South Korea Court Recognises Same-Sex Couple Rights: What Led To Landmark Decision?

In what can be called a monumental decision, a Court in South Korea has legalised the status of same-sex couples in the country. This is the first time in history that such a ruling has taken place in the country. The ruling stems from a case where the Court found that a government health insurer wrongfully withdrew coverage of a couple of customers after finding out that two were in a same-sex relationship.

In a historic decision, the Seoul High Court ruled that same-sex couples are entitled to the same kind of spousal coverage as heterosexual couples under the national health insurance service.

South Korea Same Sex Couple Rights

The ruling, which is now being called a leap forward in the country with respect to the recognition of the LGBTQIA+ community, was a result of a case that stemmed from the practice of exclusion of same-sex couples.

According to a detailed report by BBC, in 2021, So Seong-Wook had sued the government agency National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) after he was denied coverage on his partner Kim Yongmin's medical plan. While the two had been given the coverage at first, a government officer from the organisation denied them the same later after learning about their identities.

The couple's lawyer Park Han-hee stated in the media that the ruling comes across as the first recognition of such rights in the country, a land where same-sex couples were always looked down upon. While same-sex marriage is not recognised in South Korea, So Seong-Wook and Kim Yongmin held a ceremony in 2019 as a declaration of their love.

The case reached the Seoul High Court after a lower court rejected the couple's petition in January 2022. The lower court had stated that the two should make separate insurance payments and not be covered under spousal coverage.

While over thirty countries have legalised same-sex marriage, it is still illegal for a same-sex couple to get married in South Korea. For So Seong-Wook, however, this ruling feels like hope at a time when he and his partner are still struggling to be accepted and recognised as a couple legally. "I felt as if the judges told us through the decision that the feelings of love I have for my spouse should not be the target of ignorance or insults," So told reporters waiting outside the courthouse.

This ruling comes at a time when South Korea is preparing for the G7 Summit to be held in the country this May. It also moves the country a few inches closer to achieving this kind of equality where love and choice of partners are not boxed to a particular gender.

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