Supreme Court Justice Oh Seok-jun has recused himself from the appeal hearing in the case of former President Yoon Suk-yeol, who faces charges including obstructing his arrest by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO). Recusal is when a judge voluntarily withdraws from a case over concerns such as impartiality.
"Justice Oh recused himself from this case out of concern that it could raise questions about the fairness of the trial," the Supreme Court said Wednesday. "He has not been involved in the deliberations since the case was assigned and will not take part in the ruling on Thursday."
At the appeal ruling on charges including obstruction of special official duties, scheduled for 2 p.m. Thursday, Justice Oh will step aside, with only Justices Lee Heung-gu, Roh Kyung-pil and Lee Sook-yeon participating. Justice Lee Heung-gu will preside, and Justice Lee Sook-yeon will serve as the presiding judge on the merits.
Justice Oh was the first Supreme Court justice appointed under the Yoon Suk-yeol administration in 2022. Yoon entered Seoul National University's law school in 1979 and Justice Oh in 1980, making them senior and junior by one year. Justice Oh's ties with Yoon were revealed during his confirmation hearing. At the hearing, Justice Oh said, "When we had meals during our university days, we would share drinks, and even at later gatherings, when we met in the evening, there were inevitably cases where drinks were involved." Justice Oh also testified that he had attended Yoon's wedding. "Over the past 10 years, I have probably met him fewer than five times," the nominee Oh said. "To dispel concerns (about compromising independence), and to ensure not even a shred of misunderstanding arises, I will do my utmost to render an independent and objective judgment," he had promised.
The Supreme Court's Third Division will issue its ruling on Yoon at 2 p.m. Thursday, on charges including obstructing his arrest by the CIO. It marks the first appeal-level judgment on Yoon. The Supreme Court will broadcast the ruling live. Yoon will not attend the ruling that day and instead plans to attend the appellate hearing on charges of leading an insurrection at the Seoul High Court.
