Chief Justice Emphasizes 'Judicial Independence' Six Times Amid Tension Over Supreme Court Nominations

[Anchor]

Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae stated today (September 11) that the courts must conduct trials free from undue interference by other state agencies or political powers. This has sparked interpretations that he was emphasizing judicial independence amid a prolonged conflict with the presidential office and political circles over the nomination of Supreme Court justices.

Reporter Im Chanjong has the details.

[Reporter]

The Supreme Court held a commemoration ceremony today (September 11) for the 12th Court Day.

Court Day marks the day South Korea recovered its judicial sovereignty from the U.S. military administration in 1948. The Supreme Court has been holding annual commemorative ceremonies for this day since 2015.

However, Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae made a significant remark during his commemorative address.

[Cho Hee-dae / Chief Justice: The court, as an independent state agency under the Constitution, must not receive undue interference or influence from other state agencies, political powers, social forces, or even litigants...]&br;
In the context of explaining judicial independence, he stated that trials must be conducted without undue interference from "other state agencies" or "political powers."

Because these remarks came amid severe conflict with the presidential office and the ruling party over Supreme Court justice nominations, interpretations emerged that he was emphasizing the independence of the Chief Justice's nomination authority.

In fact, comparing today's speech to Chief Justice Cho's addresses from the past two years, the term "judicial independence" appeared once in 2024, and was mentioned three times in 2025. Today, however, "judicial independence" was mentioned a total of six times.

Nevertheless, Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae did not announce his policy regarding the re-nomination of Supreme Court justices today.

He is reportedly continuing to deliberate between two options: nominating one of the existing candidates as requested by the presidential office, or re-forming the Supreme Court Justice Recommendation Committee to receive new candidates.

While expectations within the court system suggest a high possibility of re-forming the recommendation committee, such a procedure is expected to take over a month, which would likely prolong the vacancy of Supreme Court justices and further intensify pressure on the judiciary from the ruling bloc.

(Camera Reporter: Yang Hyun-chul | Video Editing: Choi Jin-hwa)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.