Seoyoungkyo Urges Passage of "Guhara Act," a Common-Sense Law Demanded by the Times

Seo Young-kyo, Chairperson of the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee, is holding a press conference urging the passage of the Goo Hara Act (Amendment to Article 1004 of the Civil Act to include those who have grossly neglected their duty of support as a disqualification for inheritance) at the National Assembly Communication Office in Yeouido, Seoul, on the morning of the 10th. Photo by Yonhap News.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ga-yeon] Seo Young-kyo, Chairperson of the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee (Democratic Party of Korea), urged the passage of the so-called "Goo Hara Act" (Civil Act amendment) that prevents parents who have neglected their support obligations from inheriting property, saying, "The Goo Hara Act is not ambiguous at all. It is a common-sense law demanded by the times."

On the 10th, Chairperson Seo held a press conference at the National Assembly Communication Office and said, "Parents who abandoned their young children should not be allowed to unconditionally take insurance money, consolation money, or remaining property when their child passes away due to an unfortunate accident."

She continued, "If we hesitate to amend the law knowing that inheritance solely because of blood relation is a major blind spot in the judicial system, many aggrieved people will continue to be unprotected. The Goo Hara Act must be passed promptly to save many unjust victims," she emphasized.

The amendment includes adding "those who have grossly neglected their support obligations" as a disqualification for parental inheritance. It was also proposed in the 20th National Assembly but was discarded due to the expiration of the session.

Regarding concerns that the term "grossly" is ambiguous, she said, "It is already frequently used in 14 articles within the Civil Act. The term 'grossly' appears in many laws, including 8 articles in the Monopoly Regulation and Fair Trade Act, 11 articles in the Inheritance Tax and Gift Tax Act, and 1 article in the Administrative Litigation Act."

At the press conference, Goo Ho-in, a bereaved family member of the late Goo Hara, appealed, "Is it truly just that parents who gave up raising their children can take inheritance property without any restrictions due to the tragic death of their child?" He added, "Even though the Goo Hara Act will not apply to us, I sincerely hope that my younger sister Hara's name can change our society."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.