Democratic Party President to appoint 22 new Supreme Court justices, conservative Supreme Court justice resigns his post in protest

The legislative process for the three major judicial reform bills—covering the creation of a crime of judicial distortion, the introduction of a constitutional complaint system against court rulings, and an expansion of the number of Supreme Court justices—is set to be completed on the 28th under the leadership of the ruling Democratic Party. The judiciary has strongly opposed the rapid passage of the bills, raising concerns over potential constitutional violations and threats to judicial independence, creating a direct confrontation between the legislative and judicial branches. Park Young-jae, Minister of the National Court Administration and a Supreme Court justice, publicly protested what he described as unilateral legislative action by the ruling majority and announced his intention to resign from his administrative post.

Following the National Assembly’s passage of legislation introducing constitutional complaints against court judgments on the 27th, lawmakers are expected to approve a revision to the Court Organization Act on the 28th to expand the Supreme Court. Together with the earlier passage on the 26th of amendments to the Criminal Act establishing the offense of judicial distortion, the legislative measures required to implement the so-called “three major judicial reform laws” will be finalized over a three-day period. The Supreme Court expansion bill aims to address the backlog of appeals by increasing the number of justices from the current 14 to 26, adding 12 new positions in stages—four per year over three years beginning two years after promulgation. If the expansion begins in February 2028, President Lee Jae-myung would appoint up to 22 justices during his term, including the 12 newly created seats and replacements for 10 incumbent justices expected to retire.