Procedures
Three instances with a ten-year general limitation period
The Civil Procedure Act provides trial, appeal and final appeal on law to the Supreme Court. The general limitation period is ten years for ordinary claims and five for commercial ones.
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — District courts, high courts, and the Supreme Court. Small claims follow a simplified procedure.
- Deadline — Appeal within 14 days of service of the judgment
- Deadline — Ten-year general limitation; five years for commercial claims; three years for tort from knowledge
Governing law
- Civil Procedure Act
- Civil Act of Korea (arts. 162-184 (extinctive prescription))
- Arbitration Actamended 2016
In practice
Procedure is document-heavy with successive written submissions and focused hearings rather than a single continuous trial. There is no broad discovery, though the court can order production of specified documents. Provisional attachment and injunction are widely used and often decisive commercially. The Arbitration Act follows the UNCITRAL Model Law as amended in 2006, and Korea is a New York Convention party, with the Korean Commercial Arbitration Board handling most institutional cases. Judgments are enforced through court execution officers.