Gyeonggi Fire Department 119 Legal Support Team 'Legal Dispute Resolver'... Handled 1,675 Cases in 5 Years

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Gyeonggi-do 119 Legal Support Team has been playing a key role as a problem solver in legal disputes arising during various firefighting activities.

According to the Gyeonggi-do Fire and Disaster Headquarters on the 25th, the 119 Legal Support Team, launched in 2018, has handled a total of 1,675 cases over the past five years, including 969 legal consultations (58%), legal advice (40%), and other activities such as investigation accompaniment totaling 32 cases (2%).

The Legal Support Team notably acted as a litigation representative when a complainant who arbitrarily damaged fire facilities and refused to comply with the restoration order filed an administrative lawsuit against the fire station chief, securing a partial victory in the ruling.

Additionally, the team played a significant advisory role in imposing fines on doctors who used 119 ambulance vehicles like private hospital ambulances in non-emergency situations.

In the first half of this year, the Legal Support Team produced 1,000 copies of the "Legal and Administrative Guide for Firefighters," which analyzes civil, criminal, and administrative lawsuit rulings filed against firefighters nationwide and includes measures to respond to similar cases. These were distributed not only in Gyeonggi-do but also to fire stations across the country.

The Legal Support Team currently operates under the leadership of Director Lee Kyung-ho of the Fire Audit Division, with six firefighter members who are also lawyers. The Gyeonggi Fire Headquarters plans to hire two additional lawyers next month, increasing the team to eight members.

Nam Hwa-young, head of the Gyeonggi Fire Headquarters, emphasized, "Thanks to the help of the Legal Support Team members, perpetrators who assaulted paramedics while intoxicated have been sentenced to imprisonment, demonstrating the team's remarkable contributions in legal disputes involving Gyeonggi-do firefighting. We will actively support resolving legal difficulties faced by the headquarters and frontline fire stations and promote awareness of the Legal Support Team’s existence and role to further activate support activities."

Meanwhile, on the 24th, the Gyeonggi Fire Headquarters held the "Gyeonggi-do 119 Legal Support Team Roundtable" in the director’s office to discuss development directions and other matters.

The roundtable was attended by Nam Hwa-young, head of the Gyeonggi Fire and Disaster Headquarters, Lee Kyung-ho, director of the Fire Audit Division, and members of the Legal Support Team, who reported on the team’s major achievements and exchanged opinions on ways to enhance its operation.

The Gyeonggi Fire Headquarters plans to establish regulations for the formation and operation of the Legal Support Team as autonomous ordinances and directives between September and October, thereby formalizing the basis and scope of support for the team’s activities.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.