Roh Kyung-pil, Minister of Court Administration (Supreme Court Justice), refuted the ruling party's criticism that all power of the judiciary is concentrated in the hands of the Chief Justice, calling it "an excessive underrating of the judiciary."

Minister Roh made the remark during today's comprehensive audit by the Legislation and Judiciary Committee at the National Assembly in response to a question from Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Yong-min, who pointed out that "the Chief Justice holds personnel authority, administrative authority, and even adjudication authority."

Minister Roh stated, "The Chief Justice holds a fraction (of the adjudication authority)."

He added, "Judicial appointments mostly go through the Judicial Personnel Committee, which is composed of external figures, followed by the Council of Supreme Court Justices to finalize appointments," noting that "it is a structure where the Chief Justice cannot make personnel decisions arbitrarily."

Minister Roh also expressed regret, saying, "The idea that the content of court judgments changes or personnel affairs fluctuate depending on who the Chief Justice is feels like an excessive underestimation of our judiciary, which has reached a world-class level."

When ruling party lawmakers brought up cases such as the acquittal of Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon in his appellate trial and called for the impeachment of Chief Justice Cho Hee-de, Minister Roh pushed back, stating, "It is inappropriate to say that 'the Cho Hee-de judiciary did this or that.'"

Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Seong-yun mentioned Mayor Oh's acquittal and the commuted sentences in the appellate treason trial of former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, asking Minister Roh, "Are not the public suspecting that the Chief Justice has taken the side of the treason forces?" and "I believe that the impeachment of Chief Justice Cho Hee-de is the only answer, what do you think?"

In response, Minister Roh countered, "The Chief Justice is the representative of judicial administration, but no one can interfere—nor does anyone interfere—with lower court trials."

He stated, "Each trial division independently determines guilt, innocence, and sentencing based on evidence and facts, and neither the Supreme Court, including the Chief Justice, nor the National Court Administration interferes at all," adding, "I think remarks claiming that the Cho Hee-de judiciary acted in a certain way are inappropriate."

To Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Ki-pyo's remarks pointing out the ruling in Mayor Oh's case, Minister Roh reiterated, "It is inappropriate for the Minister of Court Administration to comment on individual cases," and added, "If there are any legal issues with a ruling, I believe they can be fully corrected through the appellate system."

Meanwhile, regarding the Supreme Court justices' incentive grants, which faced criticism over alleged improper execution, Minister Roh explained that payments have been put on hold while they are examining payment formats to establish guidelines identical to those of other state agencies.

Previously, the Board of Audit and Inspection announced the results of a regular audit in August, revealing that the Supreme Court had paid an average of 2.0 million won per month in regular incentive grants to Supreme Court justices without legal grounds from 2022 to April 2024.

The Supreme Court subsequently stated it had prepared improvement plans to distribute the funds differentially based on performance and workload burdens, but criticism emerged that they were still being paid in a manner inconsistent with the purpose of the incentive budget.

In response, Minister Roh stated, "I initially thought we had appropriately revised the guidelines, but following subsequent reprimands, we have put everything on hold and are checking how the National Assembly or other state agencies make payments," adding, "We plan to create guidelines aligned with other agencies and execute the incentive grants accordingly."

(Photo: Yonhap News)