Justice Ma Eun-hyuk to Oversee Constitutional Appeal Against Acting President’s Nomination ⚖️

Newly appointed Constitutional Court Justice Ma Eun-hyuk has been assigned to preside over the constitutional appeal and injunction request concerning Acting President Han Duck-soo’s nomination of constitutional court justice candidates. According to KBS, the Constitutional Court randomly assigned five cases related to the new justice candidate nominations to Justice Ma Eun-hyuk through an electronic lottery system today (October 10th).

Typically, the Constitutional Court assigns cases randomly via electronic lottery, and the identity of the presiding justice is not disclosed. A court official stated, “For injunction cases, a quorum of five justices is required,” adding, “A decision on the injunction could be made within 3-5 days.”📍D Furthermore, the official noted that the initial case assignment was random, and subsequent related cases were assigned to the same presiding justice (Justice Ma Eun-hyuk).

Justice Ma was initially selected as a candidate recommended by the National Assembly on December 26th of last year, along with Justices Cho Han-chang and Jung Gye-seon. However, his appointment was delayed for three months due to the absence of bipartisan agreement. Acting President Han appointed Justice Ma on October 8th and nominated Lee Wan-kyu, head of the Ministry of Government Legislation, and Ham Sang-hoon, a senior judge at the Seoul High Court, as successors to Constitutional Court Justice Moon Hyung-bae (who is retiring on October 18th) and Justice Lee Mi-seon.

In response, attorney Kim Jung-hwan and the law firm Deoksu filed a constitutional appeal and an injunction request on October 9th against Acting President Han’s nomination of constitutional court justice candidates.

Attorney Kim Jung-hwan argued, “Constitutional trials must be conducted by judges appointed according to the qualifications and procedures stipulated by the constitution and laws. The appointment of constitutional court justices is the inherent authority of the president, who receives direct democratic legitimacy from the people. An acting president cannot exercise this authority, and the nominated candidates are not qualified.”📝

Law firm Deoksu, representing Yun and Hong (parties in ongoing criminal cases involving constitutional law appeals), also filed a constitutional appeal and an injunction request. They claimed that Acting President Han’s exercise of the president’s exclusive authority to nominate constitutional court justices violated the right to a trial guaranteed by Article 27 of the Constitution. “

In South Korea, the President 권한대행 (Gwonhan Daehaeng) refers to an acting president who temporarily assumes presidential duties when the president is unable to fulfill their responsibilities.