You may need a consultation if
- You saw messages showing your husband behaving like a couple with another man
- Your wife used pet names with a female friend and exchanged photos of physical intimacy
- Your spouse exchanges expressions of love every day with someone met on a chat app
- They say they never met, but video calls and gifts were exchanged
- The affair partner claims they are "just friends"
Relevant provisions
Civil Act (민법) Article 840, item 1 (Grounds for judicial divorce)
If a spouse has committed an unchaste act, the other spouse can file for judicial divorce. Case law interprets an unchaste act more broadly than adultery, as any conduct that falls short of a spouse's duty of fidelity (Supreme Court Decision 92므68, rendered November 10, 1992).
Civil Act Article 760 (Liability of joint tortfeasors)
A third party who engages in infidelity with one spouse and thereby infringes on the couple's shared married life in principle commits a tort and is jointly liable with that spouse (Supreme Court Decision 2013므2441, rendered May 29, 2015).
Statutes are summarized. The official Korean text is available at the Korea Law Information Center (law.go.kr).
It can be infidelity even without sex
Not being able to prove sex directly does not block an affair lawsuit. The court looks at the degree and circumstances of the relationship, and if expressions of affection and meetings of the kind lovers have continued, it can find infidelity (부정행위).
Conversations with pet names and repeated "I love you" or "I miss you," records of traveling or staying overnight together alone, and photos of physical contact are used as material for this judgment.
The same applies if the other person is the same sex
Infidelity does not depend on the other person's sex. If your spouse had a romantic relationship with someone of the same sex, the same standards as for an opposite-sex affair apply to whether it was infidelity and whether the other person knew of the marriage.
Between people of the same sex, the explanation "we're just close friends" comes up easily. Expressions not used between friends, signs of trying to hide the relationship, and records of meeting after lying to you are important.
Relationships carried on only online
A relationship involving only chats, video calls and gifts may also be found to be infidelity, depending on its content and duration. However, the scope of recognition is narrower than when there are actual meetings, and even if recognized, compensation (위자료) may be set lower.
In online relationships, you often don't know the other person's real name or address. First secure clues that can identify them, such as account IDs, phone numbers, money transfer records and gift delivery addresses.
How Jisan Law's Family Law Center handles your case
- 1
Reviewing the conversations
A managing partner personally looks at whether the messages read as a romantic relationship and which parts are weak.
- 2
Identifying the other person
We identify the other person through accounts, phone numbers and transfer records, and if needed apply to the court for a fact inquiry.
- 3
Building the argument
We write the complaint by combining the duration and degree of the relationship with evidence that the other person knew of the marriage.
- 4
Mediation and judgment
If the other side argues they were just friends, we submit rebuttal evidence, and in mediation we also negotiate a no-contact clause.
Lawyers handling these cases
Hansol Kim Managing Partner
Former prosecutor at the Incheon District Prosecutors' Office, the Ansan Branch of the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office and the Hongseong Branch of the Daejeon District Prosecutors' Office
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Miso Kim Partner
Formerly at Daehwan Law Firm, in-house counsel on the legal team of Wemade Co., Ltd., and Oracle Law Firm
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Frequently asked questions
My spouse is strangely close to a same-sex friend, but the evidence is unclear.
Meeting or contacting each other often is not enough on its own. The test is whether there are expressions used between lovers, physical contact, or signs that they met while deceiving you. Lay out the material you have now in date order and start by checking where the gaps are.
My spouse had an online romance with someone living abroad. Can I sue?
It may be found to be infidelity, but if the other person lives abroad, service and enforcement are difficult, so you need to weigh whether it is worthwhile. We also consider raising the infidelity as a ground for divorce in a divorce lawsuit against your spouse.
We are a same-sex couple. Can I claim against my partner's affair partner?
Under current law, it is difficult for same-sex couples to receive the same protection as a legal or de facto marriage. Depending on how long you lived together and what your life together looked like, there may be room to argue, but there is no established standard yet, so it must be reviewed individually with the evidence you have.