Candidate for Chief Justice Lee Gyun-yong: "Fairness and Neutrality Are the Foundations of Judiciary"

This Candidate's First Official Schedule: Meeting with Chief Justice Kim Myung-soo
Preparations for Hearing Begin After Forming 'Hearing Preparation Team' Next Week at Precedent Level

Lee Gyun-yong, Chief Judge of the Seoul High Court (age 61, Judicial Research and Training Institute class 16), who has been nominated as the next Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, met with Chief Justice Kim Myung-soo and began his first official schedule. Ahead of the parliamentary confirmation hearing, Lee is expected to form a hearing preparation team with support from the Court Administration Office starting next week and will begin full-scale preparations for the hearing. The preparation team is reported to consist of one chief-level judge and three deliberation-level judges from the Court Administration Office, which is consistent with past precedents.

On the 23rd, Lee met with reporters at the Supreme Court in Seocho-dong, Seoul, and stated, "I will continuously reflect on what an ideal court that serves freedom and rights, restores the recently collapsed trust in the judiciary and the authority of trials, and meets the expectations and demands of the people at their level should be."

Lee Gyun-yong, the nominee for Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, is arriving at the Supreme Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul on the morning of the 23rd to meet with Chief Justice Kim Myung-soo. August 23, 2023 Photo by Joint Press Corps

Regarding questions about his previous concerns over the decline in trust in the judiciary and its politicization, Lee said, "Fairness and neutrality are the fundamentals of the judiciary."

In response to claims that he was nominated as Chief Justice due to his friendship with President Yoon Seok-youl, Lee said, "Since I am a friend of a close friend, such stories seem to have come up," adding, "There are 160 students in Seoul National University’s College of Law, and only a few study for the bar exam, so I only know them to some extent; it is difficult to consider it a direct relationship."

Lee is classified as a figure with a traditional conservative orientation even within the judiciary. Because of this, there is a prevailing view that the current judiciary, which has a progressive hue, will inevitably undergo changes. Judicial reforms promoted under the ‘Kim Myung-soo court’ are also likely to be thoroughly revised. For example, the system for promotion to chief judge of the High Court, which was abolished by Chief Justice Kim, may be reinstated.

When Chief Justice Kim abolished the High Court chief judge system, judges from the 25th class of the Judicial Research and Training Institute onward have not been promoted to High Court chief judges but have served as senior chief judges or chief judges in district courts. The abolition of the High Court chief judge promotion system led many elite judges to leave the judiciary and move to large law firms. Among frontline judges, some became judges with the High Court chief judge position in mind, making it a system that provided motivation to work.

However, it does not seem easy to abolish or revise all the systems operated under Chief Justice Kim’s administration at once. In particular, the ‘court chief recommendation system,’ which allows frontline judges to select candidates for court chief, may be maintained. The National Judges’ Representative Meeting, established under Chief Justice Kim’s administration, strongly demands a court chief recommendation system that reflects the opinions of frontline judges more, so if Lee were to abolish the court chief recommendation system abruptly, a crisis within the judiciary could occur. During the confirmation hearing, many questions are expected regarding the continuation or abolition of systems established under the Kim Myung-soo court.

Furthermore, the opposition party is expected to raise concerns about Lee’s conservative orientation during the hearing. However, within the judiciary, there is speculation that since Lee’s rulings over 33 years of judging have not been biased, this will not constitute a major disqualification.

Recently, Lee served as the presiding judge in the second trial related to the use of electroencephalogram devices by Korean medicine doctors, a case finalized by the Supreme Court, overturning the first trial’s ruling and deciding that "Korean medicine doctors can also use electroencephalogram devices to diagnose Parkinson’s disease and dementia." He also ruled that tic disorder (Tourette syndrome) should be included as a disability eligible for registration.

Additionally, in the appeal trial of former Seoul Police Chief Koo Eun-soo, who was indicted in connection with the death of the late farmer Baek Nam-gi, Lee overturned the first trial’s acquittal and sentenced him to a fine of 10 million won. In a case where a day laborer died after a retaining wall collapsed during stone piling work at a golf course, Lee overturned the first trial and ruled in favor of the bereaved family.

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