Ruling Party Leadership to Pursue Legislation on Constitutional Complaints Excluded from Special Committee
Up to Fivefold Punitive Damages Proposed for Fake News
The Special Committee on Judicial Reform and the Special Committee on Media Reform of the Democratic Party of Korea will each announce reform proposals on the afternoon of October 20, 2025. The judicial reform proposal includes increasing the number of Supreme Court justices from the current 14 to 26, while the fake news eradication plan aims to strengthen sanctions against false and manipulated information.
Jeong Cheongrae, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, stated at the Supreme Council meeting that morning, "Following the prosecution reform proposal, both the national and generational mandates have taken their first steps."
The Democratic Party’s Special Committee on Judicial Reform is expected to announce plans not only to increase the number of Supreme Court justices, but also to diversify the composition of the Supreme Court Justice Recommendation Committee, improve the judicial evaluation system, expand the scope of public access to lower court rulings, and introduce a pre-search warrant hearing system.
Jeong Cheongrae: "All generational mandates take their first step"... Legislative push for 'appeal to the Constitutional Court' amid four-tier court system controversy
The proposal to allow appeals to the Constitutional Court after a Supreme Court ruling, which has sparked controversy over a potential four-tier court system, was excluded from the Special Committee’s plan. However, the party leadership intends to pursue legislation based on its own position.
Regarding this, Jeong explained, "Due to time constraints, such as the Chuseok holiday, the Special Committee on Judicial Reform was unable to finalize discussions on the appeal to the Constitutional Court issue," and emphasized, "It was omitted from the committee’s proposal, but that does not mean it was excluded from the overall judicial reform plan."
Amid recent declines in government and ruling party approval ratings due to issues such as real estate policies, the detention and abduction of Koreans in Cambodia, and controversies involving Kim Hyunji, the First Secretary to the President, the party appears to be moving quickly to advance judicial and media reforms following prosecution reform, out of concern that momentum for reform is weakening.
Jeong further stated, "It is thanks to the Democratic Party, the government, and the presidential office working as one team to create reform proposals that meet public expectations, and I see this as the result of the people and President Lee Jaemyung enabling such reforms." He added, "Reform is like pedaling a bicycle-if you stop pedaling, the bicycle falls over. The same applies to reform," explaining the need for swift progress.
Jeong Cheongrae, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is speaking at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on October 20, 2025. Photo by Kim Hyunmin
Ruling Party to Pursue 'Fivefold Punitive Damages' for Fake News..."Special Provisions to Prevent Gag Lawsuits That Suppress Legitimate Reporting"
The Democratic Party of Korea also plans to announce a proposed amendment to the Information and Communications Network Act that would impose punitive damages of up to five times the actual damages for the dissemination of false or manipulated information. The party’s Special Committee on Media Reform has been discussing a plan centered on a multiple damages system to replace the existing punitive damages system, as well as a Korean-style Digital Services Act (DSA) that would require online platform operators to delete illegal content.
Malicious false or manipulated articles or videos posted on internet portals or YouTube are expected to fall under the scope of regulation. The Democratic Party intends to process the bill before the end of the regular National Assembly session, following a public discussion process.
A member of the Special Committee on Media Reform told The Asia Business Daily, "We are not targeting any specific case; we think it is important to establish standards," adding, "Some may slip through the cracks, but that is something we have to accept." This suggests the party is drawing a clear line that the bill does not target all media outlets or YouTubers, in order to avoid criticism of censorship or media control.
Regarding the criteria for regulating YouTubers, the committee member said, "We will comprehensively consider the number and frequency of posts, as well as influence indicators such as the number of subscribers and views," adding, "The exact threshold has not yet been determined. The presidential office should take the lead on this."
On concerns that so-called "gag lawsuits"-legal actions intended to silence the media-could restrict freedom of expression, the committee member explained, "We will include special provisions to prevent gag lawsuits." If a specific individual or group files a lawsuit against the media and the media objects, the court would first review the evidence presented by the media, and only then consider the claims of the individual or group, according to the proposed system.
The committee member added, "If a gag lawsuit is recognized by the court, we will allow a press conference to be held and order the plaintiff to admit to filing a gag lawsuit. With measures like this, who would recklessly file such lawsuits?"
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