Proposal of Comprehensive Act for Postmortem Examination to Improve Death Certification System

Korean J Leg Med 2020;44:103-114

Department of Forensic Medicine, Chosun University School of Medicine, Gwangju, Korea,

Department of Law, Chosun University College of Law, Gwangju, Korea

E-mail: ysk007fm@hotmail.com

It is in a country’s best legal interests to guarantee the protection of the right to life within a nation’s constitution. Most countries operate a postmortem investigation system to ensure compliance with their country’s internal legal codes. However, Korea, which is ranked among the World’s Top 10 Largest Economies, does not have its own comprehensive act or system for conducting a postmortem examination including death scene. This is a very improper situation in terms of our global status. Death certification is critical because it impacts the national vital statistics that influence health policy and crime investigation for social security. Various acts and rules for death certification and death investigation exist in Korea, but they all have one serious loophole: there is no regulation determining the circumstances under which a judicial autopsy should be performed. The authors, therefore, identify the faults in the existing legal codes regarding death certification and postmortem investigation and suggest replacement codes. The authors also propose the implementation of a single comprehensive act that includes the required qualifications for postmortem examination experts and outlines the creation of an institution responsible for overseeing death certification.

Key Words: Right to life; Death investigation; Postmortem examination; Death certification; Autopsy