South Korea court appointments raise independence debate
· UPIJuly 8 (Asia Today) -- The process to recommend a successor to Supreme Court Justice Lee Heung-gu, 63, who is set to retire in September, will begin in earnest this month, drawing attention to President Lee Jae-myung's first Supreme Court appointments.
The court must also recommend a successor to former Justice Roh Tae-ak, 64, who retired in March. With a law set to expand the Supreme Court from 14 to 26 justices beginning in 2028, Lee could appoint as many as 22 Supreme Court justices before his term ends in June 2030.
The Supreme Court on Friday completed a public comment period on 28 people who agreed to be reviewed by the candidate recommendation committee for Lee Heung-gu's seat. If the committee recommends at least three candidates this month, Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae will select a final nominee and recommend that person to the president for appointment.
The nominee must then undergo a National Assembly confirmation hearing before being formally appointed.
Justices Cheon Dae-yeop, 62, and Oh Kyung-mi, 58, are scheduled to complete their terms next year. A total of 10 justices are expected to retire before the end of President Lee's term.
Cho must recommend two nominees: one to replace Lee Heung-gu and another to fill the seat left vacant by Roh. A candidate recommendation committee formed ahead of Roh's retirement recommended four candidates Jan. 21: Kim Min-ki and Park Soon-young, senior judges at the Seoul High Court; Son Bong-gi, a presiding judge at the Daegu District Court; and Yoon Sung-sik, a presiding judge at the Seoul High Court.
The presidential office and the chief justice have traditionally consulted before a final candidate is selected. Article 104 of the Constitution gives the president the authority to appoint Supreme Court justices, while giving the chief justice the power to recommend nominees.
The arrangement is intended to prevent political bias that could arise if the president fully controls Supreme Court appointments and to help protect judicial independence.
But the process to recommend Roh's successor has remained stalled for more than five months as the presidential office and the judiciary have failed to narrow their differences. If the selection of Lee Heung-gu's successor is also delayed, the Supreme Court's backlog of appeals is expected to worsen.
Because Roh's seat remains vacant, the post of chief of the National Court Administration has been left open to avoid disrupting trial work. If Lee Heung-gu's seat also becomes vacant, vacancies would occur in the court's three four-member panels.
Some legal experts say the chief justice's power to recommend Supreme Court nominees should not be treated merely as a procedural step supporting the president's appointment authority. They argue it should be understood as a safeguard that allows the judiciary's judgment to be reflected in the appointment process.
"When the prime minister is appointed, approval by more than two-thirds of the National Assembly is required, but the president chooses the nominee," said Jung Joo-baek, a professor at Chungnam National University School of Law. "Parliamentary consent is closer to passive involvement."
"By contrast, in the appointment of Supreme Court justices, the chief justice has the initiative because the process can move forward only after the chief justice selects and recommends a nominee," Jung said.
A constitutional law scholar who requested anonymity said the chief justice has the power to recommend nominees, but cannot independently determine the final candidate.
"If the president does not make the appointment, the process ultimately has to start again," the scholar said. "The limits of the recommendation power are very clear. The president's appointment of Supreme Court justices itself is a factor that hinders judicial independence."
-- Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI
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Original Korean report: https://www.asiatoday.co.kr/kn/view.php?key=20260707010002584