Latest news with #SeoulHighCourt
Korea Herald
3 hours ago
- Politics
- Korea Herald
Main opposition calls for Lee to proceed with election law retrial
The main opposition People Power Party on Tuesday urged President Lee Jae-myung to proceed with his retrial on election law violation charges, which has been postponed indefinitely by a Seoul court. On Monday, the Seoul High Court said that the first hearing in Lee's trial, which was initially scheduled for June 18, was indefinitely postponed as per Article 84 of the Constitution. Article 84 of the Constitution claims that a sitting president shall not be prosecuted for criminal offenses during his tenure in office except in cases of insurrection or treason. 'I request President Lee Jae-myung to declare that he will accept the proceeding of the trial with confidence, if he is not guilty and all indictments are fabricated, just as he claimed during the election run,' People Power Party floor leader Rep. Kweon Seong-dong said during an intra-party strategy meeting in the morning. 'This would be a path towards protecting the reputation of the president and towards earning the trust of the people,' he added. Kweon criticized the ruling Democratic Party of Korea's plans to railroad a contentious bill aimed at revising the Criminal Procedure Act to halt criminal trials for an elected president. 'The Democratic Party of Korea said that it plans to forcefully pass the legislation on halting trails for a president -- this is an act that rattles the judicial system by creating a law for only one man, President Lee Jae-myung, a criminal defendant undergoing five trials, and this this unprecedented in South Korea's history,' said Kweon. Echoing Kweon's sentiment, People Power Party deputy floor leader Rep. Park Hyeung-soo expressed concerns that the passage of the amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act would effectively 'halt' all five of Lee's trials. 'The Democratic Party of Korea has moved beyond threatening the court to halt the trial, but has forcefully pushed to pass the amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act, which would halt all of President Lee's trials,' Park said during the same intra-party meeting. 'If the bill passes, then all cases, including the one involving subornation of perjury under trials at Seoul High Court, Seoul Central District Court and Suwon District Court, would be halted. Meanwhile, the Democratic Party on Tuesday decided to postpone its plan to convene a plenary session of the National Assembly on Thursday to pass several contentious bills, including the amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act. Democratic Party spokesperson Noh Jong-myeon told reporters at the National Assembly that the momentum in pursuing the passage of the bills will be revived after the members of 'the new leadership are decided.' The party is scheduled to elect its new floor leader on Friday. Lee's postponed retrial came after the Supreme Court returned the case to the Seoul High Court in May, overturning the lower court's decision to acquit Lee of a suspended prison term for violating the Public Official Election Act. Lee has been accused of making false statements ahead of the 2022 presidential election, including lying in a 2021 media interview about a land development corruption scandal in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, that took place when he was the mayor of the city. Lee's four other trials involve charges of corruption related to the Seongnam land development scandal, embezzlement of provincial funds during his tenure as Gyeonggi governor, the illegal remittance of funds to North Korea, and subornation of perjury.
The Star
10 hours ago
- Politics
- The Star
Lee's election law violation hearing postponed indefinitely
A Seoul court has said that it will indefinitely postpone a trial of President Lee Jae-myung ( pic ) on charges of violating the election law in 2022. South Korea's Supreme Court ruled in May, before Lee was elected, that he had violated the election law by publicly making 'false statements' during his 2022 presidential bid, and sent the case back to an appeals court. The Seoul High Court, which had scheduled a hearing for the case on June 18, said yesterday that it will postpone the hearing 'to be decided later' without a date, a court spokesperson confirmed. Lee's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The court said its decision to postpone the hearing was due to 'Constitution Article 84', without elaborating. South Korea's Constitution, Article 84, says a sitting president is 'not subject to criminal prosecution while in office' for most crimes. However, legal experts are divided on whether that applies to ongoing trials that were already prosecuted before a president was elected. The National Court Administration under the Supreme Court gave as its opinion that judges of each court where Lee's trials are being held will have to decide whether to stop or proceed, according to its statement to a lawmaker in May. 'The court in charge of hearing the case will determine whether Article 84 of the Constitution should be applied to a criminal defendant who was elected in the presidential election,' the statement said. Lee's ruling Democratic Party, which controls parliament, is planning to pass a Bill this week which suspends ongoing trials for the incumbent president, local broadcaster KBS reported yesterday. The Constitutional Court may be asked to rule whether the Bill is unconstitutional, legal experts have said. — Reuters
