Interest in former Constitutional Court judges-turned-lawyers is growing in the legal community. With the so-called "trial appeal system" set to take effect after the Constitutional Court Act revision bill passed the National Assembly on the 27th of last month, final court rulings can be brought before the Constitutional Court through a constitutional complaint.
The Constitutional Court Act revision bill was approved at a Cabinet meeting on the 5th. The supplementary provisions stipulate enforcement from the date of promulgation, so it is expected to take effect as early as next week when it is published in the official gazette. According to legal sources, as the Constitutional Court is effectively set to take on the role of a "fourth instance," demand for lawyers from the court is expected to increase. Major law firms have already put former Constitutional Court officials at the forefront as they move to seize the market.
◇ Six major law firms staffed from justices to researchers
According to legal sources on the 8th, the law firm considered to have the strongest pipeline of former Constitutional Court personnel is Kim & Chang. A representative figure is lawyer Mok Young-jun (Judicial Research and Training Institute class 10), a former Constitutional Court justice. Mok served as a judge at the Seoul High Court and Vice Administrator at the National Court Administration before serving as a Constitutional Court justice from 2006 to 2012. He later served as chair of the Korea Bar Association Legal Aid Foundation and joined Kim & Chang in 2013.
Lawyer Kang Il-won (class 14) is also with Kim & Chang. Kang served as a research judge at the Supreme Court, head of the Judicial Policy Office and Deputy Minister for Planning and Coordination at the National Court Administration, and a presiding judge at the Seoul High Court, before serving as a Constitutional Court justice from 2012 to 2018. During that time, Kang was the presiding justice in the impeachment trial of former President Park Geun-hye.
Lawyer Kwon O-gon (class 9), a former head of the Research Division at the Constitutional Court who also serves as an advisor to the court, is also at Kim & Chang. In addition, lawyers Kim Sung-ju (class 31), Seo In-seon (class 31), and Kim Jong-beom (class 37), all former constitutional researchers, are with the firm.
At BAE, KIM & LEE LLC, lawyer Kim Kyung-mok (class 26) is regarded as an expert in constitutional complaint cases. From 2002 to 2020, Kim worked at the Constitutional Court as a constitutional researcher and senior researcher, head of the research faculty at the Constitutional Research Institute, and senior constitutional researcher. Lawyer Han Wi-su (class 12), a former head of the Research Division at the court, and lawyer Lee Seung-seop (class 17), a former research judge, are also with BAE, KIM & LEE LLC.
At Shin & Kim LLC, lawyer Yeom Dong-sin (class 20), a former constitutional researcher, is on staff. Yeom served as Director of the State Litigation Division at the Ministry of Justice, a Director General prosecutor at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, and a Vice Minister-level deputy chief prosecutor at the Busan District Prosecutors' Office Dongbu Branch.
At Lee & Ko, lawyer Kim Jeong-won (class 19), a former Secretary-General of the Constitutional Court, is on staff. Kim concurrently served as senior Director General researcher at the court, spokesperson, policy director, and chief of staff to the president of the court, and later served as chief senior Director General researcher. Until last year, Kim also served as secretary-general of the Research Secretariat of the Association of Asian Constitutional Courts. Lawyers Ji Young-cheol (class 17), Kang Eul-hwan (class 21), and Jin Chang-su (class 21), all former constitutional researchers, are also positioned at Lee & Ko.
At YulChon, lawyer Yoon Yong-seop (class 10) is on staff. Yoon served as a judge at various levels of courts, a legislative review officer at the National Court Administration, a research judge at the Supreme Court, and a presiding judge at the Gyeongju Branch, before heading the Constitutional Research Division at the court.
At Yoon & Yang LLC, senior advisor lawyer Lee In-bok (class 11), a former research judge at the court, and lawyer Park Sang-hoon (class 16) are on staff. In 2008, Park helped secure a ruling that a provision of the Medical Service Act that barred doctors from informing expectant parents of a fetus' sex during pregnancy was unconstitutional.
◇ A lawyer is required for constitutional trials
The core of the trial appeal system is that a constitutional complaint can be filed when there is a ruling contrary to the Constitutional Court's decision or a violation of fundamental rights. A petition can be filed within 30 days from the date the ruling becomes final, and once the case is filed, the effect of the Supreme Court's ruling is suspended until the Constitutional Court's decision.
If the trial appeal system is implemented, filings with the court are expected to increase significantly. The Supreme Court estimates that even if trial appeals are allowed only against final Supreme Court rulings, more than 15,000 additional cases will be filed annually.
A constitutional complaint cannot be filed without a lawyer. This is due to the so-called "mandatory attorney system." The Constitutional Court Act stipulates that anyone who is not a lawyer must appoint a lawyer as an agent to file for adjudication or proceed with the procedure.
For this reason, the legal community expects rapid growth in demand for personnel who served as justices and researchers at the court. Lawyers familiar with the court's review methods and internal procedures inevitably have an advantage in handling constitutional complaint cases.
Some law firms are reportedly considering setting up "fourth-instance response teams" centered on former court personnel. A lead litigator at a major firm said, "There are many internal calls to prepare for the potential reality of a fourth instance by recruiting talent and creating separate teams," adding, "I understand some firms have already begun related preparations."