The Constitutional Court held the first preparatory hearing for Prime Minister Han Duck-soo’s impeachment trial on Monday.
Presided over by Justices Kim Hyeong-du and Kim Bok-hyeong, the preparatory hearing was attended by Han’s legal representatives from the law firm Apex. Prior to the hearing, the attorneys submitted a statement some 80 pages long, accompanied by reference materials on Jan. 6.
According to news reports, Han's team argued that Han's refusal to appoint court justices nominated while he was serving as acting president -- the key issue in this impeachment trial -- was justifiable. They asserted that "there is nothing wrong" with Han's decision to ask the National Assembly to first reach a consensus on the candidates it nominated.
Apex, a local law firm composed of about 30 attorneys handling cases in areas such as corporate law, real estate and finance, includes lawyers such as Kim Jae-sik, who served as the head of policy and external cooperation for President Yoon Suk Yeol's presidential campaign, Shim Kyu-chul, a former legislator and deputy secretary-general of the Grand National Party, and Min Hong-ki, a senior lawyer and former chair of the Hope Foundation for SMEs.
The National Assembly, which passed the motion to impeach Han, has formed a team of lawyers from the law firm Yangjae, who will attempt to prove the legal basis for Han's impeachment to be upheld.
Many of the attorneys at Yangjae are affiliated with the Lawyers for a Democratic Society -- known locally as Minbyun. Notable figures include Choi Byung-mo and Han Taek-geun, both former Minbyun chairpersons, and Hwang Hee-seok, a former spokesperson and secretary-general of Minbyun.
During the hearing, representatives of two sides presented their initial positions, laid out the key issues, and coordinated witnesses, evidence and trial schedules. The parties to the case, Han and National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-sik, were not required to attend. Typically, two or three preparatory sessions are held before formal hearings begin.
On Dec. 27, the motion to impeach Han was passed with support from 192 out of 300 lawmakers in the National Assembly, citing allegations such as “aiding and abetting acts of rebellion under martial law,” as well as “refusal to appoint constitutional judges.”
The ruling People Power Party argues that the impeachment of the acting president should require the same quorum as the impeachment of the president -- a two-thirds majority of all lawmakers, or 200 votes -- and therefore the National Assembly’s impeachment motion is invalid. National Assembly Speaker Woo applied the standard of a simple majority, and declared the motion passed.
They also contend that acting President Choi Sang-mok’s appointment of Constitutional Court Justices Cho Han-chang and Jung Gye-sun was procedurally flawed.
Consequently, PPP lawmakers have filed a jurisdictional dispute and an injunction with the Constitutional Court to suspend the motion's effect.
Han’s side and the National Assembly have formed separate legal teams to handle the jurisdictional dispute.
Han’s representatives are from the law firm Dowoo Hwasan, while Woo is represented by Noh Hee-beom, a former Constitutional Court researcher and head of the HB Law Office.
Meanwhile, the court said it will hold the first hearing in President Yoon Suk Yeol’s impeachment trial on Tuesday. While Yoon’s legal team said on Sunday that Yoon would not attend the first hearing due to security and safety concerns, formal proceedings in the trial are likely to begin on Thursday, the court’s scheduled date for the second hearing.
ddd@heraldcorp.com
