Supreme Court chief justice recommends 2 for the bench

Supreme Court Chief Justice Jo Hee-de on Tuesday recommended two senior judges to be appointed as justices of the top court by President Lee Jae Myung, officials said.

Jo nominated Son Bong-kie of the Daegu District Court and Kim Sung-soo of the Seoul High Court to fill the vacancies of former Justice Rho Tae-ak and outgoing Justice Lee Heung-gu.

The appointment process will begin once Lee submits an official request for parliamentary consent for the nominees. The two candidates will assume their posts if they pass a parliamentary hearing.

If appointed, they will be the first justices of the top court to take office under Lee since his administration launched in June of last year.

In Korea, all 14 Supreme Court justices are appointed by the president with the National Assembly's consent.

Yonhap