The youngest daughter who lovingly cared for their father... Older sisters oppose after apartment gift
"They haven't even visited hometown... It's unfair to get angry now"
A story has sparked controversy after an elderly father with dementia gifted his apartment to his youngest daughter, who had been caring for him alone, while the other children are claiming the gift is invalid due to the father's 'dementia.'
On the 16th, YTN Radio's "Attorney Jo In-seop's Counseling Center" reported the story of Mr. A, who had been nursing his father with dementia alone. Mr. A explained, "I recently quit my job in Seoul and was preparing for reemployment when my father collapsed, so I went back to my hometown. When I arrived, my older sisters were busy with childcare and work, so no one was able to care for our elderly father. My father could not recognize his daughters, and he once went to the police station because he got lost after going out. Eventually, we admitted him to a nursing hospital, and I visited him daily to talk."
He continued, "About a year later, my father, grateful that I was taking such good care of him compared to the other children, took me to a notary office and gifted me the apartment registered under his name, completing the ownership transfer. After that, his dementia symptoms worsened."
When the youngest daughter received the apartment gift, the eldest and second eldest sisters immediately opposed it. The sisters claimed, "That apartment was originally supposed to be ours," and argued, "The gift from a father suffering from dementia is invalid." In response, Mr. A appealed, "They left the care of our father to me and never once came down to our hometown, so it is very unfair that they are now angry."
The story quickly spread across social media and online communities. Netizens who read the story reacted with comments such as, "When people act like they don't care about family, but suddenly rush to claim their share," "Can those sisters really be called family? I hope they reflect on their behavior," and "There are truly shameless people in this world."
Meanwhile, since the parties to the gift contract are Mr. A and his father, it is practically impossible for the older sisters to file a lawsuit against the youngest sister to invalidate the gift. However, according to Article 9 of the Civil Act (Commencement of Adult Guardianship), the family court may, upon request by the person concerned, spouse, relatives within the fourth degree, or local government head, issue a judgment to commence adult guardianship for a person who continuously lacks the capacity to manage affairs due to mental limitations caused by illness, disability, old age, or other reasons. Applying this to Mr. A's case, if one of the sisters became the father's adult guardian, they could represent him and seek confirmation of the gift's invalidity. However, even if the father has dementia, if he is recognized as having capacity at the time of the legal act, it may be difficult to confirm the gift as invalid.
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