Yoon Strengthens Legal Team... Biweekly Pleadings

Former Constitutional Court Justice Cho Daehyun and Former Prosecutor General Jeong Sangmyung Join President Yoon's Legal Team

The legal team representing President Yoon Suk-yeol in the impeachment trial has expanded to 14 members with the addition of former Constitutional Court Justice Cho Dae-hyun (74) and former Prosecutor General Jeong Sang-myeong (75). In the legal community, there are remarks that the size and weight of this team now rival the National Assembly’s legal team of 17 members, which includes former Constitutional Court Justices Kim Yi-su and Song Doo-hwan.

On the afternoon of the 16th, during the second hearing of the impeachment trial of President Yoon Seok-yeol, Cho Dae-hyun, the legal representative of the respondent (right), and Song Doo-hwan, the legal representative of the impeachment prosecution (second from the left), shook hands in the courtroom of the Constitutional Court in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung

Former Justice Cho and former Prosecutor General Jeong were classmates in the 17th Judicial Examination alongside former President Roh Moo-hyun. They were very close since their Judicial Research and Training Institute days and were members of the ‘8-in Club,’ a close-knit group of classmates who personally called each other by nicknames and were friendly with former President Roh. After retiring as a presiding judge at the Seoul High Court, Cho served as the presidential defense attorney in the ‘Roh Moo-hyun impeachment trial,’ successfully leading to the dismissal of the impeachment. This is his second time serving as a presidential legal representative. Later, he served as a Constitutional Court Justice for six years starting in 2005, recommended by the Uri Party. Former Prosecutor General Jeong was a trusted figure for President Yoon, even officiating his wedding. Jeong was a senior prosecutor when Yoon was a rookie prosecutor at the Daegu District Prosecutors’ Office.

With the legal teams finalized, both sides engaged in a fierce 200-minute debate on February 16 during the second hearing held at the Constitutional Court’s grand bench, focusing on the constitutionality of the emergency martial law declaration and the legitimacy of the impeachment motion. Jeong Cheong-rae, chairman of the National Assembly’s Judiciary Committee representing the prosecutors, stated, "The Republic of Korea is a nation governed by the rule of law," and urged, "Please swiftly remove the respondent who attempted to destroy the constitution with unconstitutional and illegal emergency martial law." On President Yoon’s side, attorney Cho Dae-hyun spoke first, arguing, "The majority faction in the National Assembly unlawfully impeached the president on charges of treason," and added, "The president was threatened with arrest, which prevented him from attending the first Constitutional Court hearing, and he was detained in a detention center, so he could not attend the second hearing either." Cho became emotional when mentioning the word ‘detention center.’ When the statements from President Yoon’s legal team extended, Acting Chief Justice Moon Hyung-bae intervened, saying, "Please conclude," to restrain the proceedings.

The Constitutional Court selected key military figures involved in the emergency martial law situation as witnesses for the impeachment trial, including former Minister of National Defense Kim Yong-hyun, Army Special Warfare Command Commander Kwak Jong-geun, Army Capital Defense Command Commander Lee Jin-woo, and Defense Counterintelligence Command Commander Yeo In-hyung, along with former 1st Deputy Director of the National Intelligence Service Hong Jang-won and Police Commissioner Cho Ji-ho. Additionally, the court scheduled the trial dates up to the 8th hearing (with additional dates on February 6, 11, and 13). President Yoon’s legal team protested that the trial schedule, which involves hearings two days a week, was too demanding to prepare for, but the Constitutional Court did not accept the objection.

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