Retiring Supreme Court justice says court failed to explain its position after martial law

Retiring Supreme Court Justice Lee Heung-koo said the judiciary failed to deliver its position to the public during the national crisis that followed the December 3 emergency martial law declaration.

At his retirement ceremony in Seoul on the 7th, Lee said the court had not communicated properly when the public most needed to understand its judgments and intentions. “If the court fails to speak properly when it must, it gradually loses even the opportunity to speak,” he said.

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If the court fails to speak properly when it must, it gradually loses even the opportunity to speak.

Lee warned that public distrust of the courts was becoming more serious despite their efforts, while criticism and demands for change were growing sharper. Because the judiciary’s authority comes from public trust, he said, the courts could not ignore the situation. They needed to acknowledge the causes of distrust humbly and work to resolve them rather than simply resent the criticism.

He said the courts must continually examine their principles and purpose as political cases multiply and their effects shake the judiciary. Unless the courts ask whether they have remained faithful to those principles and explained them properly, he said, they would struggle to escape the political maelstrom.

Lee also expressed concern about three judicial laws passed by the National Assembly earlier this year under Democratic Party leadership: a law on judicial distortion, a law increasing the number of Supreme Court justices, and a constitutional complaint system against court rulings. He said the laws would significantly alter long-standing trial procedures and the Supreme Court’s status and structure. Although he called the court’s limited role in the legislative process shocking and regrettable, he said the judiciary had a duty to review the system and lead change so that no citizen would be harmed.

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The court’s power and authority come from the trust of the people, who are sovereign, so we cannot ignore this situation.

Lee said judicial complaints and the judicial-distortion offense could significantly restrict the work of courts and judges, but would not fundamentally change judges’ status or role. Judges, he said, must withstand the external environment by carrying out their trials without wavering.

During his six-year term, Lee said he had focused on protecting basic human rights and sought legal interpretations that would help injured or deceased workers and their families maintain a minimum standard of living. His successor, Seoul High Court Presiding Judge Kim Seong-su, has been nominated, with a parliamentary confirmation hearing scheduled for the 14th. Because the predecessor to another justice who retired in March has not yet been nominated, the Supreme Court is expected to have two vacancies for the time being.

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The legislative process that failed to properly reflect the court’s views is shocking and regrettable.