Civil Law and Social Changes in Korea in the Past 30 Years

Abstract

AbstractThe Republic of Korea has experienced a period of rapid social change, which is generally referred to as “compressed and shortened development”. Since the Seoul Olympics in 1988, social changes have progressed more rapidly. Korea has responded quite successfully to the rapid social changes in the field of civil law. However, not all aspects of Korean civil law responded as successfully as others. The development of property law in the Korean Civil Code has lagged behind the development of family law. Property Law has mainly responded to social changes through the legislation of special acts. Family Law has responded promptly and continuously through a number of amendments of the KCC while also developing by way of adoption and amendment of special family law acts. As a result of such different responses, it could be said that property law in the KCC is more akin to a top down “Law in the Book” legislative exercise, where family law is in contrast “Law in Action”, resulting from the influences of the advocacy of women-led women’s rights civic groups, academic works of progressive family law scholars, and judgments of unconstitutionality and constitutional nonconformity of clauses of the KCC by the Constitutional Court. Presently, in the field of property law, high increases in real estate prices, real estate speculation, irregular real estate transactions by abnormal legal methods, and the incomplete recapture of windfalls are becoming growing social problems. It is hoped that in the future, real estate transactions could be normalized by way of notarization of the contract of purchase and sale and by developing legislation that facilitates the recapturing of windfalls resulting from social development projects. Much work has been done to help Korean civil law keep pace with a rapidly changing Korean society, but much work remains to be done. In the field of family law, it should be noted that the rights and interests of children whose parents have divorced should be subject to strong legal protections. Minors should be protected against the misuse of the internet through the use of sophisticated smartphones and other electronic devices. Moreover, the growing number of immigrant foreign workers, North Korean escapees, and refugees arriving in Korea has created a strong need for the legislation of an act of equal treatment (e.g., an anti-discrimination act or equality act) to protect such individuals from discrimination. Ultimately, Korean civil law shall pursue and realize justice and love, which are the eternal and utmost important values of mankind. Justice and love are the ultimate goals of the KCC and all special civil acts. This paper proposes that Korean society should evolve beyond extreme individualistic egoism and gradually transition into communitarianism. Korean civil law shall be imbued with the characteristics of social law in parallel with the changes of Korean society toward communitarianism.KeywordsCivil codeSocial changeWomen’s rightsUrbanizationIndustrializationTechnological innovation