Current State of Research in Legal History in Korea

Focusing on Korean Legal History

Abstract

Research on the legal history in Korea began with a political aim to acquire informational data helpful for the colonial regime. The research, which had been individually conducted by a small minority of scholars in deteriorated conditions after the liberation, met a new turning point with the foundation of The Korean Society of Legal History in 1973. Entering the 1980s, the scope of research expanded to the modern and contemporary periods, and this led to the announcement of researches directly linked to reality, gradually providing a basis for the production of new specialists. In the 1990s, the democratization of society and a heightened attention to national identity resulted in the field of legal studies the increase of researchers interested in both Korea and intrinsic Korean traits. Later, the translation and publication of materials such as law books of every kind contributed to the vitalization of research. The level of research improved with doctoral dissertations submitted from the late 1990s and, in particular, with the research on the field of historical studies, as opposed to legal studies, provided mutual stimulus. In the 2000s, the research on Korean legislation history shows dynamism, which could have never been imagined before, such as in the growth of the number of researchers, the expansion of study subjects, and the rise in the level of studies. This paper first aims to introduce, emphasizing the field of jurisprudence, an overall tendency of the research on Korean legal history since the adoption of modern laws and legal studies up to the present day, and subsequently, after clarifying terminus ad quem of the current stage with regard to main issues of the Goryeo and Joseon dynasties, aims to comment on the direction of further research.