"An Affair, But No Inappropriate Relationship"... The Unbelievable Explanation of the Wife

Wife's Text Message Captured Sent to Sangganman
Exposure of Adultery-Related Information May Result in Punishment

A husband claiming to be shocked and troubled after discovering text messages his wife sent to a man she was having an affair with has shared his story. On the 27th, an online community called BobaeDream posted a thread titled "Conversation with my wife's affair partner."

A story has been shared about a husband who claims to have fallen into shock and distress after discovering text messages his wife sent to a man she was having an affair with. On the 27th, an online community called BobaeDream posted an article titled "Conversation Between Wife and Her Affair Partner." The photo is unrelated to the specific content of the article. [Photo by Yonhap News]

The author, Mr. A, uploaded a screenshot of text messages he said his wife sent to the affair partner. The messages included content about the wife closing her store and sending a certain amount of money, asking the man to break up. References to menstruation or surgery suggest that sexual relations likely occurred.

Mr. A stated, "I accidentally found out about the messages my wife sent to the affair partner she had been seeing for a year," and added, "My wife insists to the end that they never had sexual relations." He also asked netizens for their opinions, wondering if he was mistaken in assuming sexual relations based on the mention of 'menstruation.' Netizens who read the story responded with comments such as, "Once trust is lost, it's hard to recover," "It's like saying you drank and drove but didn't drive drunk," and "It definitely looks like sexual relations happened."

Although adultery is no longer criminally punishable, claiming damages is still possible

The author, Mr. A, posted a photo capturing a text message that his wife allegedly sent to her lover. (Some parts are mosaic-censored) The content in the photo can be interpreted as: "I will no longer go to the store, I will give the store to my husband. You probably won't contact me, but I'm telling you in advance. I will also change my number and not contact you."
[Photo by Online Community BobaeDream]

According to statistics released by Statistics Korea in 2023, there were approximately 93,200 divorces domestically. Among these, the leading cause of divorce was the spouse's infidelity. However, since the Constitutional Court ruled adultery unconstitutional, many married individuals believe that having an affair while legally married does not constitute a criminal offense and thus see no illegality in infidelity.

Nevertheless, the civil illegality of adultery is clear. If a married person maintains a marital relationship with their legal spouse but forms an affair with someone else, it is a clear illegal act against the spouse. Furthermore, the affair partner can also be held jointly liable as a co-perpetrator of the illegal act against the spouse.

In the past, for criminal prosecution of adultery, strong evidence suggesting sexual relations?such as evidence reasonably inferring sexual intercourse?was required. In many cases, spouses attempting to collect evidence faced difficulties, sometimes being sued by the other party for illegal acts or failing to prove adultery due to lack of evidence. However, in civil lawsuits, it is not necessary to directly prove sexual intercourse for adultery to be recognized as an illegal act. Factors such as the duration of the affair, the nature of the relationship (degree of physical contact), repeated dates, and phone calls can also establish adultery as a civil illegal act.

Even if there is insufficient evidence to prove the spouse's adultery, if there are text messages or photo evidence that raise suspicion of adultery, the court process can clarify the illegal act by obtaining credit card usage records, communication details, and CCTV footage through evidence preservation requests.

However, publicly exposing the adultery of a spouse or affair partner to an unspecified large audience can lead to charges of 'defamation.' Last month, a wife who posted screenshots of conversations between her husband and his affair partner on her social media (SNS) was fined 1 million won. There have also been cases where no punishment was given because the individuals were not specifically identified.

In May of last year, a woman in her 40s who held a solo picket protest near the store of her husband's affair partner with a sign saying "Let's not have an affair" was acquitted. The picket did not contain any wording that could identify the affair partner, and no specific facts were revealed.