Legislation and Judiciary Committee to Hold On-Site Audit at Supreme Court on October 15... Cho Hee-dae and Ji Guyoun Selected as Witnesses

Hearing Canceled, Committee Shifts to On-Site Audit at Supreme Court
On-Site Audit at Supreme Court Approved Under Democratic Party Leadership

On September 30, the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee selected Supreme Court Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae, along with several Supreme Court justices, former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, and Presiding Judge Ji Guyoun, as general witnesses for the Supreme Court's parliamentary audit.

On the 30th, Chu Mi-ae, the chairperson of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, is striking the gavel at the plenary session. September 30, 2025. Photo by Kim Hyunmin

On this day, the committee, led by the Democratic Party of Korea, passed the motion to summon witnesses and references for the 2025 parliamentary audit. The People Power Party, the main opposition, voted against the selection of witnesses and protested, but the motion was approved with the support of the Democratic Party and the Rebuilding Korea Party.

Earlier, the committee also decided to hold an on-site audit at the Supreme Court on October 15, following the Supreme Court audit scheduled at the National Assembly on October 13.

The Democratic Party attempted to hold a hearing on the so-called "Cho Hee-dae and Han Duck-soo meeting allegations" during the committee session, specifically regarding suspicions of Chief Justice Cho's involvement in the presidential election. However, the hearing did not take place as Chief Justice Cho was absent.

The decision by the Democratic Party to conduct an additional on-site audit at the Supreme Court and to select Chief Justice Cho as a witness is seen as a response to these developments.

The list of witnesses and references for the Supreme Court audit, adopted by the committee on this day, is identical to the list for the hearing on the presidential election interference allegations.

In addition to Chief Justice Cho, the list includes Supreme Court Justices Oh Kyungmi, Lee Heunggu, Lee Sugyeon, and Park Youngjae, as well as Chon Daeyeob, the Director of the National Court Administration and a Supreme Court Justice, and former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo. Also included are Ji Guyoun, the presiding judge at the Seoul Central District Court for the former President Yoon Sukyeol's rebellion case, and Oh Minseok, the Chief Judge of the Seoul Central District Court.

Na Kyungwon, a member of the People Power Party, is requesting a procedural speech at the plenary meeting of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee on the 30th. 2025.9.30 Photo by Kim Hyunmin

The list of general witnesses also includes Bok Soyoun, Secretary General of the National Court Employees' Union, an official from the IT department of the National Court Administration, the dedicated judicial researcher for Chief Justice Oh Kyungmi, and the dedicated judicial researcher for Chief Justice Lee Heunggu.

The parliamentary audit of the Supreme Court by the Legislation and Judiciary Committee is typically conducted with the Director of the National Court Administration attending as the institutional representative to answer questions from lawmakers.

Meanwhile, the committee also selected 387 individuals, including Minister of Justice Chung Sungho and Acting Prosecutor General Noh Manseok, as witnesses and references for the audits of agencies under its jurisdiction other than the Supreme Court.