What is a ‘Service by Public Notice’ and when can it be issued in a divorce case in South Korea?
Divorces in South Korea generally require that documents be formally delivered to the other spouse. However, situations arise where one party has disappeared, avoids contact, lives overseas with an unknown address, or cannot be located despite repeated efforts. In situations such as these, Korean courts may allow a procedure known as “Service by Public Notice” (공시송달).
This allows a divorce case to proceed even when the other party cannot be personally served. It is an important tool for protecting access to justice, but also involves strict requirements and practical risks that plaintiffs should understand before starting the process of Service by Public Notice.
In many cases, individuals seeking this type of service have already experienced long periods of separation or emotional stress regarding their legal status. Without a legal procedure such as Service by Public Notice, some spouses could remain indefinitely tied to marriages despite having no meaningful contact with the other party. Korean courts therefore recognize the importance of balancing procedural fairness with the practical reality that not all defendants can be located or contacted through ordinary legal methods.
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What Is Service by Public Notice?
Service by Public Notice (공시송달) is a court-approved method of notifying a party about legal proceedings when ordinary methods of service are impossible. Instead of directly delivering court documents to the defendant, the court provides notice publicly through a court bulletin board, electronic system, or official publication.
Once the required notice period has passed, the documents are considered to be legally “served”, even if the other spouse never actually reads them. This procedure is most commonly used when:
- The defendant’s address is unknown
- The spouse has disappeared or cut off communication
- Mail is repeatedly returned undelivered
- The defendant lives abroad and cannot be located
- The defendant intentionally avoids receiving documents
- There is no reliable way to contact the other spouse
Without this system, many individuals would effectively be unable to obtain a divorce simply because the other party has disappeared.
It is important to note that Korean courts generally treat Service by Public Notice as a final option rather than a routine procedure. Judges typically require the plaintiff to demonstrate that sincere efforts were made to locate the other spouse before approving public notice service. This helps protect the defendant’s legal rights while also ensuring that divorce proceedings are not indefinitely delayed due to an absent party. In practice, the court carefully reviews supporting evidence and the specific circumstances of each case before granting approval for Service by Public Notice.
When and Why Is Service by Public Notice Used?
Korean courts do not automatically permit Service by Public Notice because communication between spouses has disappeared for personal reasons. The plaintiff must demonstrate that reasonable efforts were made to locate and serve the other party through ordinary means such as phone calls or text messages. In particular, this principle is applied more strictly in family cases than in civil cases, because while civil cases concern issues of money or legal rights between the parties, family cases concern family relations and can therefore have a broad impact on third parties as well.
One of the most common examples involves a spouse leaving the marital home and becoming unreachable for years. Some cases might be when a spouse leaves Korea, abandons the family, disconnects their phone, or no friends or relatives know the spouse’s new address.
In particular, international marriages frequently involve service complications. Service abroad by Korean courts is conducted in accordance with Article 191 of the Civil Procedure Act (민사소송법), whereby the presiding judge entrusts the matter to “the Korean ambassador, minister, or consul stationed in that country, or the competent government authorities of such country.” This is referred to as “service by entrustment (촉탁송달)” and takes significantly longer than ordinary service within Korea. However, if service by this method is impossible or is deemed unlikely to be effective, Service by Public Notice may eventually become necessary.
In other cases, some defendants refuse to accept court documents in order to delay proceedings. If the court determines that the defendant is intentionally evading service, public notice may be approved after several failed attempts.
Legal Steps to Proceed With Divorce
Although the exact process varies depending on the individual circumstances, divorce by public notice generally follows several important procedural stages.
1. Filing the Divorce Action
The defendant first files a divorce lawsuit with the appropriate Korean Family Court. The filing generally includes:
- Divorce Complaint (소장)
- The plaintiff and defendant’s full name, resident registration number (주민등록번호), and current address
- If the plaintiff or the defendant is a foreign national, alien registration number (외국인등록번호) instead of resident registration number
- The plaintiff and defendant’s basic certificate (기본증명서), resident registration certificate (주민등록초본), and family relation certificate (가족관계증명서)
- If the plaintiff or the defendant is a foreign national, alien registration card instead of the above documents
- The plaintiff and defendant’s marriage certificate (혼인관계증명서)
- The ground for divorce and its supporting evidence
Contested divorces generally require legal grounds such as abandonment, adultery, or serious mistreatment.
2. Attempted Ordinary Service
The court will initially attempt normal service methods such as registered mail or a court delivery service to the defendant’s address.
If the plaintiff does not know the defendant’s address, they can use other information about the defendant to track down the address. The most common method is to look up the defendant’s registered address using their resident registration number (or alien registration number, in the case of a foreign national). If the plaintiff does not know the defendant’s resident registration number or alien registration number, they can also determine the address using other information, such as a phone number, passport number, or bank account number.
