Bill to Resolve Civil Trial Delays Passes Judiciary Committee

Mandatory Submission of Civil Litigation Appeal Statements

A bill mandating the submission of a statement of reasons for appeal to expedite civil appeal proceedings passed the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee plenary session on the 19th.

On the 19th, a full meeting of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee was held at the National Assembly. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

The amendment stipulates that if the statement of reasons for appeal is not submitted within 40 days from the date of receipt of the notice of appeal record, the appeal will be dismissed compulsorily. Upon the appellant's request, the period may be extended once by 30 days.

Under the current Civil Procedure Act, unlike the Criminal Procedure Act, there is no obligation to submit a statement of reasons for appeal.

As a result, there have been many cases where the appellant did not submit the statement of reasons for appeal even after a considerable period following the filing of the appeal. However, courts have had to conclude cases through judgment after holding a hearing date, even if the appellant shows no substantive intention to appeal the first-instance judgment by not submitting the statement of reasons for appeal, leading to criticism that cases are unjustly prolonged.

If the statement of reasons for appeal is submitted, the issues in the appeal can be clarified early, and sufficient written arguments can be made before the first hearing date of the appeal, enabling a prompt trial in the appeal court.

During the committee review stage, the Legislation and Judiciary Committee set the enforcement date as "one year after promulgation," but at the plenary session on the same day, opinions were raised on the need to increase predictability by specifying the date clearly.

Jung Jeom-sik, the ruling party's floor leader from the People Power Party, suggested, "The enforcement date in the Civil Procedure Act amendment is set as 'one year after promulgation,' but wouldn't it be better to specify a particular date rather than an indefinite concept?" Meanwhile, So Byung-chul, the opposition floor leader from the Democratic Party, asked, "Would March 1, 2025, be appropriate?" Accordingly, if the amendment passes the plenary session this month, it is expected to take effect from March 1, 2025.

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