Medical Specialist Attorney Assistance | Successful Reduction of Damages Through an Application for Special Qualified Acceptance of Inheritance

The clients' son killed his own wife with a bladed weapon and then took his own life.

Afterward, the parents of the deceased daughter-in-law held the clients responsible and filed a claim for damages against them for several hundred million won.

However, the son left virtually no assets at the time of his death, and the clients were also in a situation where they lacked the financial means to compensate for the loss on their own.

Accordingly, the clients came to our firm in search of an attorney with experience handling numerous related medical cases in order to obtain a reduction in the amount in the claim for damages.

Qualified acceptance refers to an heir's declaration of intent to pay the decedent's debts and legacies within the scope of the property acquired through inheritance.

An heir may make a qualified acceptance within 3 months from the date the heir became aware that the inheritance had commenced.

Under Article 1028 of the Civil Act, even if a report of qualified acceptance is accepted, the decedent's debts remain valid, but the heir is responsible for paying the debts and legacies only within the scope of the inherited property.

Special qualified acceptance refers to a qualified acceptance made by an heir who, without knowing within 3 months from the date of commencement of inheritance that the inherited debts exceed the inherited property, made a simple acceptance, and who then makes it within 3 months from the date of learning of that fact. (Article 1019, Paragraph 3 of the Civil Act)

Here, “gross negligence” means a case where the heir could have known that the inherited debts exceed the inherited property had he exercised only a little care, but failed to know this through neglect. (Supreme Court Judgment of June 10, 2010, 2010Da7904)

The clients had been diagnosed with dementia due to their advanced age and were living in a psychiatric hospital and a nursing home.

In particular, due to the extreme shock following their son’s death, they repeatedly experienced post-traumatic stress, fainting, and the like, and received emergency treatment, leaving their cognitive ability markedly diminished.

Accordingly, the medical attorney secured the clients’ psychiatric diagnosis certificates, outpatient treatment records, emergency room treatment records, and the like, and proved that the clients were in a state in which they could not make normal decisions regarding the inheritance at the time.

In the bewildering situation immediately after the incident, the clients were focused on their son’s funeral arrangements and had not actually recognized that an inherited debt existed.

Afterward, when the plaintiff’s complaint was served, they first learned of the existence of the inherited debt, and they filed for a special qualified acceptance of inheritance within 30 days from the date the complaint was served.

Accordingly, the medical attorney emphasized, on the ground that the requirement for qualified acceptance under the Civil Act of being “within 3 months from the date of becoming aware” was met, the fact that the clients were to be liable for the inherited debt only within the limit of the inherited property.

The above case is one in which the court recognized a special qualified acceptance of inheritance after arguments were made that carefully considered the clients' actual capacity and ability to recognize the debt.

In a case such as this, the assistance of a legal expert such as a medical law attorney was crucial in order to legally assess the medical and psychological condition and to protect the legal interests of persons with mental illness and the elderly.

The firm has many expert attorneys in each field who possess extensive experience not only in inheritance and family cases such as special qualified acceptance of inheritance but also in various civil cases, along with the know-how to develop arguments based on medical knowledge.

In addition, the firm cooperates with its own evidence investigation center to collect the evidence needed for a case and systematically prepares a tailored response strategy for each case.

If you are facing difficulties in a similar situation, please request assistance at any time through a legal consultation reservation with Daeryun.