Four candidates have been shortlisted to succeed Supreme Court Justice Lee Heung-gu, who will retire on Sept. 7.
On the afternoon of the 4th, the Supreme Court justice candidate recommendation committee held a meeting and, from 28 candidates for Justice Lee's successor, recommended four people to Chief Justice Jo Hee-de as nominees for recommendation: Kim Moon-gwan (62, Judicial Research and Training Institute class 23), chief judge of the Busan District Court; Kim Seong-su (57, class 24), presiding judge of the Seoul High Court; Kim Ye-yeong (51, class 30), presiding judge of the Seoul Southern District Court; and Kim Jeong-jung (60, class 26), presiding judge of the Gwangju District Court.
Chief Justice Jo will disclose their major rulings and work records and gather a range of opinions from inside and outside the judiciary on who is suitable to serve on the Supreme Court. After that, one candidate will be selected and recommended to President Lee Jae-myung for appointment.
However, Chief Justice Jo has not yet recommended to the president a successor to former Justice Roh Tae-ak, who retired in March. If coordination between the presidential office and the Supreme Court proceeds smoothly, two Supreme Court justice nominees could be recommended at the same time.