Lawyers' groups oppose ex-justice's practice

By Lee Kyung-min

Shin Young-chul

Lawyers’ groups are opposed to allowing Supreme Court Justice Shin Young-chul, who meddled in the decisions of junior judges during the trials of anti-U.S. beef protesters permission to practice law.

They say it is improper for former judges and prosecutors to practice law by taking advantage of their personal connections established while serving on the bench.

The Seoul Bar Association (SBA) rejected a request from Shin to practice law, Thursday, saying he should first newly register as a lawyer.

Lawyers with licenses must register with their local bar association and the Korea Bar Association (KBA), respectively, if they wish to practice.

Shin registered with the SBA in 1981, but served as a judge for more than 30 years until retiring from the top court post in 2015. Afterwards, he served as a professor emeritus at the Dankook University Law School.

The SBA said Shin has abused the registration system. “The primary reason for any lawyer to register is to immediately begin work as a lawyer, not to reserve it for more than 30 years before it could be put to good use,” a lawyer from the SBA said.

“We demand that he start from scratch in obtaining new registration through the proper process.”

Shin had been planning to begin work at one of the major law firms here, Lee & Ko.

The KBA also said it plans to reject Shin’s registration as well. “There have been precedents that we rejected applications to practice law from former judges and prosecutors,” a lawyer from the KBA said.

Although the SBA and the KBA do not have the right to ban lawyers from practicing law, their opinions hold sway in the legal community as a reference.

The KBA also said Shin was engaged in a trial-tampering scandal. In 2008 and 2009, he was found to have sent multiple e-mails to some 12 junior judges who presided over trials of activists involved in candlelit rallies protesting the resumption of imports of U.S. beef. In the e-mails, he encouraged the junior judges to conclude the trials swiftly, implying they should find the defendants guilty. Because of the scandal, junior judges opposed his appointment to the Supreme Court.

Shin’s case is also likely to trigger a longstanding debate over whether it is appropriate for former judges or prosecutors to work as lawyers, as they take advantage of their connections with incumbent judges.

The KBA earlier said that former judges and prosecutors should refrain from practicing law.