“I Was Deceived by My Mother”: 70s Woman Fined for Forging Documents to Leave Apartment Only to Elder Daughter

[Financial News] A woman in her 70s was fined after deceiving her younger daughter into signing a forged agreement on the division of inherited property in order to leave an entire apartment to her elder daughter.

According to legal sources on the 7th, the Seoul Eastern District Court’s Criminal Division 8, presided over by Judge Jeong Jeong-ho, sentenced Kim, a woman in her 70s, to a fine of 5 million won on August 19 for charges including forgery of a private document and use of a forged document. The court also ordered that she be detained in a workhouse at a rate of 100,000 won per day if she failed to pay the fine, and ordered provisional payment of an amount equivalent to the fine.
Kim became a co-heir, along with her elder daughter A and younger daughter B, after her husband, who owned a unit at Jamsil Jugong Apts. in Seoul’s Songpa District, died in 2021. Completed in 1978, the 48-year-old apartment complex received approval for its reconstruction project in July.
Kim decided to leave the apartment entirely to her elder daughter A and transfer ownership into A’s name. In the process, she forged an agreement on the division of inherited property without the consent of her younger daughter B.
In May 2022, she called B and said, “I want to inherit the apartment solely in my name, collect rent and prepare for my later years. Your sister agreed as well.” She added, “If you agree, I’ll later make sure you receive an amount equivalent to your inheritance share in the apartment when we divide the inherited financial assets.”
Deceived by her mother, B signed the “co-heirs” section at the end of the agreement on the division of inherited property, while the section identifying the apartment’s heir was still blank.
Kim then immediately called A and said, “Everything has been settled with B, so you can inherit the apartment solely.” She had A sign the section identifying the apartment’s heir and the “co-heir A” section at the end of the document, then submitted the agreement to the registry office of the Seoul Eastern District Court in June of that year.

Kim’s attorney argued, “Because B affixed her seal to the blank agreement on the division of inherited property and submitted her seal certificate with the intention of relinquishing her share, the charges of forgery of a private document, making a false entry in the original of a notarized deed and using such a document do not apply.”
However, the court ruled, “B appears to have agreed to receive monetary compensation on the premise that the real estate share would belong to her mother, Kim.”
The court further explained, “Considering that A and B did not have a good relationship and that A wanted to own the property, it is difficult to presume that B intended to transfer her share to A.”
The court added, “Although she has no prior criminal record, this was a crime committed within a family, and the damage was recovered through a civil lawsuit, Kim has not shown remorse for her wrongdoing. Taking these circumstances into account, the court sentences her to a fine.”
[email protected] Ahn Ga-eul Reporter