#. The Busan District Prosecutors' Office's team dedicated to non-contentious matters (civil cases not handled through ordinary litigation) filed petitions last year for dissolution orders against two shell companies that an investment fraud ring used to launder criminal proceeds by luring victims with high-return investments in coins and stocks. The corporate accounts in question were was found to have been used by the criminal group to withdraw 49.5 million won stolen from four victims. Shell companies are used as the named holders of so-called "borrowed-name bank accounts," which can be exploited for additional crimes, making swift dissolution essential.
#. The Jeonju District Prosecutors' Office filed for a limited guardianship commencement ruling in Jan. for A, a severely disabled basic livelihood recipient without family. After brain surgery, A has had difficulty walking independently or communicating normally, and the pastor of A's church had been providing care. However, the pastor lacked standing as a petitioner under the Civil Act and could not directly petition for guardianship, and after prosecutors learned of the situation and filed the petition, the court decided on Mar. to commence limited guardianship.
These are recent examples of public-interest representation duties carried out by prosecutors. Public-interest representation duties refer to tasks performed by prosecutors as representatives of the public interest. Beyond criminal investigations and indictments, this is an area where they exercise authority based on individual statutes such as the Civil Act and the Commercial Act. The legal community expects the prosecution's public-interest representation duties to become more important as economic crimes grow more sophisticated and the aging population increases the number of matters requiring legal protection.
◇ Prosecution establishes new rule for handling public-interest representation duties
According to the Supreme Prosecutors' Office on the 9th, the prosecution began enforcing an administrative rule titled "Guideline for Handling Public-Interest Representation Duties," established on Feb. 22. The new rule includes provisions on designating prosecutors and investigators dedicated to public-interest representation, operating dedicated teams, and procedures for case identification, filing, reporting, and post-review.
An official at the prosecution said, "Until now, each Prosecution Service has operated teams dedicated to non-contentious matters, but with this rule we have formalized 'public-interest representation dedicated teams' and systematized related procedures." The explanation is that this restructures the system to operate public-interest representation not as a one-off but in a continuous and uniform manner.
Currently, across 58 district and branch prosecutors' offices nationwide, a total of 132 personnel—64 prosecutors dedicated to public-interest representation, 67 dedicated investigators, and one public-interest legal officer—have been designated and are active. In addition to investigations, indictments, and maintaining prosecutions, which are considered routine prosecutorial duties, they handle public-interest legal affairs based on individual statutes such as the Civil Act and the Commercial Act.
A representative example of public-interest duties is petitioning the court for dissolution orders against shell companies exploited in various crimes. According to the 2025 prosecution yearbook, the Gunsan Branch of the Jeonju District Prosecutors' Office identified 59 shell companies that opened corporate-name bank accounts and transferred them for use in voice phishing crimes, and petitioned the court for dissolution orders. Under the current Commercial Act, when a company's purpose of establishment is illegal, a prosecutor may petition the court for a dissolution order.
Legal support for the socially vulnerable is also among the prosecution's public-interest representation duties. The Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office petitioned the court to cancel a declaration of disappearance for a homeless person who had been deemed deceased for 26 years due to that declaration, thereby restoring the person's identity.
The Incheon District Prosecutors' Office, after confirming the wishes of the victim and the biological mother, provided legal support, including a petition for loss of parental authority, against a defendant who raped his biological daughter by abusing parental authority. This, too, is because the Civil Act grants prosecutors the authority to petition the court for cancellation of a declaration of disappearance, loss or temporary suspension of parental authority, and appointment of an administrator of inherited property.
◇ Public-interest representation duties to continue after transition to the Public Prosecution Service
The legal community expects greater demand for the prosecution's public-interest representation function. Economic crimes using shell companies and borrowed-name bank accounts are increasing, and the aging population and family dissolution are growing the number of vulnerable people falling into legal blind spots.
The prosecution's recent creation of an award system for outstanding public-interest representation work is for the same reason. On Feb. 29, the prosecution selected and rewarded four offices—Busan District Prosecutors' Office, Uijeongbu District Prosecutors' Office, Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, and Gimcheon Branch of the Daegu District Prosecutors' Office—as the first outstanding public-interest representation cases. For example, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office restored the identity of a cryptocurrency investment fraudster who had fled abroad and was deemed deceased due to a declaration of disappearance, by petitioning to cancel the declaration, then sold the cryptocurrency the person had purchased with criminal revenue and used the proceeds to compensate victims.
Even after the Prosecution Service is abolished and transitioned to the Public Prosecution Service in Oct., prosecutors' public-interest representation duties are expected to continue. An official at the prosecution explained, "Because prosecutors' public-interest representation function is grounded in individual laws such as the Civil Act and the Commercial Act, related duties will continue within the statutory scope of duties after the organizational restructuring."