Juvenile Protection Trial Procedure

Which step are you at?

Select your current step and the content for that step will appear below.

1. 1Referral to the juvenile division / Notification
2. 2Receipt of the case and appointment of an assistant
3. 3Inquiry by a juvenile investigator
4. 4Hearing date
5. 5Decision on protective disposition
6. 6Appeal

• Basic step
• Additional action / option
• Rejection / objection
• End of procedure

Time required

Varies by case

Cost

Custody costs arise for temporary measures of entrustment to a guardian or a hospital, etc., or for dispositions No. 1, 6 and 7. The guardian must pay all or part of them to the place the child is entrusted to. If the guardian cannot afford it, the juvenile division may pay. The cost of appointing an assistant is separate

Procedure guide

Read from start to finish in order. Red text marks deadlines set by law.

1. 1

   How a case is sent (referred) to the juvenile division of the family court depends on the child's age. For offending juveniles aged 14 to under 19, a prosecutor of the Public Prosecution Office (formerly the Prosecutors' Office) refers the case; for juveniles aged 10 to 13 who violated criminal law (촉법소년, not subject to criminal punishment), the chief of the police station refers it to the juvenile division. Notification, in which a school principal or guardian informs the court directly without going through the police, is also possible.

2. 2

   Once the juvenile division receives the case, it explains how to appoint an assistant (who acts as the juvenile's defense counsel). Where necessary, a court-appointed assistant is assigned. The guardian may also hire a lawyer as a private assistant to prepare for the hearing.

3. 3

   A juvenile investigator looks into the child's upbringing, school life, the causes of the delinquency (wrongful behavior) and the guardian's ability to provide care, and submits a report. Along with this, a classification review at a juvenile classification review center (placing the child there for a set period to review character and environment) may be carried out.

4. 4

   In a closed courtroom, the judge hears the case of the child and the guardian. The victim may state an opinion. The assistant argues about the child's remorse, the settlement with the victim and a plan to keep the child from doing wrong again (plan to prevent reoffending). The judge considers expert diagnoses and the results of the classification review and inquiry (§12), and if the child has reconciled with the victim, the judge may take this into account when deciding the disposition (§25-3(3)).

5. 5

   The judge decides on the protective disposition. The judge chooses among No. 1 entrustment to a guardian, No. 2-3 attendance at a course and community service, No. 4-5 probation, No. 6-7 entrustment to a facility, and No. 8-10 commitment to a juvenile reformatory, and may impose several dispositions together (combined) within the combinations set by law (Juvenile Act §32(2)). This is a separate procedure from the measures of the School Violence Countermeasures Deliberation Committee, so the two procedures can go on at the same time.

6. 6

   If you find the decision hard to accept, you can file an appeal within 7 days from the date the decision is announced.

   Current step

Frequently asked questions

Practical questions that come up right away in this procedure.

QDoes a juvenile protective disposition give my child a criminal record?

A protective disposition is not a criminal penalty. The law states that a protective disposition of a juvenile does not affect the juvenile's future personal status in any way.Agencies related to a juvenile protection case do not respond to inquiries about the details of the case. The only exceptions are when it is needed for a trial, an investigation or military purposes.However, investigation history data (a record that the person was investigated) is kept inside the investigative agencies separately from criminal history. When it is deleted depends on the outcome of the case.

QDoes the guardian have to appear? Do we need a lawyer?

A guardian who is summoned must also appear. If the guardian fails to respond without a justifiable reason, a warrant of accompaniment (a warrant to bring the person in by force) may be issued.The judge may also order the guardian to receive special education. A lawyer can be appointed as the assistant.A child entrusted to a juvenile classification review center is assigned a court-appointed assistant. In other cases, a court-appointed assistant may be assigned on application.

QWhat is placement in a juvenile classification review center, and how long does it take?

It means the child is placed in a juvenile classification review center before the hearing so that the child's character and environment can be reviewed. It lasts up to 1 month and can be extended once.The child cannot come home during that period, so check with the school how attendance will be handled. The head of the juvenile classification review center must allow visits unless, for example, they would interfere with corrective education.

QIf commitment to a juvenile reformatory is ordered, how long will my child stay there?

It depends on the type of disposition. No. 8 is up to 1 month, No. 9 (short-term commitment) is up to 6 months, and No. 10 (long-term commitment) is up to 2 years. A juvenile reformatory may have a reformatory school offering elementary and secondary courses, as set by the Minister of Justice.

QHow do we reach a settlement with the victim?

The guardian apologizes to the victim's side, agrees on medical costs and consolation money, and obtains a written settlement. That settlement is submitted to the court before the hearing. If it is a school violence case, this is separate from the School Violence Countermeasures Deliberation Committee procedure.So you submit the settlement to both. If the victim's side refuses contact, try again through the assistant.

QDoes filing an appeal stop the execution of the protective disposition?

No. Filing an appeal does not stop the execution of the protective disposition. If commitment to a juvenile reformatory was ordered, the child goes to the reformatory even while the appeal is pending.A disposition can be changed only on application by the agency executing it or by the judge on the judge's own authority. So the guardian should carefully prepare the grounds for appeal.