ▲ the mother's name and resident registration number cannot be identified, the father may register the child's birth after confirmation by the court.
Also, regarding the provision in the current Family Relations Registration Act that prohibits birth registration by unmarried fathers, the Constitutional Court ruled earlier this year that it is unconstitutional.
The court confirmed that this case fell under the category where the biological mother could not be identified or could not be specified through official documents and accepted the petition. Accordingly, Mr. A was able to successfully complete his daughter's birth registration.
Kim Dong-cheol, a public interest legal officer affiliated with the Legal Aid Corporation who represented the lawsuit, emphasized, "Every human being has the right to be registered at birth immediately after being born, but there are cases where this right is not guaranteed due to legal blind spots, so legislative solutions are necessary."
Meanwhile, the relevant provision of the Family Relations Registration Act in question will lose its effect if no legislative improvement is made by May 31, 2025, following the Constitutional Court's decision of unconstitutionality in March.
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