Judicial divorce:
a lawsuit in which you prove a statutory ground with evidence

Six situations in which divorce by judgment is possible

An item 6 ground refers to a state in which the affection and trust between the spouses have collapsed beyond recovery, so that forcing the marriage to continue would cause one spouse unbearable suffering. The court considers a range of factors, such as whether there is a will to continue the marriage, who caused the breakdown, the length of the marriage and the children, the spouses' ages, and how each will support themselves after divorce. The Supreme Court held that it can also fall under this ground when a spouse, without consulting the other and without good reason, disposes of a core part of the property the couple built together and undermines the household's economic foundation (Supreme Court Decision 2025Meu10730, decided September 4, 2025).

How the lawsuit proceeds

1. Mediation firstA divorce suit is a Class B family litigation case, so mediation must come first. Even if you file a complaint without applying for mediation, the court will refer the case to mediation (Articles 2 and 50 of the Family Litigation Act). Guide to family mediation
2. Main action and joinder of claimsIf mediation fails, the trial proper begins. Claims rooted in the divorce, namely who will have parental authority and custody, child support, alimony and property division, are heard together in one case and resolved by a single judgment (Article 14).
3. Securing interim measuresDuring the lawsuit you can seek a pre-trial disposition (sajeon cheobun, an interim order), for example prohibiting disposal of property or temporarily arranging the children's care (Article 62). However, a pre-trial disposition is not enforceable, so to actually freeze property you must also obtain a provisional attachment or provisional injunction (Article 63). Guide to pre-trial dispositions
4. Hearings and family investigationIn a divorce suit, the case does not end merely because the other party admits the claim or the facts (proviso to Article 12); the court checks on its own whether a ground exists. In cases with children, a family investigation officer usually looks into the household situation.
5. Report after finalityOnce the judgment is final, file the report within one month, attaching a certified copy of the judgment and a certificate of finality (Articles 78 and 58 of the Act on Registration of Family Relations). The person with parental authority is designated by the court on its own motion (Article 909(5) of the Civil Act).

When the spouse at fault files for divorce first

The Supreme Court maintained the principle that a divorce claim filed by the spouse mainly at fault is not accepted. Its reasoning was that a spouse at fault can still divorce by persuading the other spouse through divorce by agreement, and that the system for protecting a spouse who is divorced against his or her will is not yet adequate. At the same time, the Court said an exception can be allowed when the fault no longer bars the divorce claim, as in the following situations (Supreme Court en banc Decision 2013Meu568, decided September 15, 2015).

• When the other spouse also has no intention of continuing the marriage, so the divorce can hardly be seen as one spouse being forced out by the other's will
• When the other spouse and the children have been sufficiently protected and cared for, so that the fault can be regarded as offset
• When so much time has passed that strictly determining who bears more responsibility has lost its meaning

In deciding whether an exception applies, the court weighs the gravity of the fault, whether the other spouse wishes to preserve the marriage and his or her feelings, the spouses' ages and length of marriage, the length of separation and how they lived during it, whether the other spouse's livelihood after divorce is secured, and how minor children are being raised. A long separation alone does not decide the outcome.

Collect evidence lawfully

In the end, a ground for divorce is proven with evidence. Messages and photos, medical certificates, bank transaction records, and resident registration records showing when you began living apart are the basic materials. However, secretly recording or eavesdropping on conversations between other people in which you are not a participant violates the Protection of Communications Secrets Act (Articles 3(1) and 14(1)). Check your collection methods first so that gathering evidence does not end in a criminal complaint against you. Lawful limits of evidence collection →

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Written on the basis of Korean statutes in force (National Law Information Center, Ministry of Government Legislation) and court precedents as of October 20, 2026. Results may differ with amendments to the law or the facts of each case. This page is general information, not legal advice.

Written and reviewed by Attorney Dongwoo Shin — Ph.D. in Law; certified criminal law specialist and certified divorce law specialist registered with the Korean Bar Association. He handles each case personally from consultation to judgment. About the attorney →
Last updated October 20, 2026