Dubai Eye
17 hours ago
- Politics
- Dubai Eye
Court delays South Korea President Lee's election law violation hearing
A Seoul court said on Monday it will indefinitely postpone a trial of President Lee Jae-myung on charges of violating election law in 2022. South Korea's Supreme Court ruled in May, before Lee was elected, that Lee had violated election law by publicly making "false statements" during his 2022 presidential bid, and sent the case back to an appeals court. The Seoul High Court, which had scheduled a hearing for the case on June 18, said on Monday that it will postpone the hearing "to be decided later" without a date, a court spokesperson confirmed. Lee's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The court said its decision to postpone the hearing was due to "Constitution Article 84", without elaborating. South Korea's Constitution, Article 84, says a sitting president is "not subject to criminal prosecution while in office" for most crimes. However, legal experts are divided on whether that applies to ongoing trials that were already prosecuted before a president was elected. The National Court Administration under the Supreme Court gave as its opinion that judges of each court where Lee's trials are being held will have to decide whether to stop or proceed, according to its statement to a lawmaker in May. "The court in charge of hearing the case will determine whether Article 84 of the Constitution should be applied to a criminal defendant who was elected in the presidential election," the statement said. Lee's ruling Democratic Party, which controls parliament, is planning to pass a bill this week which suspends ongoing trials for the incumbent president, local broadcaster KBS reported on Monday. The Constitutional Court may be asked to rule whether the bill is unconstitutional, legal experts have said.
The Advertiser
a day ago
- Politics
- The Advertiser
SKorea President Lee's law violation hearing postponed
A Seoul court has indefinitely postponed the trial of South Korea's President Lee Jae-myung on charges of violating election law in 2022. South Korea's Supreme Court ruled in May, before Lee was elected, that Lee had violated election law by publicly making "false statements" during his 2022 presidential bid, and sent the case back to an appeals court. The Seoul High Court, which had scheduled a hearing for the case on June 18, said on Monday that it will postpone the hearing "to be decided later" without a date, a court spokesperson confirmed. Lee's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The court said its decision to postpone the hearing was due to "Constitution Article 84", without elaborating. South Korea's Constitution, Article 84, says a sitting president is "not subject to criminal prosecution while in office" for most crimes. However, legal experts are divided on whether that applies to ongoing trials that were already prosecuted before a president was elected. The National Court Administration under the Supreme Court gave as its opinion that judges of each court where Lee's trials are being held will have to decide whether to stop or proceed, according to its statement to a lawmaker in May. "The court in charge of hearing the case will determine whether Article 84 of the Constitution should be applied to a criminal defendant who was elected in the presidential election," the statement said. Lee's ruling Democratic Party, which controls parliament, is planning to pass a bill this week which suspends ongoing trials for the incumbent president, local broadcaster KBS reported. The Constitutional Court may be asked to rule whether the bill is unconstitutional, legal experts have said. A Seoul court has indefinitely postponed the trial of South Korea's President Lee Jae-myung on charges of violating election law in 2022. South Korea's Supreme Court ruled in May, before Lee was elected, that Lee had violated election law by publicly making "false statements" during his 2022 presidential bid, and sent the case back to an appeals court. The Seoul High Court, which had scheduled a hearing for the case on June 18, said on Monday that it will postpone the hearing "to be decided later" without a date, a court spokesperson confirmed. Lee's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The court said its decision to postpone the hearing was due to "Constitution Article 84", without elaborating. South Korea's Constitution, Article 84, says a sitting president is "not subject to criminal prosecution while in office" for most crimes. However, legal experts are divided on whether that applies to ongoing trials that were already prosecuted before a president was elected. The National Court Administration under the Supreme Court gave as its opinion that judges of each court where Lee's trials are being held will have to decide whether to stop or proceed, according to its statement to a lawmaker in May. "The court in charge of hearing the case will determine whether Article 84 of the Constitution should be applied to a criminal defendant who was elected in the presidential election," the statement said. Lee's ruling Democratic Party, which controls parliament, is planning to pass a bill this week which suspends ongoing trials for the incumbent president, local broadcaster KBS reported. The