A court decision dismissing an appeal because the appellant did not file a statement of grounds for appeal within the deadline has returned to the Constitutional Court's docket. As another petition for adjudication over the filing period for statements of grounds for appeal passed the preliminary review, the number of cases contesting the same issue has increased to four.
On the 30th, the Constitutional Court held a conference of a designated panel composed of three justices and referred to the full bench a case seeking to overturn a judgment filed by e-commerce retail brokerage company A. Referral to the full bench means it passed the preliminary review. The case will be heard by nine justices.
A filed a lawsuit against former employee B seeking agreed payment and damages, citing B's breach of confidentiality and noncompete covenants. However, A lost at first instance on Dec. 19 last year.
A was served the certified copy of the judgment on the 22nd of the same month and filed an appeal on the 29th of the same month. The Suwon District Court, the appellate court, sent a notice of receipt of the appeal record to A's counsel on Jan. 16. The notice reached A around 12 a.m. on Jan. 24.
The issue was the timing of filing the statement of grounds for appeal. A filed the statement on Mar. 5, 40 days after the notice arrived. The Suwon District Court found that this exceeded the filing period under the Civil Procedure Act and dismissed the appeal the next day. A objected, but the Supreme Court dismissed the case without a hearing on the 22nd of last month.
The Civil Procedure Act requires an appellant to submit a statement of grounds for appeal to the appellate court within 40 days from the date of receiving the notice of receipt of the appeal record. If the statement is not submitted within the period, the appellate court must dismiss the appeal by decision.
A argues that this provision infringes the right to a trial on appeal and the right to equality. Because an unconstitutional provision was applied and the appeal was dismissed, the court's decision should also be overturned, it said. A filed a petition for adjudication with the Constitutional Court on the 19th.
There are already three petitions for adjudication before the full bench that challenge the filing period for statements of grounds for appeal. The Constitutional Court is also hearing three constitutional complaints challenging the constitutionality of the same provision of the Civil Procedure Act itself.
Since the introduction of the petition-for-adjudication system, filings have risen rapidly. From the system's launch on Mar. 12 to the 29th, 1,215 petitions for adjudication were filed with the Constitutional Court. Of these, 10 were referred to the full bench and 1,008 were dismissed.