Acting President Han Duck-soo has appointed a ninth Constitutional Court justice and nominated two more justices to replace retiring members of the bench.

The acting president appointed Ma Eun-hyuk to the Constitutional Court on Tuesday in keeping with the National Assembly’s wishes.  

Han also nominated Lee Wan-kyu, minister of government legislation, and Ham Sang-hun, a justice of the Seoul High Court, to replace Constitutional Court Justices Moon Hyung-bae and Lee Mi-son when their terms expire next week. 

In addition, the acting president appointed Ma Yong-ju as a Supreme Court judge.

In a statement to the nation, Han said he made the appointments after careful consideration and after listening to the opinions of many people, including legal experts, journalists and lawmakers from rival parties.  

Explaining his decision to nominate two new Constitutional Court justices, Han said he considered the fact that the national police chief’s impeachment trial is underway and that the National Assembly could pass a motion to impeach Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok at any time. 

The acting president continued that under the circumstances, if another vacancy at the Constitutional Court leads to delayed rulings, this could cause significant disruptions in managing the presidential election, preparing essential supplementary budgets, and addressing trade issues.