[Interview] Jin Hyeonghye, Lawyer of 'Three Sons': "'State Payment of Child Support' Is My Top Priority Bill"

‘Solomon-ui Seontaek’ Jin Hyeonghye Byeonhosa
Gyeongbuk Pohang (Nam·Ulleung) Chulsapyo
Three Sons Entrusted to Mother, a ‘Working Mom’
Advocates ‘Abolishing Income Limits for Childbirth Support’

"The number one bill I want to push for once I enter the National Assembly is the state payment of child support." This is the aspiration expressed by Jin Hyung-hye, a lawyer at GL Law Firm (age 53, Vice President of the Korean Women Lawyers Association), who has lived as a working mom raising three sons for over 20 years, as she jumps into the April 10 general election.

Jinhyeonghye, Attorney at Law, GL Law Firm.
Photo by Attorney Jin

On the 25th of last month, Jin registered as a preliminary candidate for the People Power Party in the Nam-Pohang and Ulleung district and opened her campaign office in Nam-gu, Pohang on the 3rd of this month. In an interview with Asia Economy, Jin showed special interest in establishing a social childcare system. She is a working mom raising three sons. She revealed that she was able to maintain her legal career for over 20 years with the help of her mother, who is over eighty years old. She said, "The reality is that not every family can receive this kind of help," and added, "One of the legislative activities I most want to pursue upon entering the National Assembly is to organize a social childcare system so that in dual-income families, no family member has to sacrifice like a grandmother does."

On the 3rd, Jin Hyung-hye, a lawyer who registered as a preliminary candidate for the People Power Party in the Nam-Ulleung district of Pohang City on the 25th of last month, opened an election office in Nam-gu, Pohang City, and held an opening ceremony. The photo shows her eldest son, Kim Ji-won, reading a letter to Jin Hyung-hye and offering support. Photo by Moon Hye-won

Born in 1971 in Pohang, Gyeongbuk, Jin graduated from Pohang Steel Middle and High School and Seoul National University with a degree in German Education. She passed the 41st bar exam and completed the 31st Judicial Research and Training Institute. She was the lawyer for the victim students in the real case behind the movie "Silenced (Dogani)," securing prison sentences for the perpetrators, and also handled the Gyeongbuk Chilgok child abuse case, which inspired the movie "The Child Client." She has appeared as a lawyer panelist and debater on SBS's "Solomon's Choice," gaining public recognition.

Jin stated that her first legislative bill idea is the "state payment of child support." She said, "During my time as a lawyer, I have handled many child support payment lawsuits, especially in cases involving divorced families." She continued, "While court rulings order payment of child support or alimony, the problem is that child support is not a one-time payment, and often payments are not made properly." She explained, "According to a 2021 KBS statistical report, about 80% of child support payments were not properly received. However, children do not stop growing during that period."

She added, "If children in divorced or single-parent families grow up in poverty without receiving child support, they are more likely to face difficult developmental challenges. In juvenile crime cases I have handled, I could not simply criticize the situations of such children," and emphasized, "When child support is not paid, the state, having the power, should claim reimbursement rights and ensure payment."

Regarding her election pledge to make Pohang the best city to raise children, she said, "There should be no income restrictions on all childbirth and childcare support measures," and argued, "Even if childbirth and childcare expenses are supported for low-income families, if children are abused or sent to orphanages, the support loses its meaning, so it should be approached as a universal welfare issue." She also noted, "Currently, Pohang's low birthrate support is at a much poorer level compared to other regions," and said, "We need to compare and investigate with other regions in the future, but at the very least, it should be raised to the level of other regions."

On local issues, Jin expressed her determination to resolve the compensation for the 2017 Pohang earthquake damage through legislation in the National Assembly rather than individual lawsuits. Jin explained, "Currently, all citizens of Pohang must become plaintiffs and stand in court for the Pohang earthquake damage compensation, which is a very big problem," and added, "I plan to prioritize revising the related special law to resolve this collectively."