[崔대행, 헌법재판관 2명 임명]
Possibility of conclusion before the two retire in April
Acting President Choi Sang-mok, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Strategy and Finance, approved on the 31st the motion to appoint Jeong Gye-seon (55, 27th class of the Judicial Research and Training Institute) and Jo Han-chang (59, 18th class) as judges of the Constitutional Court, and the Constitutional Court has established an ‘eight-member system’ for the time being. . On October 17 last year, the Constitutional Court escaped the ‘six-member system’ 75 days after Chief Lee Jong-seok and Justices Lee Young-jin and Kim Ki-young retired. Although not all nine judges have been filled, there are speculations that the impeachment trial against President Yoon Seok-yeol will speed up as the controversial six-member system has been resolved.
According to the legal community on the 31st, the two new judges will join the impeachment trial of President Yoon Seok-yeol upon their inauguration. The Constitution and the Constitutional Court Act each stipulate that the approval of six judges is required for an impeachment decision, and that at least seven judges are required to hear a case. On October 14 last year, the Constitutional Court suspended the quorum clause, making it possible to hear the impeachment trial, but there has been controversy over whether the six judges can even make a ruling. In particular, it has recently been reported that some judges are of the position that ‘a final decision should not be made in a six-member system,’ raising concerns that the decision to impeach President Yoon may be delayed.
However, with the addition of two judges, there is speculation in the legal community that the Constitutional Court will be able to reach a conclusion no later than April 18, when the terms of office of Acting Constitutional Court Chief Justice Moon Hyeong-bae and Justice Lee Mi-seon expire. In a briefing on the 31st, Lee Jin, Public Relations Officer of the Constitutional Court, explained the results of the six judges’ meeting the previous day and said, “We decided to maintain the policy of handling the presidential impeachment trial case as a top priority among impeachment trial cases.” Recently, a number of cases, including the impeachment trial of Prime Minister Han Deok-soo, were filed with the Constitutional Court, drawing a clear line against concerns that the impeachment trial of President Yoon may be delayed.
Meanwhile, the Constitutional Court announced on this day that it had referred the Prime Minister’s impeachment trial case to the defense preparation process and designated Justice Kim Hyeong-du and Kim Bok-hyung as judges in charge of the preparation process. The authority dispute trial regarding the resolution to impeach Prime Minister Han was regarded as a related case and was assigned to the same presiding judge. Although the referee was not made public in accordance with the principle of non-disclosure, it was found to have been assigned to Judge Kim Hyeong-du.
Reporter Kim Ja-hyun [email protected]
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