Wanted to Marry a 'Big Company Man'... Woman Lies About Pregnancy and Hides 300 Million Won Debt

"Lied About Being Pregnant" and Hid Debts Exceeding 300 Million Won

Expert: "Annulment Difficult... Marriage Cancellation Lawsuit Possible"

If a wife not only falsely claims to be pregnant to hasten the marriage registration but also hides the fact that she has debts exceeding 100 million won, is it possible to have the marriage annulled? Although annulling the marriage may be difficult, experts advise that it is possible to file for cancellation of the marriage.

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On March 30, during YTN Radio's "Lawyer Inseop Cho's Counseling Center," the story of a man identified as Mr. A, who works as a researcher at a large corporation, was introduced. Eight months ago, Mr. A met his current wife through a dating application. The two began dating while the wife was running a beauty salon, and they became close in a short period of time.

Around three months into their relationship, the wife announced that she was pregnant and showed him an ultrasound photo. After promising to get married, they started living together at Mr. A's house. At one point, the wife claimed she was at risk of preterm birth and requested, "Let's register our marriage before the baby is born." Mr. A agreed to this request.

Secret Abortion Surgery... Later Revealed to Be a Lie

One day, while at work, Mr. A heard something shocking from his wife. She claimed that, due to the poor condition of the fetus, she had just undergone an abortion. When Mr. A questioned how she could make such a big decision alone, the wife avoided the conversation.

Growing suspicious, Mr. A visited the hospital where his wife claimed to have been treated. To his surprise, she was not a patient at that hospital. When confronted, the wife tearfully confessed, "I lied because I was afraid you might leave for another woman due to your good circumstances."

Infidelity and Hidden Debts

However, the real shock was yet to come. By chance, Mr. A looked at his wife's phone and discovered that she had been secretly communicating with several men until recently. To make matters worse, she had debts exceeding 300 million won.

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"Annulment Difficult... Cancellation and Damages Claim Possible"

Lawyer Choyoon Yong of the law firm Shinsegye-ro, who reviewed the case, stated, "It will be difficult to obtain an annulment, which is only recognized when the marriage is considered not to have existed from the beginning. Annulment can be granted if there was no intention to marry or if the parties were in a prohibited degree of kinship. Although Mr. A was deceived by the claim of pregnancy into registering the marriage, he did not lack the intention to marry itself. Therefore, the requirements for annulment are not met."

He continued, "However, cancellation of the marriage is possible. A lawsuit for marriage cancellation must be filed within six months from the date the grounds for cancellation are discovered. It appears that Mr. A would not have married if he had known about the false pregnancy. Civil law stipulates that a marriage can be canceled if consent was obtained through fraud or coercion. If the other party either provides false information or fails to disclose facts that would influence the decision to marry, it constitutes fraud."

He added, "Mr. A can also claim damages. The wife's concealment of her financial situation and her continued infidelity after marriage will be taken into consideration as grounds for damages. Since the effect of marriage is nullified from the date the cancellation verdict is finalized, if the wife met other men during the marriage, Mr. A can also claim damages from those men."

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