Suwon District Court / Korea Times file

A mother-in-law who sued to nullify the transfer of two houses to her daughter-in-law after she filed for divorce lost in an appeals court trial.

According to legal sources, Monday, the Suwon District Court's Civil Division 4-3 overturned the initial ruling that had favored the mother-in-law, dismissing her claim against her daughter-in-law.

In 2021, the mother-in-law transferred the ownership of two multifamily housing units to her daughter-in-law, one as a gift and the other through a sales transaction. However, soon after, tensions arose when the daughter-in-law, suspecting her husband of infidelity, confirmed the affair and informed her in-laws of her intent to divorce. After the property transfer was completed, she lived separately from her husband and filed for divorce approximately six months later.

In the first trial, the court ruled in favor of the mother-in-law, stating, "The plaintiff was unaware that the defendant intended to file for divorce after acquiring ownership of the properties. It appears that the mother-in-law handed over the necessary documents, including her seal certificate and seal stamp, under the belief that the daughter-in-law would maintain her marriage. Had she known of the daughter-in-law's divorce plans, she would not have provided the documents."

However, the appeals court ruled differently. The judges found no evidence that the daughter-in-law had deceived her or that the mother-in-law, being elderly, lacked the mental capacity to make the decision.

"The mother-in-law's claim that she was unaware of the daughter-in-law's intent to file for divorce and that she expected the daughter-in-law to continue the marriage is merely a subjective assumption," the ruling stated. "Based on these points, there is insufficient evidence to conclude that the property transfer was invalid due to a lack of consent from the mother-in-law."

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.