소멸시효의 개정을 위한 비교법적 연구- 일반채권소멸시효와 제766조 제3항을 중심으로 -

Article 162 of the Korean Civil Code and other articles stipulate the extinctive prescription. These articles were stipulated when the Civil Code was enacted about 70 years ago, and they need to be revised in order to adapt to the changes of modern society and harmonize with ones of other countries. In particular, the extinctive prescription of a claim under Article 162 of the Korean Civil Code and the short-term extinctive prescription under Article 163 and 164 are the core contents of the amendment of Civil Code. Considering the economic development and the trend of the world’s extinctive prescription, there is a need to shorten the prescription period of a claim in Korea. To make it efficient, it is necessary to have the subjective starting point and the maximum length of period of extinctive prescription as well as to delete the short-term extinctive prescription to resolve the confusion caused by the complexity of the article. Article 766 (3), which is an article on the prescription of the right to claim for damages by illegal acts related to sexual offenses against minors, has been newly established in 2020 to respond to social issues at the time. However, there is criticism that the scope of this article is too limited for civil protection of minors. On the other hand, other countries have comprehensive articles for the protection of minors, and since the prescription of the right to claim for damages by illegal acts is suspended until the minor can actually exercise the right that minors can be protected. Therefore, Article 766 (3) of the Korean Civil Code also needs to be amended to protect minors generically and to enable practical civil protection through the suspension of the extinctive prescription for the right to claim for damages.