Acting President Han to Complete '9-Member Constitutional Court'... Appointment of 3 Vacant Seats Expected [Impeachment Q&A]

Through the confirmation hearing, the process for appointing the acting authority is expected to accelerate

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo is attending and speaking at the National Intellectual Property Committee held at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 12th. Photo by Jo Yong-jun

As the impeachment motion against President Yoon Seok-yeol passed the National Assembly, the "Constitutional Court's time" has begun. To ensure the procedural legitimacy of the presidential impeachment trial results, the National Assembly is expected to expedite the appointment process for the three vacant Constitutional Court justices. Once the National Assembly's confirmation hearings and the appointment of the acting president are completed, the six-year term seats for the Constitutional Court justices will be filled, completing the "full nine-member panel."

Inside and outside the government, it is anticipated that Prime Minister Han will promptly appoint the three Constitutional Court justices recommended by the National Assembly without delay. Although Han’s role as acting president is limited to "maintaining the status quo," restricting ministerial appointment powers, the appointment of Constitutional Court justices is considered a "formal appointment" with no procedural issues, according to the mainstream legal community. The three candidates recommended by the National Assembly (lawyer Jo Han-chang, Chief Judge Jeong Gye-seon of the Seoul Western District Court, and Presiding Judge Ma Eun-hyeok of the Seoul Western District Court) are not from the president’s nomination pool.

Professor Jang Young-soo of Korea University Law School stated, "If the acting president exercised the president’s right to nominate Constitutional Court justices and guaranteed a six-year term, there would be significant procedural issues. However, since the current vacancies are from the National Assembly’s nominations, it can be seen as within the scope of 'maintaining the status quo' authority." Professor Kim Sang-gyeom, emeritus professor at Dongguk University, also said, "Since this is not about creating a new institution but exercising the usual state agency composition rights, it would not be unreasonable even if the acting president does it."

Meanwhile, from the evening of the 14th, when the impeachment resolution against President Yoon Seok-yeol was delivered to the presidential office, Prime Minister Han’s status changed to "Acting President and Prime Minister." Since the establishment of the government in 1948, this is the tenth time the acting president system has been implemented due to presidential resignation, assassination, or impeachment resolution. Immediately after the National Assembly passed the impeachment motion against President Yoon, Acting President Han issued an urgent directive to all government officials, stating that "the government must do its utmost to ensure that the public does not feel anxious and that social order is not disturbed."