Four candidates recommended for vacant Supreme Court justice seat

Four candidates have been recommended to succeed Supreme Court Justice Lee Heung-gu, who is scheduled to retire on September 7. The recommended nominees are Kim Moon-kwan, chief judge of the Busan District Court; Kim Sung-soo, a presiding judge at the Seoul High Court; Kim Ye-young, a presiding judge at the Seoul Southern District Court; and Kim Jeong-joong, a presiding judge at the Gwangju District Court.

Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae will select one of these candidates to recommend to President Lee Jae-myung for appointment. The selection process is drawing attention, particularly regarding the potential simultaneous appointment of a successor for former Supreme Court Justice Noh Tae-hak, whose position has been vacant since March.

The Supreme Court Justice Recommendation Committee reviewed 28 candidates before selecting the four nominees. Kim Moon-kwan began his judicial career in 1994 and has primarily worked in Busan and Ulsan, becoming chief judge of the Busan District Court last year. Kim Sung-soo started as a judge in 1998 and previously served as the chief ethics audit officer at the Court Administration Office. Kim Ye-young began her judicial career in 2001 and served as the chairperson of the National Court Judges' Conference last year. Kim Jeong-joong, who started as a judge in 1997, served as the chief judge of the Seoul Central District Court in 2023.

Chief Justice Cho will gather opinions until August 7 before finalizing his recommendation to the president. The delay in appointing a successor for Justice Noh, whose recommendation committee proposed four candidates in January, has led to a five-month vacancy. Legal circles speculate that disagreements between the Supreme Court and the presidential office over the final candidate are causing the prolonged delay.

If a successor for Justice Lee is not appointed before his retirement on September 7, the Supreme Court's Third Division will face operational challenges. Currently composed of Justices Lee Heung-gu, Lee Suk-yeon, and Oh Seok-joon, the division will be left with only two members, falling below the quorum of three required for deliberations. This situation is exacerbated by the fact that Justice Noh Kyung-pil, formerly part of the Third Division, was appointed head of the Court Administration Office and no longer participates in trials, reducing the division's active members to three.