An equal right to inherit ? Inheritance rights and gendered intergenerational transfers in South Korea, 1971–2010

Despite amendments to inheritance laws aimed at promoting gender equality in many countries, the effectiveness of gender-equal inheritance rights remains uncertain. This study focuses on South Korea, which amended inheritance rights toward gender equality in 1991. Utilizing two nationwide household surveys, this research documents intergenerational transfers (inheritance and inter vivos gifts) over a 40-year span (1971–2010), categorizing three groups based on the father’s death: before the reform, shortly after the reform, and long after the reform. The results reveal that the gender gap in intergenerational transfers did not narrow even after the reform, among the small number of individuals reporting having received inheritance and/or gifts. Inter vivos gifts became a more prevalent method of passing wealth to sons shortly after the reform. Equal legal shares also proved ineffective in dividing inheritance, as many households continued to exhibit unequal divisions through wills and family negotiations. These findings highlight that eliminating discriminatory clauses in inheritance laws is just the initial step toward achieving gender equality in intergenerational transfers, with norms and cultural contexts often taking precedence over legal reforms.