아동의 면접교섭권

Abstract

This article reviews contact right from the perspective of the child. To this end, the article: (a) introduces a recent precedent affirming the contact right between siblings (Suwon District Court Decision 2013Beu33); and (b) discusses the legal nature of contact right, as well as its relationship with parental responsibility. The legal nature of contact right has evolved from a right of parents to a right of both parents and children, which justifies looking at contact right from the child’s perspective. The right of contact with such third parties as grandparents and siblings should also be recognized as the right of the child, rather than that of the third party in question. Designed to serve the best interests of the child, a contact right is essential for safeguarding the child's emotional stability and well-rounded character development by enabling the child to maintain bonds with those significant others to whom the child had been attached. As a separate right from parental responsibility or custodial rights, the exercise of contact right should be construed not to be included in the exercise of parental responsibility or custodial rights by the biological and adoptive parents. As such, the child should be able to decide for himself/herself whether to exercise the contact right as its principal agent, even when he/she is the other party of contact under the current law. In view of the nature of parental responsibility, the parents’ custody of a child in regard to the child’s contact right should be deemed not so much a right as a duty. A parent owes a duty to assist with the child’s exercise of his/her contact right. In view of the best interests of the child principle, which is the criteria applicable to a child's exercise of contact right, in case of a conflict of interests between parent(s) and a child, the best interests of the child should take precedence pursuant to the general principles of the law of parent and children. In sum, a contact right is an inherent right of the child, and the parent owes a duty of assistance. The exercise of a contact right should be granted notwithstanding any objection by the biological or adopted parents. In cases where a given contact is contrary to the best interests of the child by, for instance, negatively influencing the child’s custodial environment, the parents should offer evidence to prove the grounds for limiting or excluding the specific contact right.