"School Violence, Parents Also Liable"... Elementary Student Ordered to Pay 18 Million Won for Throwing Stone at Friend

A Total of 22 Million Won in Damages Ordered for Elementary School Offender and Parents
Legal Community: "Precedents Increasingly Hold Parents Responsible"

A court has ruled that an elementary school student who threw a stone at a friend's face, causing injury, and the student's parents, must pay 22 million won in compensation.

According to the legal community on April 20, the Dongbu Branch of the Busan District Court (Judge Kim Jooyoung) ruled in a damages lawsuit filed by elementary school student A against his school friend B and B's parents, ordering, "B and his parents must pay A 22 million won in compensation." This ruling means that if a minor elementary school student commits school violence, the parents of the perpetrator are liable for damages.

An elementary school student who threw a stone at a friend's face causing injury, and the student's parents, were ordered to pay 22 million won in compensation. Yonhap News

On October 5, 2023, at a playground inside an elementary school in Busan, B threw a stone at A. As a result, A sustained a 1 cm wound below the left eye, a 2 cm wound on the left cheek, and a 1 cm wound below the nose.

Medical examination revealed that A would require scar revision surgery and multiple laser treatments. In the worst-case scenario, some scars could remain permanently even if the wounds heal. Due to this incident, B received a written apology order from the school's violence countermeasure committee.

The court found B liable for 18 million won in damages, and each of B's parents liable for 2 million won. B's attorney argued that the perpetrator was only nine years old and therefore lacked legal capacity, but the court did not accept this argument.

The court stated, "A witness to the assault testified that 'B seemed likely to be called before the school violence committee after this incident' and was crying," adding, "The defendant had the mental capacity to recognize responsibility for his actions."

The court further explained, "Parents have a duty to educate and supervise their minor children to prevent them from committing harmful acts against others in daily life," and determined that "B's parents neglected this duty of supervision and guidance, which led to the assault in this case, and therefore share joint liability for damages."

This case is an example where, even if a minor with the capacity for discernment commits an unlawful act, the parents are still recognized as having separate, individual supervisory responsibility and are held separately liable for damages. Legal experts have advised, "Even if the perpetrator is young and not directly liable for damages, there are increasing rulings holding parents responsible. Therefore, it is advantageous to apologize to the victim and seek an amicable settlement."