Gwangju Bar Association Selects 7 Outstanding Judges

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Jin-hyung] Lawyers in Gwangju have selected seven outstanding judges and five lower-ranked judges of the year.

The Gwangju Bar Association announced the results of the 2022 judge evaluation on the 22nd at the Gwangju Bar Association Hall.

The outstanding and courteous judges selected were Judge Koo Hyun-jung (37, 1st Bar Exam) of Jangheung Branch, Gwangju District Court; Judge Kim Jeong-min (43, Judicial Research and Training Institute Class 41) of Criminal Division 10, Gwangju District Court; Chief Judge Noh Jae-ho (44, Judicial Research and Training Institute Class 33) of Civil Division 11, Gwangju District Court; Chief Judge Park Sang-hyun (50, Judicial Research and Training Institute Class 32) of Criminal Division 4, Gwangju District Court; Chief Judge Jeon Il-ho (45, Judicial Research and Training Institute Class 33) of Criminal Division 7, Gwangju District Court; Chief Judge Jo Hyun-ho (52, Judicial Research and Training Institute Class 29), Head of Haenam Branch, Gwangju District Court; and Judge Cha Ki-hyun (45, 2nd Bar Exam) of Gwangju High Court.

Chief Judge Noh was selected as an outstanding judge for three consecutive years, and Chief Judge Park for two consecutive years.

The outstanding judges were evaluated as conducting trials without prejudice after fully understanding the issues of the cases, treating litigants with courteous and dignified behavior, and proceeding with trials promptly and fairly.

The five lower-ranked judges were criticized for showing prejudice in trials, having a high-handed attitude, and causing trial delays.

Anonymous cases revealed that evidence requests were restricted or ignored without specific reasons, hindering the exercise of the right to defense, and personal friendships with parties involved raised doubts about fairness.

Some judges appeared to be unaware of the issues as if they had not read the written documents, conducted trials with a high-handed attitude and a lecturing tone, and made insulting remarks.

There were also cases where the first hearing date was set only two years after the complaint was filed, or where appropriate litigation control was not exercised despite the expert opinion results not arriving even after seven months.

This year’s evaluation involved 274 of the 571 Gwangju Bar Association members and targeted 394 judges in the jurisdiction.

The average score of the judges was 85.23 out of 100, an increase compared to 83.52 in 2019, 83.15 in 2020, and 84.06 in 2021.

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