Legislation Committee Bill Subcommittee Passes Omnibus Special Prosecutor Extension... Begins Discussions on Amending Criminal Procedure Act

On July 10, the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee's Bill Review Subcommittee 1, led by the Democratic Party, passed a bill extending the investigation period of the comprehensive special prosecutor—tasked with probing unresolved issues and new allegations in three major special investigations involving rebellion, Kim Keonhee, and Chae Haebyeong—by an additional 30 days. Discussions also began on amending the Criminal Procedure Act to abolish the prosecution’s authority for supplementary investigations.

On the 10th, at the Legislation and Judiciary Committee's Bill Review Subcommittee 1 held at the National Assembly, Committee Chairman Seungwon Kim was presiding over the session. The seats of the People Power Party members who did not attend the meeting were empty. July 10, 2026 Photo by Hyunmin Kim

Assemblyman Kim Seungwon, the Democratic Party's secretary for the committee, told reporters after the subcommittee review that “the amendment to the Comprehensive Special Prosecutor Act has been passed.” He added, “The activity period has been extended by 30 days, the scope of investigation has been expanded to include acts of obstructing audits, and some ambiguous wording has been clarified.” The bill also stipulates that individuals with at least five years of legal experience will be appointed as trial attorneys to maintain prosecutions in cases indicted by the special prosecutor.

If the amendment is passed at the plenary session, the comprehensive special prosecutor’s investigation period will be extended from July 24 to August 23.

In the meeting, the subcommittee consolidated and began reviewing bills previously submitted by Assembly members Kim Yongmin and Park Eunjung, another bill from Assemblyman Cha Kyugeun, and a proposal submitted by the Democratic Party’s Criminal Procedure Act Amendment Task Force.

Assemblyman Kim said, “You could say this is the first step toward amending the Criminal Procedure Act. There has been great public interest in whether the supplementary investigation authority will remain, so before today’s review, we listened to the opinions of civic groups, academia, the police, the prosecution, and the National Investigation Headquarters. We will do our best to reflect these views and prepare a well-balanced amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.