Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae Stresses Mutual Respect Among Three Branches of Government for Effective Judiciary

Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae stated on the afternoon of the 18th at the closing ceremony of the 20th Conference of Chief Justices of Asia and the Pacific, held at the Grand Hyatt Seoul in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, that "mutual respect and cooperation between the judiciary, the legislature, and the executive are necessary for the judicial function to be carried out effectively."

Chief Justice Cho added, "One thing that became clear during this conference is that while courts must respond to changes, the principles that guide us must remain steadfast," emphasizing that "judicial independence, impartiality, integrity, and public trust must always be protected."

This marks the second consecutive day, following the opening ceremony on the 17th, that he has reiterated the importance of judicial independence amid an ongoing tense standoff with the Blue House over the re-nomination of a Supreme Court justice candidate.

In his opening address earlier, Chief Justice Cho said, "No matter what challenges we face, the independence of judicial power must be upheld," adding, "This is essential for the judiciary to safeguard democracy and the rule of law and fulfill its inherent role."

On August 18 last month, Chief Justice Cho nominated Son Bong-ki, Senior Judge at the Daegu District Court, as the successor to former Supreme Court Justice Noh Tae-ak from among four candidates recommended by the Supreme Court Recommendation Committee. However, ten days later, the Blue House demanded a re-nomination, criticizing it as a "one-sided written nomination without substantive consultation."

While the Blue House has signaled that it expects a re-nomination from the remaining three previously recommended candidates, discussions within the judiciary, citing the Court Organization Act and other regulations, are leaning toward forming a new Supreme Court Recommendation Committee and restarting the candidate recommendation process from scratch.

Chief Justice Cho was initially expected to quickly announce his stance regarding the re-nomination, but he has remained silent and continued his deep deliberation for over two weeks.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.