The Supreme Court has ruled that divorced couples can seek an annulment, overturning for the first time in 40 years a previous ruling by the top court. 

The top court on Thursday reversed two previous rulings which were based on a 1984 Supreme Court ruling and sent back to the Seoul Family Court the suit filed by a divorced woman against her ex-husband. 

The court said it recognizes that there are benefits involved in seeking an annulment even if a marriage is declared null. 

The plaintiff, who got married in 2001 and divorced in 2004, sought an annulment, saying that her marriage registration was completed without actual consent and while her mental state was not stable. 

Though the nation’s civil law allows an annulment if there was no consent of marriage between parties or in case of inter-marriage, the Supreme Court ruled in 1984 that divorced couples cannot get an annulment since there is no legal benefit in doing so.