The National Representative Judges' Meeting on the 13th expressed the view that it is "regrettable that the so-called three judiciary laws (law distortion crime, retrial petition, and increase in the number of Supreme Court justices) were revised without sufficient discussion," in connection with their implementation.
The National Representative Judges' Meeting held its first meeting of the year at the Judicial Research and Training Institute in Goyang, Gyeonggi, on this day, placed on the agenda a statement of opinion on the three judiciary laws, and approved the final draft of its position statement by a majority of those present. The National Representative Judges' Meeting is a body where representative judges elected from courts at all levels gather to express opinions or make recommendations on judicial administration and judicial independence.
In the position statement they released through this, the representative judges said, "We fully recognize the need to restore trust in the judiciary and feel a heavy sense of responsibility," but added, "It is regrettable that laws that could bring about a fundamental overhaul of the judicial system were revised without broader and sufficient discussion."
They continued, "We share the view that situations must not arise in which the right of the public to a prompt and fair trial is infringed due to delays in the final resolution of disputes caused by retrial petitions, the weakening of fact-finding due to manpower shortages from rapidly increasing the number of Supreme Court justices in a short period, and indiscriminate complaints and accusations and political abuse stemming from the law distortion crime."
They added, "In particular, we urge comprehensive measures to prevent the contraction of trials caused by unjust complaints and accusations against criminal trial judges." They said each subcommittee under the National Representative Judges' Meeting has decided to actively study and discuss the problems of the revised laws, including the law distortion crime, and response measures.
Earlier, at the morning session, Gang Dong-won, Director General judge at the Seoul Family Court, was elected as the new chair. Cho Jeong-min, a Director General judge at the Bucheon Branch, was chosen as vice chair. The leadership's term runs from today until the regular personnel appointment day next year.
Meanwhile, Chief Justice Jo Hee-de, in remarks on this day, noted the internal burden within the judiciary regarding legislation for judicial reform. Jo said, "With laws that change the foundations of the judicial system taking effect recently, I understand that the concerns you judges are feeling must be significant," adding, "As chief justice, I feel a heavy responsibility for how we arrived at this result."