Court rejects motion to recuse judge in Mosse Tan's travel ban case

A South Korean court has dismissed a motion filed by Professor Mosse Tan, a visiting professor at Liberty University, to recuse the judge overseeing his lawsuit to revoke a travel ban. Tan is currently under police investigation for allegedly spreading false information about President Lee Jae-myung.

Tan's legal team had requested the recusal of Judge Wi Ji-hyun, arguing that the judge's prior decision to deny Tan's request for an emergency stay on the travel ban demonstrated bias. They claimed this action interfered with Tan's right to appeal and that the judge's involvement in both the emergency stay decision and the subsequent criminal complaint against him created an unfair trial scenario.

However, the Seoul Administrative Court's Administrative Division 5 rejected these claims. The court stated that the timing or outcome of the emergency stay decision, even if unfavorable to Tan, did not provide reasonable grounds to suspect the judge would conduct an unfair trial in the main case. The court also found no evidence to support the claim that the judge and Tan were in a complainant-defendant relationship, as alleged by Tan's side.

Tan was accused of defamation for allegedly spreading false information at a press conference in Washington D.C. last June, claiming President Lee Jae-myung was involved in a juvenile detention center during his youth. Police initially dismissed the case, but the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office requested a reinvestigation. Tan, who entered South Korea on May 28 for election verification, has not cooperated with the investigation, citing a request to recuse the investigator.

Following the police request for a travel ban on May 2nd due to defamation charges, Tan filed a lawsuit against the Ministry of Justice seeking to revoke the ban and simultaneously applied for an emergency stay. The court denied the emergency stay, prioritizing public welfare over preventing potential harm to Tan, though it acknowledged the need to prevent damage. Tan has appealed this decision.