What are the grounds for loss of parental authority?

What the Law Says

South Korean law outlines specific grounds under which a parent may lose parental authority. The Civil Act governs these conditions and empowers the Family Court to terminate authority when necessary to protect the child.

Under Article 913 of the Civil Act, parental authority may be revoked by the Family Court if a parent abandons, abuses, or seriously neglects the child; suffers from a severe mental disorder that impairs parenting ability; or commits a crime that harms the child’s welfare.

Abandonment is defined as failing to provide care or supervision for six months or more without justifiable cause. Abuse includes physical, emotional, or sexual harm, while neglect refers to persistent failure to meet the child’s basic needs for health, safety, or development.

The court must determine that termination serves the child’s best interests — specifically, their welfare and healthy development — and that no lesser measure (e.g., counseling or supervised visitation) would suffice.

Statutory Text

The family court may, upon request of the child, a relative, the public prosecutor, or the head of a local government, revoke parental authority if the parent has abandoned, abused, or seriously neglected the child, suffers from a serious mental disorder, or has committed a crime that harms the child’s welfare.

— Civil Act, Art. 913 — Revocation of Parental Authority

What to Do

Sources