Constitutional Court may be asked to rule whether the bill is unconstitutional, legal experts have said. A Seoul court has indefinitely postponed the trial of South Korea's President Lee Jae-myung on charges of violating election law in 2022. South Korea's Supreme Court ruled in May, before Lee was elected, that Lee had violated election law by publicly making "false statements" during his 2022 presidential bid, and sent the case back to an appeals court. The Seoul High Court, which had scheduled a hearing for the case on June 18, said on Monday that it will postpone the hearing "to be decided later" without a date, a court spokesperson confirmed. Lee's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The court said its decision to postpone the hearing was due to "Constitution Article 84", without elaborating. South Korea's Constitution, Article 84, says a sitting president is "not subject to criminal prosecution while in office" for most crimes. However, legal experts are divided on whether that applies to ongoing trials that were already prosecuted before a president was elected. The National Court Administration under the Supreme Court gave as its opinion that judges of each court where Lee's trials are being held will have to decide whether to stop or proceed, according to its statement to a lawmaker in May. "The court in charge of hearing the case will determine whether Article 84 of the Constitution should be applied to a criminal defendant who was elected in the presidential election," the statement said. Lee's ruling Democratic Party, which controls parliament, is planning to pass a bill this week which suspends ongoing trials for the incumbent president, local broadcaster KBS reported. The Constitutional Court may be asked to rule whether the bill is unconstitutional, legal experts have said. A Seoul court has indefinitely postponed the trial of South Korea's President Lee Jae-myung on charges of violating election law in 2022. South Korea's Supreme Court ruled in May, before Lee was elected, that Lee had violated election law by publicly making "false statements" during his 2022 presidential bid, and sent the case back to an appeals court. The Seoul High Court, which had scheduled a hearing for the case on June 18, said on Monday that it will postpone the hearing "to be decided later" without a date, a court spokesperson confirmed. Lee's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The court said its decision to postpone the hearing was due to "Constitution Article 84", without elaborating. South Korea's Constitution, Article 84, says a sitting president is "not subject to criminal prosecution while in office" for most crimes. However, legal experts are divided on whether that applies to ongoing trials that were already prosecuted before a president was elected. The National Court Administration under the Supreme Court gave as its opinion that judges of each court where Lee's trials are being held will have to decide whether to stop or proceed, according to its statement to a lawmaker in May. "The court in charge of hearing the case will determine whether Article 84 of the Constitution should be applied to a criminal defendant who was elected in the presidential election," the statement said. Lee's ruling Democratic Party, which controls parliament, is planning to pass a bill this week which suspends ongoing trials for the incumbent president, local broadcaster KBS reported. The Constitutional Court may be asked to rule whether the bill is unconstitutional, legal experts have said.
The Sun
a day ago
- Politics
- The Sun
South Korea President Lee's election law violation hearing postponed indefinitely, court says
SEOUL: A Seoul court said on Monday it will indefinitely postpone a trial of President Lee Jae-myung on charges of violating election law in 2022. South Korea's Supreme Court ruled in May, before Lee was elected, that Lee had violated election law by publicly making 'false statements' during his 2022 presidential bid, and sent the case back to an appeals court. The Seoul High Court, which had scheduled a hearing for the case on June 18, said on Monday that it will postpone the hearing 'to be decided later' without a date, a court spokesperson confirmed. Lee's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The court said its decision to postpone the hearing was due to 'Constitution Article 84', without elaborating. South Korea's Constitution, Article 84, says a sitting president is 'not subject to criminal prosecution while in office' for most crimes. However, legal experts are divided on whether that applies to ongoing trials that were already prosecuted before a president was elected. The National Court Administration under the Supreme Court gave as its opinion that judges of each court where Lee's trials are being held will have to decide whether to stop or proceed, according to its statement to a lawmaker in May. 'The court in charge of hearing the case will determine whether Article 84 of the Constitution should be applied to a criminal defendant who was elected in the presidential election,' the statement said. Lee's ruling Democratic Party, which controls parliament, is planning to pass a bill this week which suspends ongoing trials for the incumbent president, local broadcaster KBS reported on Monday. The Constitutional Court may be asked to rule whether the bill is unconstitutional, legal experts have said.
