Judge Jeong Gye-seon confirms legality of Prime Minister Han's martial law actions

On the 24th, the Constitutional Court delivered a ruling dismissing the impeachment of Prime Minister Han Duck-soo. Eight judges were divided in opinion with ‘5 dismissals,’ ‘2 dismissals,’ and ‘1 approval.’

Interest has focused on what judgment the Constitutional Court will make regarding the grounds for Prime Minister Han's impeachment, particularly related to the ‘declaration of martial law and acts of insurrection,’ due to its significant relevance to the impeachment case against President Yoon Suk-yeol and the trial concerning allegations of insurrection leadership.

The only judge who expressed approval on the day, Jeong Gye-seon, also determined that regarding the declaration of martial law and acts of insurrection by Prime Minister Han, “it cannot be recognized as a violation of the Constitution or the law.”

Judges Moon Hyung-bae, Lee Mi-sun, Kim Hyung-du, Jeong Jeong-mi, and Kim Bok-hyeong, who expressed dismissal opinions, also concluded that Prime Minister Han could not be seen as violating the Constitution and the law in connection with the declaration of martial law and acts of insurrection. These five judges stated, “According to the records, we could not find any evidence or objective data to acknowledge that Prime Minister Han actively engaged in acts, such as proposing to convene a Cabinet meeting to grant procedural legitimacy to the declaration of martial law.” They also noted, “We could not find any evidence or objective data to recognize facts such as that he did not propose the convening of the Cabinet meeting to the President after the National Assembly passed the resolution demanding the lifting of martial law.”

Judges Jeong Hyung-sik and Jo Han-chang expressed dismissal opinions and did not further judge the grounds for impeachment related to the declaration of martial law and acts of insurrection by Prime Minister Han.

Meanwhile, the Constitutional Court did not separately judge whether the declaration of martial law on December 3 was unconstitutional or constituted a crime of insurrection.