"Indictments and Other Litigation Records Should Be Disclosed Along with Judgments"

Published 08 Jan.2024 14:11(KST)

[Interview] Lee Seung-woo, Representative Lawyer of Beopseung

Lee Seung-woo (48, Judicial Research and Training Institute class 37), representative lawyer of the law firm Beopseung, said that expanding the scope of judgment disclosure is a "choice that can enhance trust in the judiciary." He stated, "The disclosure of judgments is already specified in the Constitution, and only very exceptionally can it be kept confidential. Among them, first-instance judgments, where various cases can arise, can serve as a touchstone in many situations and allow the public to judge whether to repeat similar lawsuits or whether the lawsuit has no practical benefit." The following is a Q&A.

[Photo by Beopryul Newspaper]

Why is the disclosure of judgments necessary?

"Expanding the scope of judgment disclosure is essential for the evolving society and the development of the legal market. When judgments are disclosed, many citizens can actively search for and study them. Judgment disclosure should be viewed from an informational provision perspective rather than from the viewpoint of human rights violations due to personal information leakage. Filing a lawsuit uses the state's judicial infrastructure, and if it goes up to the third instance, considering the costs of judges and litigation practitioners, the entire national legal system is utilized. Judgment disclosure should be considered from the perspective of understanding how these costs are utilized and creating precedents."

What are the effects of judgment disclosure?

"While protecting personal information is important, if the trial process and results are transparently disclosed, trust in the judiciary can also be gained. The legal services needed in the late Joseon period, the lawyer system required in 1950, and the litigation and lawyer systems in the era of expanding big data inevitably continue to change. Judgment disclosure will further expand lawyers' research. Lawyers are concentrated in some fields. If the scope of judgment disclosure expands, it will create an environment where they do not remain stuck in duplicated and fixed information but can pioneer new areas."

Do you think the disclosure should be expanded to include litigation records and indictments?

"Yes. However, a prior explanation process is necessary to inform parties that litigation records may be disclosed. In this case, a side effect of suppressing lawsuits can also be expected."