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For a long time, a spouse's wrongful conduct and property division in divorce were strongly tended to be treated as separate matters. However, a recent case, finalized by the Supreme Court's dismissal without oral argument, has become a topic of conversation for holding that "the act of the party who committed the infidelity disposing of property to the other party becomes a disadvantageous factor in calculating the property division ratio".

There was considerable interest in the legal community in how family law experts would evaluate and interpret this, and the staff at our Law Firm Jonjae were no exception.

Yoon Ji-sang, Managing Attorney and former Chief Judge of the Daejeon Family Court commented on the case in [Law Times]. 

According to the summary first provided by Managing Attorney Yoon Ji-sang, in this case, a spouse's infidelity may be considered a liquidation factor in determining the property division ratio. However, the mere fact that a spouse committed infidelity cannot by itself justify setting a different property division ratio, and the argument that the at-fault spouse provided monetary benefits to the affair partner during the affair or spent money together, thereby causing harm to the couple's joint property, so these circumstances can be reflected in the property division ratio upon divorce is reasonable.

This ruling is expected to have a positive impact on property division in future divorces, and we expect social norms to grow stronger so that people will no longer feel compelled to endure a spouse's infidelity out of fear of lacking financial means.

You can find the full text at the attached link to protect Law Times' copyright.