"Two Sons I Never Gave Birth to on My Family Registry"... Shocking Truth Hidden by Ex-Husband

A Woman Discovers Ex-Husband Secretly Registered Sons Born from a Previous Common-Law Relationship
"Must File a Lawsuit to Confirm the Non-Existence of a Parent-Child Relationship"

A story has emerged about a woman who discovered, only recently, that her divorced ex-husband had secretly registered two sons under her family registry.

According to YTN Radio's "Attorney Cho Inseop's Counseling Center" on August 13, Ms. A married a man in 1971 who is now her ex-husband. Ms. A shared, "My husband was kind to every woman, and I thought it would be better to live alone, so I divorced him around the time our daughter entered college." After the divorce, the two lived separate lives for a long time.

The issue began when Ms. A recently received a notification. It stated that her child had been designated as a basic livelihood security recipient. Ms. A initially dismissed it, thinking it was an administrative error, but when she later received a notice for unpaid fines, she began to question the situation.

Ms. A explained, "I immediately requested a copy of my family registry and found that there were two sons listed whom I had never given birth to. It turned out these children were born to a woman with whom my ex-husband had a de facto marriage before we wed. After marrying me, he secretly registered their births under my name without my knowledge."

Attorney Shin Goun from the law firm Shinsegye Law, who heard about the case, advised, "Legally, a child born during marriage is 'presumed' to be the husband's child. Therefore, to correct the family registry, you must file a 'denial of paternity lawsuit' and obtain a court decision." This lawsuit must be filed within two years of discovering that the child is not biologically related.

He continued, "On the other hand, if the child was born before the marriage and is not subject to the presumption of paternity, the situation can be rectified through a 'lawsuit to confirm the nonexistence of a parent-child relationship.' There is no specific time limit for this lawsuit, but if the party involved has already died, it must be filed within two years of learning of their death."

However, genetic testing is required to prove biological relationships, and if the whereabouts of the other party are unknown, the test cannot be conducted and the lawsuit may be dismissed. In such cases, the missing person declaration system can be used to legally declare the person deceased, which can help prevent future inheritance issues.