Supreme Court's Relocation to Sejong Raised at National Assembly Audit

Special Committee for the Completion of the Administrative Capital of Sejong City Council
Welcomes Discussion on Relocating the Supreme Court to Sejong

On October 13, during the National Assembly's Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee audit, the need to review the construction of the new Supreme Court building on the premise of relocating it to Sejong was raised. In response, the Special Committee for the Completion of the Administrative Capital of the Sejong City Council issued a statement on October 14, welcoming the development.

The special committee noted that, for the first time, the need to review the construction of the new Supreme Court building based on a potential relocation to Sejong was officially raised during the audit. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport also expressed its willingness to actively cooperate if the law is amended, confirming a positive stance at the government level. The committee assessed this as a significant turning point, marking the formal initiation of discussions on relocating the judiciary to Sejong within the institutional framework.

In particular, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Yoonduk stated that the ministry would actively cooperate if the law is amended to allow the Supreme Court’s relocation to Sejong. Kang Juyeop, head of the Multifunctional Administrative City Construction Agency, mentioned that approximately 330,000 pyeong (about 1.09 million square meters) of available land remains in Sejong, making immediate action possible. The committee interpreted these remarks as evidence that Sejong is fully prepared to accommodate the relocation of the judiciary.

The committee argued that the current plan to build a new Supreme Court building in Seocho-dong would worsen overcrowding in the Seoul metropolitan area and is an inefficient project, as it would require a budget of more than 1 trillion won.

Therefore, the committee emphasized that the necessity of discussing the relocation of the Supreme Court has become even clearer.

Sejong, as the de facto administrative capital with the executive branch already relocated and the construction of the National Assembly Sejong Building underway, can only achieve a true balance of powers and complete its capital functions when the judiciary is also present.

The special committee stated, "We hope that this will not remain a one-time issue, and we expect the National Assembly and the government to promptly establish the legal and institutional foundations to ensure that the discussion leads to a substantive relocation. The committee will continue to make active efforts to institutionalize and implement the completion of the administrative capital, including the relocation of the judiciary."