[2026 National Assembly Audit] Kim Euigyeom: "Board of Audit Confirms Chief Justice Cho Heedae Paid Encouragement Money"

Cites materials submitted by the Board of Audit and Inspection in social media post
Plans to inspect related documents at the Board of Audit and Inspection

It has emerged that Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Cho Hee-dae and the Board of Audit and Inspection gave different answers regarding the payment of encouragement money to Supreme Court justices. Chief Justice Cho said he "did not intervene in any way in the payment of the encouragement money," while the Board of Audit and Inspection said it "confirmed that the encouragement money had been paid."

Rep. Kim Eui-kyeom, the Democratic Party of Korea's secretary on the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee, said on social media on October 12, "Chief Justice Cho stated during the parliamentary audit that he was not involved in the payment of encouragement money to Supreme Court justices, but it has emerged that the Board of Audit and Inspection responded that it had confirmed Chief Justice Cho paid the encouragement money."

Earlier, during the Supreme Court's parliamentary audit on October 6, Chief Justice Cho said of the cash payments of encouragement money to Supreme Court justices, "The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court does not disburse the salaries or encouragement money paid by the state," adding, "There is a disbursement officer who handles the payments, and the Chief Justice does not intervene in them at all."

The National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee's parliamentary audit is being held at the Board of Audit and Inspection in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the 12th. Yonhap News Agency

Rep. Kim, however, said, "According to the materials submitted to us, the Board of Audit and Inspection responded that it had 'confirmed that the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court paid encouragement money to Supreme Court justices and the Minister of the National Court Administration,'" adding that it had also said the confirmation was made "through accounting documents and a confirmation from the Finance Division of the National Court Administration." He continued, "Given that Chief Justice Cho referred to himself as one of the three top officials of the branches of government throughout the parliamentary audit and emphasized his authority and sense of responsibility, this was a shabby lie."

In connection with this, Rep. Kim demanded that Chief Justice Cho "explain why he gave a false answer, saying he 'does not intervene at all' in the encouragement payments to Supreme Court justices."

The Legislation and Judiciary Committee decided to review documents related to the encouragement payments to Chief Justice Cho before beginning its afternoon audit. Seo Young-kyo, chair of the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee and a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, said, "This afternoon, we will set aside time to review all the accounting documents for encouragement payments made by the National Court Administration, as well as the confirmation from its Finance Division regarding the payments." Lawmakers from both the Democratic Party of Korea and the People Power Party agreed to review the relevant documents.

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