Judges' Meeting Focuses on Concerns Over Threats to Judicial Independence

Two agenda items aimed at ensuring 'independent and fair trials' have been submitted for the National Judges' Representatives Meeting scheduled for the 26th. Initially, when the meeting was convened, it was expected that the participants would express their views on the Supreme Court en banc ruling regarding candidate Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party of Korea and his alleged violation of election law. However, it is reported that this has effectively been put on hold. The ongoing efforts by the Democratic Party to undermine the judiciary following the en banc decision, as well as attacks on Judge Ji Guyoun, who presides over the insurrection case involving former President Yoon Suk-yeol, appear to have influenced this decision. It is said that judges are expressing concerns about 'judicial independence.'

Supreme Court, Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

This meeting originated when some judges demanded its convening, claiming that the Supreme Court's decision to remand Lee's case for a guilty verdict violated 'political neutrality.' On May 8, the chair of the Judges' Meeting asked 126 representatives online whether to convene an extraordinary session on this issue. Only 25 supported the motion, falling short of the required quorum of 26, while 70 opposed it. The executive committee then extended the voting period by one day, and only then was the quorum of 26 reached.

Subsequently, as the Democratic Party intensified its pressure on the judiciary by advocating for a special prosecutor law to investigate Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae, pushing for a legislative amendment to increase the number of Supreme Court justices, and proposing a law to make court rulings subject to constitutional complaints, concerns among judges grew. As a result, the 'Lee Jae-myung trial' was ultimately not included as an agenda item.

The agenda for the Judges' Meeting is now focused on analyzing the causes of threats to judicial independence and discussing future countermeasures. The meeting organizers stated, "We reaffirm that judicial independence is an absolutely protected value in a democratic nation, and we will strive to uphold the fairness of trials and the democratic accountability of the judiciary, which are its foundations. Going forward, we will monitor the developments of this situation, analyze its causes, and discuss countermeasures."

The Judges' Meeting also listed as a second agenda item 'concerns over the potential infringement of judicial independence by legislative amendments targeting individual trials and attempts to impeach judges.' This is seen as an expression of concern over the Democratic Party's push for amendments to the election law and criminal procedure law, as well as moves to appoint a special prosecutor and pursue impeachment of the Chief Justice, following the en banc ruling. The organizers stated, "We take very seriously the erosion of public trust in the judiciary, which underpins judicial independence, and we are deeply concerned that various forms of accountability and institutional changes prompted by individual trials could threaten the independence of the courts."

Kim Yeyoung, chief judge of the Seoul Southern District Court and chair of the Judges' Meeting, said, "We have prepared the agenda by compiling as many of the opinions raised during the discussions on whether to convene an extraordinary session as possible," adding, "We determined that it would be inappropriate to express opinions on the merits or procedures of the specific case at the center of the Supreme Court ruling in question."