Gyeonggi Province Accelerates Establishment of High Court Branch in Northern Gyeonggi

Gyeonggi Province Holds First Joint Countermeasure Meeting with Five Related Agencies
Provincial Government, Court Administration, Ministry of Justice, Uijeongbu City, and LH Gather
Agencies Discuss Proactive Preparations and Cooperation for Early Establishment of Legal Town

Gyeonggi Province has officially begun efforts to establish a branch of the High Court outside its main location, aiming to enhance judicial accessibility for residents in the northern Gyeonggi region.

Gyeonggi Province held its first joint countermeasure meeting on the 6th at the Northern Government Complex of Gyeonggi Province, together with related organizations including the Court Administration, Ministry of Justice, Uijeongbu City, and Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH). Photo by Gyeonggi Province

On August 6, Gyeonggi Province held its first joint countermeasure meeting at the Northern Government Complex, together with related organizations including the Court Administration, Ministry of Justice, Uijeongbu City, and Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH).

A branch court outside the main High Court is established to allow residents living far from the main High Court to more conveniently access appellate trials. By law, such a branch holds the same authority and functions as the main High Court.

During the meeting, participants focused on discussing cooperation measures between agencies regarding key issues such as the establishment of the High Court branch in northern Gyeonggi, the early relocation of the district court and prosecutor's office, and the creation of a legal town.

Since signing a memorandum of understanding in 2019 to attract a branch of the Seoul High Court, Gyeonggi Province has continued its efforts, including submitting a petition with 160,000 signatures and a proposal to the Supreme Court in 2020. In 2024, the province also succeeded in having related installation costs reflected in the national budget.

However, challenges persisted due to issues such as the suitability of candidate sites for the branch court in northern Gyeonggi and infrastructure problems.

To address these issues, since July, Gyeonggi Province has been seeking solutions through consultations with the Court Administration, Uijeongbu City, and LH. The agencies reached a consensus to attract the branch court to the legal town currently being developed in the Gosan-dong area of Uijeongbu.

At the meeting, LH (Korea Land and Housing Corporation) agreed to expedite procedures such as cultural heritage surveys and infrastructure construction, moving up the timeline for using the public office site by about three years to December 2026. In response, Gyeonggi Province and Uijeongbu City promised to provide maximum cooperation regarding related permits and military consultations.

In addition, the Court Administration, Ministry of Justice, and related agencies agreed to work with the Ministry of Economy and Finance to ensure there are no delays in budget allocation for the prompt construction of public offices (courts and prosecutor's offices).

Kim Sangsu, Director of the Balanced Development Planning Office of Gyeonggi Province, stated, "It is most important to quickly establish the legal town so that residents in northern Gyeonggi can enjoy prompt and high-quality judicial services," adding, "We will closely cooperate with central government ministries and related agencies to ensure that not only the High Court branch, but also community-based judicial institutions such as the family court and rehabilitation court, can be established within the legal town."

Going forward, Gyeonggi Province plans to continuously strengthen its collaboration system with relevant central government ministries, local governments, and LH to ensure the swift occupancy of public offices and the establishment of the High Court branch within the legal town.

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