Seoul: Supreme Court Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae expressed his respect for the National Assembly's recent approval of three judicial reform bills while urging caution to prevent any adverse effects on the public.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the reform bills, led by the ruling Democratic Party, introduce a new charge of "legal distortion," permit constitutional appeals of court decisions, and increase the number of Supreme Court justices from 14 to 26. Cho emphasized the importance of the judiciary's constitutional role and asked the Assembly to consider any potentially harmful effects of the new laws.
"There is no perfect system in the world and we will seek agreement on areas that need improvement. I earnestly request (the Assembly) to carefully consider whether this sudden transformation will be helpful to the people and whether it will be detrimental," Cho stated. He also disagreed with the Democratic Party's assertion of judicial distrust as a basis for the reforms.
Cho noted that recent surveys by polling agencies, including Gallup, indicated that trust in the judiciary is higher in South Korea (47 percent) compared to the United States (35 percent). He warned against unfounded criticism of the judicial system and judges over individual cases. Additionally, Cho highlighted the nation's strong performance in civil trials as evaluated by the World Bank.