Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party of Korea, requested the court to change the date of the public election law case's appeal scheduled for the 15th.
According to the legal community on the 7th, a lawyer representing Lee submitted a request to change the date to the 7th criminal division of the Seoul High Court (Director General Lee Jae-kwon) that morning.
Earlier, the appeal court designated February 15 at 2 p.m. as the first trial date after receiving the case on the 2nd.
If the court does not change the date and Lee does not attend the trial, the court will designate another trial date. If Lee does not attend the newly set date either, the court may proceed to conclude the arguments and issue a ruling. Article 365 of the Criminal Procedure Act stipulates that if a defendant fails to appear on a newly set date without justifiable reasons during an appeal trial, a judgment may be rendered without the defendant's statement.