Democrats propose a bill to deprive the president of the right to appoint chief justices

“It is not possible to follow the intention of one person who has been appointed by the president of the Supreme Court.”

The Democratic Party of Korea has proposed a bill requiring the president to nominate a new chief justice candidate from the nominating committee for chief justice. Controversy is expected as a bill which effectively deprives the president of the right to appoint the chief justice is proposed six months before the end of the term of chief justice Kim Myung-soo. The Constitution states that ‘the Chief Justice is appointed by the President with the consent of the National Assembly’.

According to the Democratic Party on the 28th, Representative Choi Gi-sang of the Democratic Party proposed an amendment to the Courts Organization Act on the 27th, which includes the establishment of a Supreme Court chief justice candidate recommendation committee to recommend candidates for the chief justice to be nominated by the president. The purpose is to recommend multiple candidates through verification by the recommendation committee from the pre-nomination stage. According to the bill, the recommendation committee includes the director of the National Courts Administration, the president of the Korean Bar Association, the president of the Korea Law Teachers Association, the president of the Law School Association, non-Supreme Court judges. magistrates, court officers other than judges, and five non-legal professionals with extensive knowledge, ethics and experience in each specialist area It consists of 11 people.

Unlike the composition of the Supreme Court Justice Candidate Recommending Committee, the Minister of Justice was excluded from the Candidate Recommendation Committee. It is interpreted as an intention to exclude Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon, who is against the Democratic Party. Representative Choi said in the reason for proposing the bill, “The Chief Justice has great authority, such as the right to recommend Supreme Court justices, the right to appoint judges other than Supreme Court justices, and the right to direct and supervise court matters. at every level.” It was noted that there is a need to prepare a system where opinions can be reflected.”

As Democratic Party leaders, such as floor leader Park Hong-geun and floor leader Jin Seong-joon, put their names on the bill together, some predict that the party’s power will focus on handling the measure. An official from the internal leadership of the Democratic Party said, “There has been no discussion on the measure at the level of the internal leadership yet.” Choi Gi-sang, a member of the National Assembly’s office, said, “Since Supreme Court Chief Kim’s term of office is six months away, the proposal of the bill could not be delayed further.”

Reporter Park Hoon-gi tigermask@donga.com