Eight South Korean adoptees sue Danish state for human rights violations

Eight Danish citizens adopted from South Korea as children are suing the Danish state for violating their human rights, public broadcaster DR reports. Each plaintiff is demanding 250,000 kroner (approximately €33,500) in compensation, totalling two million kroner in the case filed on Monday.

The adoptees argue that Danish authorities failed to protect their rights—particularly their right to identity, origin, and family life—as guaranteed under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. According to their statement, the state acted in breach of both Danish law and human rights standards in facilitating their adoptions from the 1970s to the 1990s.

The lawsuit stems from a systemic illegal adoption practice during that period, in which thousands of children, primarily from South Korea, were adopted to Denmark under false pretences. Many were wrongly registered as abandoned orphans despite being taken from their biological families, with falsified documents prepared in collaboration between South Korean and Danish adoption agencies.

Compensation sought for lifelong consequences

The legal action follows the rejection of a compensation claim by Denmark’s Ministry of Social Affairs and Housing in November 2024, which cited the statute of limitations. Gitte Mose, one of the plaintiffs and the original initiator of the claim, was adopted from South Korea in 1982 at three months old.

“This is about the fundamental right of every person—adoptee or not—to know their origins,” Mose told DR. She emphasised that compensation would address both the emotional distress adoptees have endured and the practical costs of searching for biological family, reconnecting with Korean culture, or accessing long-term therapy. “New challenges arise in different phases of life, especially when you become a parent yourself,” she added.

Beyond financial reparations, Mose hopes the case will prompt broader support systems for adoptees. Author Eva Tind, another plaintiff, has previously spoken publicly about her experiences as a South Korean adoptee.

Potential precedent for further claims

Legal experts note the case’s significance. Klaus Josefsen, an administrative law lecturer at Aarhus University and attorney at Printz Law Firm, told DR that success would hinge on evidence proving state negligence in individual cases. “If it can be shown that Danish oversight bodies received warnings about irregularities, that would strengthen their position,” he said.

Josefsen added that a favourable ruling could encourage similar lawsuits: “This is a landmark case. If the plaintiffs win, it will undoubtedly inspire others to come forward.”

South Korea has since issued a political apology for past adoption practices and will halt all international adoptions by 2029. Denmark paused its foreign adoption system in 2024 but has not issued an official apology to adoptees.