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| On the left is Lee Suk-tae, former head of Lawyers for a Democratic Society and chairman of the Sewol Special Investigation Commission, and on the right is Lee Eun-ae, senior judge at the Seoul Family Court. They have been chosen to replace two Constitutional Court justices whose terms end on Sept. 19. / Yonhap |
5 Constitutional Court Justices to be replaced next month
By Lee Suh-yoon
A major change is expected at the Constitutional Court, as unconventional appointments will likely be made in the planned replacement of justices.
Supreme Court Chief Justice Kim Myeong-su nominated a liberal lawyer and a female judge, Tuesday, to replace two Constitutional Court judges whose terms end next month. The head of the Supreme Court is entitled to nominate three of the nine members of the court.
Both nominees come from backgrounds that are rare for a Constitutional Court justice, raising hopes that their addition will boost the diversity of the justice panel and bring about more liberal rulings.
One of the nominees, Lee Suk-tae, 65, is likely to be a strong representative of liberal rights and values.
He is a prominent human rights lawyer who led the special investigation commission investigation into the Sewol tragedy. Lee also represented the family members of Park Jong-chul – a student activist who was tortured to death by the police during the 1987 democracy movement – in their legal suit against the government.
Lee is also the former head of Lawyers for a Democratic Society, a liberal group of lawyers that work to advance human rights and democracy. Kim Seon-soo, a labor rights lawyer who was recently appointed to the Supreme Court, is also a former head of the group.
The chief justice cited Lee's "protection of constitutional values and strong conviction on human rights" as the reasons for his nomination.
If appointed, Lee will be the first Constitutional Court justice whose background does not include prior positions as a high-ranking judge or prosecutor.
The other nominee, Lee Eun-ae, 52, has 28 years of experience on the bench. With her appointment, the Constitutional Court will have two sitting female justices at once for the first time.
She has shown continued interest in gender issues, working as a member of the Supreme Court's gender law research group and publishing a thesis on the abolishment of the patriarchal family name system in 2005.
She is known for showing "reasonable and balanced judgment in her rulings," the Supreme Court said.
Five Constitutional Court justices will leave their seats next month. The three other positions are to be appointed by the National Assembly.
Considering that the Assembly is currently led by the liberal Democratic Party of Korea, at least one or two of the three nominees are likely to be liberal-leaning figures.
Next April, two justices who were appointed by former conservative President Park Geun-hye will also leave office, opening the way for President Moon Jae-in to appoint two justices of his choice.
After Moon's appointments, the chances will become high for the court to make more liberal-leaning rulings because it requires at least six out of nine justices to decide on the constitutionality of cases brought before it.
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