'Gu Hara Act' Passes National Assembly Subcommittee... Depriving Abusive Family Members of Inheritance Rights

The so-called 'Goo Hara Act' (Civil Code amendment), which allows for the deprivation of inheritance rights of heirs who fail to fulfill their support obligations, passed the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee's bill review subcommittee on the 7th.

The amendment restricts the inheritance rights of statutory heirs who are not qualified to inherit, such as those who have failed to fulfill their support obligations to the decedent or have committed crimes such as abuse.

The subcommittee of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee merged about ten bills proposed by ruling and opposition lawmakers and the government, and approved them as a committee alternative.

The Goo Hara Act is named after the late singer Goo Hara, who died in 2019. Her older brother, Goo Ho-in, petitioned for legislation, claiming that their biological mother, who abandoned the young Goo and ran away, was trying to claim half of the inheritance after Goo's death.

Odongwoon, Candidate for Head of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials, Approved by the Judiciary Committee

(Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Han Jong-chan = Kim Do-eup, Chairman of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, is striking the gavel at the full meeting of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee held at the National Assembly on the afternoon of the 7th. The Judiciary Committee approved the agenda to adopt the plan for the personnel hearing of Odongwoon, candidate for the head of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials, at the full meeting that day. 2024.5.7
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The Goo Hara Act was also proposed during the 20th National Assembly but was discarded due to expiration of the term without proper discussion amid political conflicts. Subsequently, the Ministry of Justice submitted related bills to the National Assembly in June 2022, and now the bill is on the verge of being processed after about two years.

The subcommittee's approval this day appears to have been influenced by last month's Constitutional Court decision. The Constitutional Court ruled that recognizing the statutory portion of inheritance for heirs who have committed disgraceful acts such as long-term abandonment or mental and physical abuse of the decedent is against the legal sentiment and common sense of the general public, declaring it unconstitutional.

The amendment introduces a 'loss of inheritance rights declaration system,' allowing lawsuits to be filed to prevent biological parents who have failed to fulfill their child-rearing obligations or committed crimes such as abuse from receiving inheritance.

The amendment allows the decedent to express their intention to deprive inheritance rights through a will or other means, and specifies reasons for the loss of inheritance rights declaration, including serious violations of support obligations to minor decedents, committing serious crimes against the decedent or their spouse or direct descendants, or other severely unfair treatment.

The amendment will take effect in January 2026 if it passes the full Legislation and Judiciary Committee meeting and the National Assembly plenary session.

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