Court grants limited inheritance to siblings who lost mother in Jeju Air crash

Snow blankets the crash site at Muan International Airport in South Jeolla Province, Jan. 7, 10 days after the Jeju Air accident. Yonhap

A pair of siblings who lost their mother in a Jeju Air plane crash last December will not be held personally liable for her debts, after a court granted a limited inheritance ruling.

According to the Korea Legal Aid Corp. (KLAC) on Tuesday, the Gwangju Family Court on May 27 approved a limited inheritance for the two children and appointed their maternal grandmother as legal guardian.

The ruling means the siblings will only be responsible for paying off their late mother’s debts within the value of the assets they inherited, and not from their own personal property.

The siblings became primary heirs after their mother died in the Jeju Air crash at Muan International Airport on Dec. 29, 2024. Their father had passed away earlier, and they had been living with their mother.

The sudden loss left them not only grieving but also inheriting their mother’s estate, which included outstanding debt.

Instead of opting for full inheritance rejection, KLAC helped the family file for limited approval, ensuring the children would not be burdened with personal liability.

“This was a meaningful case in which we provided real legal protection to a family left behind by a sudden aviation disaster,” said attorney Park Wang-gyu, who handled the case. “It sets an important precedent for protecting the rights of minors while also shielding them from inheriting unmanageable debt.”

KLAC operates a dedicated disaster legal support team to assist victims and families affected by major incidents such as plane crashes, wildfires and other large-scale accidents.

The team provides tailored legal services, including damage claims, inheritance waivers and limited approval filings.

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