Speaker of the National Assembly Files Jurisdictional Dispute Petition Over Constitutional Court Justice Nomination by Acting President of Korea

Speaker of the National Assembly Woo Won-sik filed a constitutional dispute adjudication with the Constitutional Court on the 11th regarding Prime Minister Han Deok-soo, acting president, nominating two candidates for constitutional court justices in the president's quota.

On the afternoon of the same day, Speaker Woo submitted a petition for constitutional dispute adjudication against Acting President Han's nomination of candidates Lee Wan-gyu and Ham Sang-hoon for constitutional court justices, along with a request for a provisional injunction to suspend the effect of the nominations.

The petition claimed that Acting President Han's nomination of constitutional court justice candidates constitutes an act infringing on the National Assembly's personnel hearing rights for appointments to constitutional institutions, seriously violating the constitutional order.

Yonhap News

It also included concerns that there is a clear risk of infringing on the National Assembly's rights to deliberate and vote on appointment consent bills for constitutional court justice candidates, its state control authority through personnel hearing procedures, and the Speaker's authority to conduct personnel hearings.

On Facebook, Speaker Woo stated, "It is a clear abuse of power for the Prime Minister, who was not elected by the people, to use the acting presidential authority to intervene in the composition of constitutional institutions," and urged, "I hope that even now, he will return to the basic attitude of a public official, withdraw the nomination of constitutional court justices in the president's quota, and immediately stop actions that disturb the country."