However, if the plaintiff lacks even this basic information about the defendant, or if the address cannot be determined through such means, the court will proceed with a more thorough investigation.
3. Investigation Into the Defendant’s Whereabouts
Before granting public notice service, the court often expects reasonable efforts to locate the defendant.
If the defendant is a Korean national, the court sends a court inquiry to the defendant’s family members and relatives based on the defendant’s family register. For example, if a wife files for divorce against her Korean husband but does not know his whereabouts, the court will send an inquiry to her in-laws to attempt to locate him. For service by public notice, statements must be submitted by at least two of the defendant’s friends and family members stating, “We also do not know the person’s whereabouts.”
If the defendant has left the country and has not returned, the court may attempt to obtain the defendant’s immigration records through the Immigration Office and determine the registered address of overseas nationals through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In this way, the court makes every effort to locate the defendant using all available means. Since divorce is a very significant matter in the lives of the parties involved, the plaintiff should avoid divorcing the defendant “behind their back” whenever possible, and the defendant must be given the opportunity to state their opinion.
4. Motion for Service by Public Notice
If it is deemed impossible to locate the defendant, the plaintiff can then file a request asking the court to authorize Service by Public Notice. If approved, the notice is publicly posted according to court procedure.
Under Korean procedural rules, service is deemed completed after a specified statutory period passes following publication. The period is two weeks for domestic service (if the defendant is in Korea) and two months for international service (if the defendant is abroad). After the period expires, the case can continue and hearings may proceed without the defendant.
5. Divorce Judgment
If the defendant never appears, the court may issue a default judgment after reviewing the evidence presented by the plaintiff. However, Korean courts still independently evaluate whether sufficient legal grounds for divorce exist and the absence of the defendant does not necessarily guarantee approval.
Risks of the Service by Public Notice
Although service by public notice can be extremely useful, it also creates several issues. For example, public notice cases are much slower than ordinary proceedings because courts require multiple failed service attempts first. An uncontested divorce may take weeks, while a public notice divorce can take many months.
Additionally, obtaining the divorce may be easier than resolving financial issues ranging from child support to overseas asset tracing. If the defendant cannot be located, enforcement becomes significantly more challenging regarding financial decisions.
A final concern is the possibility that the absent spouse later argues that service was improper in the case of reappearance. If the court later determines that procedural requirements were not properly followed, portions of the judgment could be reopened. For this reason, honesty and detailed documentation during the service process are extremely important for all parties.
In international marriages, a Korean divorce obtained with Service by Public Notice may not be legally recognized. This could affect immigration applications, remarriage, property disputes, and child custody enforcement. It may be worthwhile speaking with a legal team in one’s home country or the country they plan to live in, in order to determine whether or not their particular divorce case will face issues.
How Long Does It Take?
One of the most common concerns in divorce cases involving Service by Public Notice is the overall timeline of the proceedings. Unlike uncontested divorces, which may sometimes be completed within a matter of weeks or a few months, divorce cases involving public notice often take significantly longer due to additional procedural requirements.
Before the court permits Service by Public Notice, the plaintiff must first attempt ordinary service methods and demonstrate that reasonable efforts were made to locate the other spouse. This can include multiple failed delivery attempts, address investigations, immigration record checks, or attempts to contact family members and acquaintances. Each of these steps may require additional waiting periods and supporting documentation. In international divorce cases, the process can become even more time-consuming.
Additionally, court workload, scheduling availability, and the complexity of the case itself can all affect how quickly proceedings move forward. As a result, Service by Public Notice cases may take several months or longer depending on the circumstances involved.
Conclusion
Service by Public Notice (공시송달) plays an essential role in the Korean legal system by allowing divorce proceedings to continue even when a spouse cannot be located. Without this procedure, many individuals would remain legally trapped in marriages that may negatively affect their mental and even physical well-being.
However, Korean courts treat Service by Public Notice as an exceptional legal measure rather than a procedural shortcut. Plaintiffs must demonstrate that they made genuine and reasonable efforts to locate the other party and must carefully comply with all procedural requirements established by the court.
Particularly in international marriages or cases involving missing spouses, the process can become legally and procedurally complex. Issues involving jurisdiction, document service, enforcement of judgments, and recognition of the divorce in foreign countries may all arise. Proper preparation, accurate documentation, and experienced legal guidance are therefore highly important when pursuing divorce through Service by Public Notice in Korea.
To help clients understand and navigate this difficult process, the legal team at Seoul Law Group is available to provide guidance and support throughout every stage of obtaining Service by Public Notice.