Since the retirement of Justice Noh Tae-ak in March, the position of Supreme Court justice has remained vacant for nearly five months. Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae has delayed the nomination of a successor, while candidates to replace Justice Lee Heung-gu, who will retire on September 7, are set to be selected this week.
According to legal sources on August 2, the Supreme Court Justice Candidate Recommendation Committee will meet on August 4 to recommend at least three candidates from a pool of 28 for Chief Justice Cho. Cho will then submit one of the recommended candidates to President Lee Jae-myung for appointment. The nominee will undergo a confirmation hearing in the National Assembly before final appointment.
The Supreme Court received nominations for potential justices from May 22 to June 2. Out of 87 candidates (81 judges, 4 lawyers, and 2 professors), 28 (27 judges and 1 professor) agreed to be considered. The Supreme Court also made public the educational background, career history, assets, military service, and criminal records of those who agreed to be reviewed, soliciting public opinion until July 3.
The recommendation committee consists of six ex-officio members (including Senior Justice Lee Heung-gu, Minister of Justice Jeong Seong-ho, President of the Korean Bar Association Kim Jeong-wook, President of the Korean Association of Law Professors Choi Bong-kyung, Chair of the Council of Law Schools Hong Dae-sik, and Director of the Court Administration Office Noh Kyung-pil) and four non-ex-officio members. In January, the committee recommended four candidates: Yoon Seong-sik, a senior judge at the Seoul High Court; Kim Min-ki and Park Soon-young, judges at the Seoul High Court; and Son Bong-ki, a senior judge at the Daegu District Court.
Judge Kim Min-ki has served since 1997, working at the Seoul Administrative Court, Daejeon District Court, and Seoul High Court, and has also been a research judge at the Supreme Court. Judge Park Soon-young has been a judge since 1996, serving at the Seoul High Court, Daejeon High Court, and as a research judge at the Supreme Court.
Judge Son Bong-ki has also served as a research judge at the Supreme Court and has worked as a judge at the Daegu District Court and Ulsan District Court, serving as the head of the Daegu District Court in 2019. Judge Yoon Seong-sik began his career at the Seoul District Court in 1998 and has held key positions, including chief professor at the Judicial Research and Training Institute and chief of the Supreme Court's Administrative Office last year.
Typically, a final candidate is recommended to the president within about two weeks after the committee's recommendation, but this year, no candidate has been selected even after six months. The Blue House has designated Judge Kim Min-ki, but Chief Justice Cho is reportedly facing difficulties in recommending another candidate.
According to the constitution, Supreme Court justices are appointed by the president upon the recommendation of the Chief Justice and with the consent of the National Assembly. When the two institutions with separate appointment and recommendation powers disagree, the recommendation committee is supposed to mediate by suggesting at least three candidates, but this time it has been criticized for failing to fulfill its role.
If the Blue House's wishes are followed, it would be impossible to avoid criticism of abandoning independent recommendation rights. Conversely, if a candidate contrary to the Blue House's preference is pushed through, there is a significant risk that the appointment consent bill could be rejected in the National Assembly, where the ruling party holds a majority, or that the president could refuse the appointment. As a result, the legal community views Chief Justice Cho as being in a difficult position, delaying the recommendation of justices and entering a prolonged standoff.
However, there are expectations in the legal community that the Supreme Court may resolve the nomination for both the successor to Justice Noh and Justice Lee simultaneously. Chief Justice Cho may recommend both successors at once, reflecting the preferences of the Blue House for one candidate each.
If a successor is not designated by September 7, when Justice Lee retires, the Supreme Court will operate with two vacant justice positions, leading to inevitable delays in processing over 40,000 appeals annually.
Last month, after Chief Justice Cho appointed Noh Kyung-pil as the head of the Court Administration Office, speculation arose that the judicial vacancy would not be prolonged, drawing attention to what decision will be made.
Various opinions are emerging within the legal community. A lawyer in Seocho-dong remarked, "In fact, this should have been done long ago, but I don't understand why the recommendation committee is being activated at this timing when our judicial system is changing alongside the abolition of the prosecution's supplementary investigation rights." He added, "The case involving President Lee Jae-myung was also remanded before the presidential election, and while he claims otherwise, he is engaging in actions that are easily misunderstood."
He continued, "I believe that given the prolonged delay in appointments and the criticism faced, it is possible that both candidates could be re-nominated this time. With the prosecution disappearing and the judiciary also under pressure, I suspect this decision is politically motivated."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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