The announcement of actress Lee Si-young's second pregnancy has sparked heated discussion, along with ongoing opinions about legal and ethical issues. The YouTube channel "Knowing Lawyer," which has 470,000 subscribers, analyzed the matter from a legal perspective in a video uploaded on the 13th titled "My Sassy Girl (I Cannot Understand Her) | Lee Si-young's Choice (Non-consent + Ex-husband + Frozen Embryo Transfer)."
Lee Si-young recently revealed through her social media that "During my marriage, I had prepared for a second child through in vitro fertilization, but time passed without transfer, and conversations about divorce naturally occurred." She added, "As the legal relationship was about to be finalized, the expiration of the 5-year storage period for the embryo was approaching, and I decided to go through with the transfer instead of disposal," expressing her determination to raise her child well on her own.
In response, "Knowing Lawyer" stated, "The 5 years of expiration time did not come suddenly... Would I want to give birth to a child who resembles my ex-husband? Just because we like each other, it doesn't mean we are getting divorced. Would I really want to?"
Regarding legal issues, it referenced the current "Bioethics and Safety Act", explaining that embryos created through in vitro fertilization were frozen with the consent of the couple, and there are no clear violations of current laws. Nevertheless, it added that "legislative supplementation is necessary."
"While the embryos were frozen with consent, I feel that consent should still be obtained before disposal, thanks to Lee Si-young. Since I would be the biological father, consent should be required. It seems that I would have to go through the cumbersome process of asking my spouse again thanks to Lee Si-young," he said.
He expressed concern that "If the ex-husband does not consent and does not acknowledge himself as the father, the mere fact that his bloodline exists in the world could be emotionally painful for him."
In such a case, he mentioned that the ex-husband could file for damages on the grounds of psychological harm against the counterpart and added that a person in Lee Si-young's position might have to compensate for emotional distress.
Finally, he emphasized that "This case ultimately is a happy ending or a conundrum and that it is urgent to establish clear standards to prevent similar cases from recurring in the future."
[Photo] Lee Si-young's SNS, video capture
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