President Lee Jae-myung requested the consent for the appointment of Kim Sang-hwan as the Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court.
According to the National Assembly's legislation information system on the 5th, President Lee submitted the 'consent bill for the appointment of Kim Sang-hwan as the Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court, who is also a candidate for the judge of the Constitutional Court' to the National Assembly the previous day.
According to the Constitution, the head of the Constitutional Court is appointed by the President from among the judges with the consent of the National Assembly. The appointed Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court will serve for the remaining term of six years of the judges.
However, since the candidate Kim is not a current judge, the consent bill for the appointment of the Chief Justice, who serves as a candidate judge, has been submitted.
It has been 12 years since such a consent bill was submitted to the National Assembly, following then-President Lee Myung-bak's request for consent for the candidate Lee Dong-hub in 2013. At that time, candidate Lee fell through in the hearing process and was unable to serve as the Chief Justice.
Candidate Kim is a former Supreme Court Justice who finished his term in December last year. If appointed, he will become the Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court, the first Supreme Court Justice to hold this position in 12 years since Lee Kang-guk (January 2007 to January 2013).
Candidate Kim will be the first to serve a six-year term as Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court in 12 years after the previous Chief Justice.
President Lee noted that candidate Kim has 'a belief in the protection of constitutional values, a commitment to safeguarding the basic rights of the people, and a warm consideration for the socially vulnerable,' adding, 'One should not underestimate the value of rights contained in the voices of minorities even if they are weak.'
On the same day, President Lee also submitted a request for a hearing regarding candidate Oh Young-jun for the Constitutional Court.
President Lee stated that candidate Oh is 'the best fit as a judge of the Constitutional Court who must realize constitutional justice while listening to the various opinions of our society, based on a firm belief in guaranteeing the basic rights of the people.'