Judge

A judge (판사/判事, 법관/法官) is an official who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open court. The judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the parties of the case, assesses the credibility and arguments of the parties, and then issues a ruling on the matter at hand based on his/her interpretation of the law and his/her own personal judgment.

Qualifications
The Constitution of Korea stipulates that qualifications for judges shall be set by the law. In accordance, the Court Organization Act states the qualifications for judges as persons who have passed the National Judicial Examination and completed a two-year training program at Judicial Research and Training Institute (JRTI, 사법연수원/司法硏修院) or those who have passed the bar exam. However, with the introduction of law school system, the National Judicial Examination will be terminated after the year 2017 and judges will be only selected from those who have graduated from an accredited law school, passed the bar exam with sufficient legal experience.

On July 18, 2011, the Court Organization Act has been revised to comply with the above changes. As a result, judge's qualifications will change gradually until 2022 as the following.
 * From January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2017, judges will be appointed among those who have passed the National Judicial Examination and completed the two-year training at the JRTI or who have graduated from law school and passed the bar exam. All candidates must have at least three years of legal experience.
 * From January 1, 2018 to December 31, 2019, judges will be appointed among law school graduates with five years of legal experience.
 * From January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2021, judges will be appointed among law school graduates with seven years of legal experience.
 * From January 1, 2022 and on judges shall be appointed among law school graduates with 10 years of legal experience.

The revised Court Organization Act will also enforce the qualifications of the Justices of the Supreme Court from the current qualifications of being more than 40 years of age with 15 years of legal experience to 45 years of age with 20 years of legal experience. The scope of legal experience would include those who have been in the scope of following areas for not less than 20 years - judge, public prosecutor or lawyer; a qualified lawyer who has engaged in legal affairs at the government agency, local government, national or public enterprise, government-invested institution, or other juristic person; and a qualified lawyer who has been in the office higher than the assistant professor in jurisprudence at an authorized college or university. Former Chief Justices and other Justices, for the most part, were judges prior to their appointment to the respective position.

Appointment of Judges
The Chief Justice and Justices of the Supreme Court are appointed by the President of the nation with the consent of the National Assembly. As for Justices, the Chief Justice has to first submit recommendations for appointment to the President.

The judges are appointed by the Chief Justice with the consent of the Council of Supreme Court Justices. The judges are assigned to their posts by the Chief Justice. The Judges Personnel Committee was established as an advisory group to the Chief Justice to plan and coordinate personnel issues. The Chief Justice can evaluate service of the judges and the outcome may be reflected in personnel management.

Terms of Office and Retirement
The term of office of Justices, including the Chief Justice is six years. The Chief Justice can only serve a single term, whereas Justices can serve additional terms. Judges have a 10-year service term and may be reappointed. Judges must leave office when they reach retirement age even if their term remains. The retirement age for Supreme Court Justices including the Chief Justice is 70 and lower court judges 65.

Guarantee of Status
No judge is subject to involuntary dismissal from office except by an impeachment or a sentence of imprisonment or heavier. Further, a judge cannot be subject to suspension from office, to a reduction of salaries or to unfavorable treatments except by disciplinary measures.

However, if a judge is unable to carry out the duties due to grave mental disorder or physical impediment, the President may order him/her to resign from office upon proposition of the Chief Justice if the judge in question is a Justice of the Supreme Court. In the case of a judges other than Justices, the Chief Justice may order resignation. Remuneration of judges is to be appropriate to the judges' duties and dignity.

During the term of office, a judge cannot become a member of the National Assembly or a local council or a public official in any administrative agency, participate in a political activities, engage in a paid job without the permission of the Chief Justice, or hold a job for the purpose of any pecuniary profit, assume any post, regardless of its reward, as an advisor, officer or employee of a corporation or organization, other than government agencies, without the permission of the Chief Justice.

Discipline of Judges
A judge is subject to disciplinary measures in case of having committed a serious breach of duties or been negligent in performance of the duties. Disciplinary measures may also be taken against a judge who has degraded oneself or maligned the dignity of the court.

Disciplinary measures are divided into three kinds: suspension from office, a reduction in remuneration, and a reprimand. If a judge is submitted to suspension from office, performing of the respective duties shall be suspended for not less than a month and not more than a year. During such period, salary is subject to suspension. If a judge is submitted to a reduction in remuneration, it can be cut by one-third for not less than a month and not more than a year. In case a reprimand is to be delivered, it is admonished in writing.

Discipline of judges is up to the Judges Disciplinary Committee established in the Supreme Court. A resolution of the Committee requires a quorum of a majority of all the members and the consent of a majority of the members present.

Dispatch of Judges
When the Chief Justice is requested by another government agency to dispatch a judge, permission may be granted if it is deemed proper in light of the nature of service, and with judge's consent. Currently, judges are dispatched to the Constitutional Court, the Ministry of Unification, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the National Assembly, the Secretariat for Hague Conference on Private International Law, the International Criminal Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia.