Chief justice stresses judicial independence

By Yun Suh-young

Yang Seung-tae, the new chief justice of the Supreme Court, said Tuesday that he will do his utmost to support the independence of the judiciary.

“The court must be independent to fulfill its task. Without such autonomy, democracy will cease to exist,” Yang said. “I will work hard to lead this court to make fair judgments and our judges to use their conscience.”

The slogan the new chief justice put forth for his tenure was, “An open court that interacts with citizens: Courts into the people, people into the courts.”

Yang officially took office as the 15th chief justice for a six-year term at the auditorium in the main building of the Supreme Court in Seoul.

Yang pledged to lead a court that is “respected by the citizens.” The auditorium was packed with some 600 people and the ceremony began at 10 a.m.

Following the precedent of his predecessor Lee Yong-hoon, Yang appeared at the ceremony wearing an ordinary black suit instead of traditional judge’s robes. Other judges also attended the ceremony wearing suits.

During his speech, Yang also said it was important for the court to earn the respect of citizens.

“The authority of the court comes from the acceptance of the people and the acceptance comes from their respect for judges,” the Chief Justice said. “Judges will be respected when they are noble and wise.”

Yang, in his speech, indicated that he will not drastically reform the court. He had retained this stance all throughout the confirmation hearings held at the National Assembly over the past few weeks.

“The court’s mission is to not overlook the rights of social minorities and to not allow their rights to be violated by a stronger social majority,” Yang added.

This is in line with the stance Lee took while he was in office. Experts have speculated that because of his “conservative” disposition, Yang may bring “rightist” reforms to the judiciary.

Yang’s immediate task since his inauguration Tuesday will be to appoint two new Supreme Court justices to succeed the two whose terms will expire in November.

Yang will immediately set up a recommendation committee for the selection as it takes two months for the entire process and for the nominees to be appointed by the president.

In addition to the two justices who will retire this November, Yang will have to look for four more that will succeed those retiring next July.

As all six justices to be replaced were those appointed by the Roh Moo-hyun administration, Yang’s selection will be key in deciding which direction the court will steer. The Supreme Court has 13 justices.

Born in Busan, Yang graduated from Seoul National University’s School of Law. He passed the 12th judicial exam in 1970 and became a judge at the Seoul Civil District Court in 1975. He served as Chief Justice at the Patent Court and was a Supreme Court justice from 2005 until this February.