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| ▲ Supreme Court Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae arrives at his office in southern Seoul on March 12, 2026. (Yonhap) |
top court justice-complaint
Complaint filed against top court chief justice for 'legal distortion'
SEOUL, March 12 (Yonhap) -- A complaint was filed against Supreme Court Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae Thursday alleging distortion of legal principles in President Lee Jae Myung's election law violation case on the first day the legislation criminalizing such conduct went into effect.
Lee Byung-chul, a lawyer, submitted the complaint against Cho and Supreme Court justice Park Young-jae, alleging intentional distortion of the criminal procedure law when the top court overturned Lee's acquittal by a lower court last May.
The new law, which took effect earlier in the day, establishes a new criminal offense of "legal distortion" and punishes judges or prosecutors with up to 10 years in prison if they knowingly misapply legal principles.
Police confirmed the complaint, adding that an investigation would take place in accordance with relevant procedures.
The lawyer claimed in the complaint that Cho intentionally did not apply the principle of written proceedings in the case with the intent to harm others' rights.
The Supreme Court at the time sent the case back to the Seoul High Court for review. The verdict, which came just about a month before Lee's election as president, has faced criticism that it was rushed.
The case has been put on hold following Lee's election as sitting presidents are immune from criminal prosecution except in the case of insurrection or treason.
The National Assembly last month passed a set of judicial reform bills to establish the new offense, increase the number of justices at the top court and allow constitutional appeals of finalized court rulings.
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