"Was Han Deok-su's Impeachment Legal?" Constitutional Court Holds Consecutive Hearings Today

First Hearing on Prime Minister Han Ducksoo's Impeachment to Be Held on the 19th
Constitutional Court to Also Review Dispute Over National Assembly's Impeachment Quorum

The Constitutional Court will consecutively hold the first hearings on the validity of the National Assembly's impeachment motion against Prime Minister Han Deok-su and whether the impeachment procedure was lawful.

Yonhap News

On the 19th, the Constitutional Court will hold the first hearing on the impeachment trial of Prime Minister Han at 2 p.m. in the Grand Courtroom. This comes 54 days after his duties were suspended following the passage of the impeachment motion in the National Assembly. On December 27 of last year, the National Assembly passed the impeachment motion against Prime Minister Han with 192 votes in favor out of 300 members, citing reasons such as his alleged complicity in President Yoon Seok-yeol's declaration of martial law, refusal to appoint constitutional court justices, and his announcement of forming a 'joint government operation system' with Han Dong-hoon, then leader of the People Power Party.

In response, Prime Minister Han's side argues that the reasons for impeachment do not apply and claims that the National Assembly abused its impeachment rights. During a prior preparatory hearing, they also requested the Constitutional Court to hear and rule on this case before President Yoon's impeachment trial.

Immediately following the first hearing on Prime Minister Han's impeachment trial at 4 p.m., the first hearing on the jurisdictional dispute trial will be held regarding the issue of the 'quorum for the impeachment resolution,' filed by 108 members of the People Power Party against National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik. Speaker Woo, at the time of the impeachment vote, put to vote the approval requirement of 'a majority of the total members' as the quorum for the Prime Minister's impeachment.

Regarding this procedure, the People Power Party members argue that since Prime Minister Han is acting as the President's proxy, the quorum of 'two-thirds or more of the total members' applied to presidential impeachment should also apply, and that Speaker Woo infringed on voting rights. In response, Speaker Woo's side told the Constitutional Court that "the quorum for the impeachment resolution of the acting President Prime Minister should be considered as 'a majority of the total members of the National Assembly,'" and that "the trial request should be dismissed."

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