Ki Woojong Appointed as New Deputy Director of National Court Administration; Presidents of Seoul Central and High Courts Retained

Ki Woojong Appointed as First High Court Judge Deputy Director
Supreme Court Announces Selection of 18 Court Presidents Nationwide

On January 30, the Supreme Court carried out a major reshuffle of senior judges, appointing, for the first time in history, a High Court judge as the Deputy Director of the National Court Administration, as well as naming two new High Court presidents.

Supreme Court, Seocho-gu, Seoul

The Supreme Court announced appointments for court presidents, chief senior judges, high court division heads, and judges on January 30. In this reshuffle, Ki Woojong (Judicial Research and Training Institute, 26th class), a judge at the Incheon Division of the Seoul High Court, was appointed as Deputy Director of the National Court Administration. Since the introduction of the dual-track judicial personnel system, this is the first time that a regular "High Court judge," rather than a division head, has assumed the Deputy Director position.

The newly appointed Deputy Director, Ki, is considered an expert in court administration, having previously served as Director of Informatization at the National Court Administration and as Head of Judicial Support. He has followed an elite career path, including serving as Director of Informatization, professor at the Judicial Research and Training Institute, and judge at the Seoul High Court. The Supreme Court explained, "His expertise was considered, as he has successfully led judicial policies such as the expansion of video trials and the establishment of the next-generation electronic litigation system."

Veteran judges from the 20th and 21st classes of the Judicial Research and Training Institute have been appointed to key High Court president positions. Yoon Jonggu (21st class), division head judge at the Seoul High Court, was named President of the Daegu High Court, and Choi Suhwan (20th class), division head judge at the Seoul High Court, was appointed President of the Busan High Court.

For the core positions of President of the Seoul Central District Court and the higher Seoul High Court, the current officeholders-Oh Minseok (26th class) for the Central District Court and Kim Daewoong (19th class) for the High Court-were retained to maintain organizational stability.

The practical operations line of the National Court Administration was also reorganized. Cho Byunggu (28th class), previously Head of Judicial Support, was appointed as Director of Planning and Coordination, and Lim Seonji (29th class), division head judge at the Seoul Southern District Court, was named Head of Judicial Support.

The chief senior judge line, responsible for the practical operations of the nation's largest court, the Seoul Central District Court, was also reorganized. Lee Sanghoon (29th class), division head judge at the Seoul Eastern District Court, was appointed as Chief Senior Judge for Civil Affairs, and Jeon Boseong (29th class), Chief Senior Judge at the Seoul Western District Court, was named Chief Senior Judge for Criminal Affairs. Both will support the administration of trials.