SEOUL-- Ruling party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung said Monday he will prevent the inheritance of debts to minor children by amending civil law.

In an election pledge posted on his Facebook, Lee of the Democratic Party said he will seek to protect young people from becoming credit delinquents due to debts from parents before starting their career.

Lee noted about 80 minors filed for personal bankruptcy due to inheritance of parental debts from 2016 and March 2021.

"Our Civil Act adopts the heir's limited liability system, in which heirs give up inheritance or take responsibility for their parents' debts only within the limits of the inherited property. But there are many cases in which parental debts are inherited (to minors) due to legal representatives' lack of legal knowledge or ability to respond," said Lee.

"In November 2020, the Supreme Court pointed out the need for legal alternatives to protect minor heirs from those problems," Lee said, promising to revise the law to help minor children obtain limited liability even after they reach the age of majority.

Source: Yonhap News Agency