 |
| ▲ Lawmakers discuss a controversial judicial reform bill on "legal distortion" during a plenary session of the National Assembly in Seoul on Feb. 26, 2026. (Yonhap) |
parliament-plenary session
Nat'l Assembly passes judicial reform bill amid objection from PPP lawmakers
SEOUL, Feb. 26 (Yonhap) -- The National Assembly, led by the ruling Democratic Party (DP), passed a controversial judicial reform bill to introduce a new crime of "legal distortion" on Thursday after the opposition's 24-hour filibuster expired.
The legislation, one of three judicial reform bills pushed by the DP, seeks to punish judges or prosecutors with a maximum prison term of 10 years if they intentionally distort legal principles or manipulate facts.
The bill was passed during a plenary session Thursday, a day after the main opposition People Power Party launched a filibuster to stall the procedure, denouncing the DP-led judicial reform bills as "malicious legislation" aimed at shielding President Lee Jae Myung.
The original version of the bill had already passed the National Assembly's legislation and judiciary committee, but the DP submitted a revised draft of the bill to the Assembly on Wednesday amid constitutional concerns raised from both within and outside the ruling party.
The revised bill limits the scope of judicial distortion to judges and prosecutors involved in criminal trials, and clarifies provisions defining acts that constitute as judicial distortion.
The amendment also includes provisions that outlaw spying not only for "enemy countries" but for all "foreign countries or equivalent groups."
The DP plans to introduce the other two remaining judiciary reform bills, which seek to allow constitutional appeals of court rulings and increase the number of Supreme Court justices from the current 14 to 26.
(END)
(C) Yonhap News Agency. All Rights Reserved
