"A Child Born from Premarital Pregnancy, Confirmed as Biological Child in Middle School"

The eldest child who does not resemble oneself... DNA test reveals 'Non-paternity'
"Marriage annulment can be requested within 3 months after discovering non-paternity"

A divorced man who learned late that his first child was not his biological offspring has sparked controversy on social networking services (SNS).

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On the 3rd, YTN's 'Attorney Jo In-seop's Counseling Room' shared the story of Mr. A, a man who married due to a premarital pregnancy, and discussed whether he could claim damages in such a case. According to Mr. A, he first met his then-girlfriend, now his wife, around 2000 and lived together for a year. They broke up once due to personality differences, but after the breakup, they met one last time to exchange belongings and ended up having relations.

Afterward, the wife informed Mr. A that she was pregnant, and he decided to marry out of a sense of responsibility for the child. Mr. A and his wife had a second and third child during their marriage. Mr. A focused on his business, traveling between Korea and the United States, and significantly grew his enterprise. However, the personality differences that caused their separation could not be overcome, and they ultimately chose to divorce in 2015. During the divorce process, they divided assets in the U.S. and Mr. A’s subsequent income, and agreed on child support.

However, during post-divorce visitation arrangements, Mr. A noticed that his first child, now a middle school student, did not resemble him. Suspecting something, he underwent a paternity test. Upon receiving the 'non-paternity' results, Mr. A was shocked.

Mr. A said, "I confronted the child's mother, but instead of apologizing, she responded shamelessly, which hurt me even more." He added, "I am suffering from panic disorder and severe depression. I wonder if I can claim damages from my wife and if I can also correct the family register."

Attorney Kim Eon-ji stated, "Mr. A can file a suit to deny paternity and receive a court ruling that the first child is not his biological child. Subsequently, the first child’s registration as 'child' on Mr. A’s family relationship register can be canceled."

She continued, "The other party deceived Mr. A into believing the first child was his, which was a crucial factor in deciding to marry. This constitutes grounds for annulment of marriage under civil law. Mr. A can file for annulment within three months of discovering the non-paternity." Since Mr. A is already divorced, she added that he can claim compensation for severe mental distress as damages.

This story has rapidly spread through online communities and SNS. Netizens who read the story reacted with comments such as, "The first child who lost his father in an instant must be bewildered," "What fault do the children have?" and "The problem is that many people get married after being deceived into thinking they are pregnant, as in this story."

Total 4,039 Divorce Counseling Cases in 2020... Women Cite 'Violence and Unfair Treatment' vs. Men Cite 'Other Reasons'

In 2021, a similar case also sparked public outrage. Mr. B, who shared his story, said, "I thought my wife had resolved her previous relationship before we married. Then she got pregnant, so we hurried to get married." He added, "Two years ago, my wife left home less than a week after giving birth at a postpartum care center, saying she felt suffocated. I am raising our 12-month-old child alone."

He continued, "I mustered the courage to take a paternity test, but the result was non-matching. It feels like the sky is falling. I have endured so much, raising the child alone, worried the child might be hurt by the truth, but now I am told the child is not mine but someone else’s," he lamented.

Meanwhile, the Korea Legal Aid Center for Family Relations reported a total of 4,039 divorce counseling cases in 2020. Of these, 3,260 (76.9%) were requested by women, and 979 (23.1%) by men. Among women, 48.3% cited 'violence and unfair treatment' as reasons for divorce, followed by 'other reasons' such as long-term separation, personality differences, and economic conflicts (31.4%). For men, 'other reasons' accounted for 56.5%, followed by the wife’s runaway (23.0%) and violence or unfair treatment (13.0%). According to Statistics Korea’s '2021 Population Trends,' the total number of divorces surveyed from the first to third quarters was 76,478.