Same-sex couples and their lawyers pose during a press conference to announce a so-called "marriage equality lawsuit" in Seoul, Thursday. Eleven couples said they would file lawsuits against district offices for rejecting their marriage registrations. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

Eleven Korean same-sex couples are set to file a lawsuit against Seoul district offices following the rejection of their marriage registrations, the plaintiffs and their lawyers said Thursday.

The plaintiffs are members of the LGBTQ+ community from all walks of life who have attempted to register their marriage through municipalities but were rejected.

"Excluding same-sex marriage from the definition of marriage under the Civil Code is unconstitutional and violates the plaintiffs' fundamental rights," Baek So-youn, an attorney from the legal counsel for the marriage equality lawsuit, said during a press conference in Seoul organized by local civic group Marriage for All.

Marriage equality is not only a fundamental issue of dignity but also an "urgent matter of livelihood" to secure "equal protection, respect and recognition that their fellow citizens earn from marriage," the group said.

Han Eun-jeong, center, hugs her daughter Hwang Yun-ha, left, and her partner Park Ee-young-keul, after delivering a message of solidarity during the press conference on the so-called "marriage equality lawsuit" in Seoul, Thursday. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

Among the plaintiffs were Kim Kyu-jin and Kim Sae-yeon, Korea's first lesbian couple who gave birth to a child last year through sperm donation; and Kim Yong-min and So Sung-uk, the gay couple whose case led to the Constitutional Court's landmark ruling extending state health insurance benefits to a same-sex partner last year.

The plaintiffs' 11 cases will be submitted to six local courts, including the Seoul Family Court, Seoul's four district courts; and the Bucheon Branch of Incheon Family Court, challenging the constitutionality of the current Civil Code, which excludes same-sex couples from marriage.

If the courts accept the applications, a legal trial will be submitted to the Constitutional Court. If the applications are rejected, the plaintiffs will each file a constitutional appeal directly with the Constitutional Court.

The legal team consisting of 13 lawyers will file the complaints, Friday, arguing the current Civil Code violates same-sex couples' basic rights guaranteed by the Constitution and the right to pursue happiness.

This is the second lawsuit the country has seen against the administrative rejection of same-sex marriage.

Kim Jho Gwang-soo and his partner Dave Kim speak during the press conference on the so-called "marriage equality lawsuit" in Seoul, Thursday. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

In May 2014, filmmaker Kim Jho Gwang-soo and his partner Dave Kim filed a lawsuit in Seoul Western District Court to appeal the rejection of their marriage registration by the municipality. It was dismissed both at the first trial and in appeal.

"Not only in Taiwan but also in Thailand, legal protection for LGBTQ+ rights is being expanded. This trend is gradually spreading throughout Asia ... Korea can no longer ignore it. We need to move toward a more equal and inclusive society, and it will begin with marriage equality," Kim Jho said during the press conference.

According to a 2021 paper in the Journal of Adolescent Health, which analyzed suicide data in 36 OECD countries from 1991 to 2017, the youth suicide rate decreased by 17.8 percent after legalizing same-sex marriage.

Same-sex marriage is currently legalized in 39 countries worldwide, including three in Asia — Taiwan, Nepal and Thailand.

Some 40 percent of Koreans support the recognition of same-sex marriage according to a 2023 Gallup Korea survey, which is a 15 percent increase from 10 years ago.