프랑스 민법상 피보호성년자의 신상보호

The adult guardianship system in Korean civil law protects the individual by limiting the authority of a ward; it is thus framed within the same structure of the system concerning the incompetents and quasi-incompetents. As it is designed to guarantee the welfare of the ward based on the idea of respecting the intention and remaining capacity of the individual regarding guardianship affairs, it can generally be evaluated positively. In this perspective, if we compare it with the system previously in place, it is particularly different, as it protects personal affairs and guarantees the right to self-determination of a ward as far as possible. However, the effectiveness of the relevant provisions is questionable in regard to whether the system provided by Korean civil law is sufficient to assure the right to self-determination in the personal realm. This is because it is difficult to estimate which personal act the ward can determine independently. The concept of personal affairs is ambiguous in the civil code, under which conditions the adult ward may solely decide about personal affairs and which duties concerning personal protection are to be performed by adult guardians. It is undesirable to allow unlimited self-determination in some cases, thus it is necessary to discuss in what cases restrictions can be justified. In view of these observations, this paper attempts to provide some complementary tools for interpreting Korean civil law by examining the personal protection regulations and principles of the French adult guardianship system, which has been a point of reference since the introduction of the adult guardianship system in Korea. By examining the recent revisions to the French Civil Code, this research looks for suggestions regarding the subsequent legislation of Korean adult guardianship on personal protection.