Irresponsible 'Sex Crime Business' Can No Longer Continue

Assemblywoman Jeon Jin-sook, Introduces 'Attorney Act Amendment Bill'
"Regulating Advertisements That Support Sexual Crimes and Cause Secondary Harm to Victims"

Assemblywoman Jeon Jin-sook.

Jeon Jin-sook, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea representing Gwangju Buk-gu Eul, announced on the 28th that she has taken the lead in proposing the "Attorney Act Amendment" to regulate inappropriate advertising practices seen in sexual crime cases.

Last month, during the National Assembly's Women and Family Committee audit, Rep. Jeon pointed out that some lawyers' advertisements related to sexual crimes downplay the seriousness of the crimes and contain inappropriate content that defends the perpetrators. In fact, over the past five years, nearly 70,000 defendants have been prosecuted for sexual crimes, leading to a rapid increase in the number of criminal law specialist lawyers and excessive marketing competition.

The current Attorney Act prohibits lawyers and law firms from displaying false information or advertising that may cause consumer misunderstanding or unjustified expectations. However, within the industry, inappropriate phrases such as "making any serious case light," "sexual relations with minors," "rape," "illegal filming," and "not guilty" are openly used in advertisements. In particular, some lawyers have even listed their "not guilty verdict" records on sexual crimes from their time as judges, which has been criticized as a violation of professional ethics.

Rep. Jeon explained the purpose of the proposal, saying, "Advertisements that infringe on others' personal rights or damage their reputation should be prohibited," and added, "Attorney advertisements must not lead to secondary harm to sexual crime victims."

She further stated, "I hope that this legal amendment will establish a sound culture of attorney advertising," and added, "I will continue to work closely with related organizations and groups to devise measures to strengthen the protection of the human rights of sexual crime victims."