The retirement of justices Moon Hyung-bae and Lee Mi-sun comes just a few weeks after delivering their historic ruling on the impeachment of disgraced former President Yoon Suk Yeol over his botched martial law debacle late last year.
The two outgoing justices stressed the need to "respect" the court's rulings in order to uphold the "values of liberal democracy" during an event celebrating their retirement in Seoul.
With the departure of Moon and Lee, the court is now left with seven justices on its nine-strong bench.
Less than a week after Yoon's impeachment on April 4, Acting President Han Duck-soo nominated two justices reserved for the president's discretion, along with the appointment of justice Ma Eun-hyuk, the then-nominee recommended by the main opposition Democratic Party (DP), to fill the vacancy on the bench.
But Han's abrupt nomination immediately sparked opposition from the DP, leading to a court injunction disputing whether an acting president can make such decisions.
With the injunction granted earlier this week, the appointments of conservative justices Ham Sang-hun and Lee Wan-kyu will remain suspended until a final decision is made.
But the case looks likely to fall through, as the June 3 snap election to replace the ousted president is less than two months away, possibly allowing for the incoming president to make a fresh decision.
reporter
Im Yoon-seo
lyseo0330@ajupress.com
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