South Korea
Courts in South Korea
A three-tier ordinary judiciary under the Supreme Court, and a separate, dedicated Constitutional Court — two apex bodies.
Facts on this page were checked against their sources on .
The ordinary judiciary is three-tier: eighteen District Courts (지방법원) at first instance, High Courts (고등법원) on appeal, and at the apex the Supreme Court (대법원), the court of final appeal for all ordinary cases, with fourteen Justices including the Chief Justice.
The same idea, explained generally
- What do courts do?
Courts resolve disputes, test the state’s case against individuals, interpret law, and review public decisions. This guide explains those functions and why judicial independence is structural.
- What is due process?
Due process is the requirement that the state follow fair, established procedures before it takes action against a person. This guide explains what it typically includes and how it differs between systems.
Sources
Sources
Judiciaries Worldwide — Republic of Korea (U.S. Federal Judicial Center)
U.S. Federal Judicial Center (foreign-government reference on Korea) · Government publication · link verified 2026-07-27
The U.S. Federal Judicial Center's Judiciaries Worldwide profile of the Republic of Korea, read directly. A FOREIGN-GOVERNMENT reference (the research/education arm of the U.S. federal judiciary), named as such. Supports the three-tier ordinary court system (18 district courts → high courts → Supreme Court), the Supreme Court as court of final appeal with fourteen Justices including the Chief Justice, and that "the Constitutional Court is an independent entity and not part of Korea's three tier court system" with exclusive jurisdiction over constitutional matters; and that court administration runs through the National Court Administration, "under the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court", with authority "delegated by the Chief Justice" (i.e. no European-style external judicial council).
Constitution of the Republic of Korea (1948, wholly revised 1987) — English translation
Comparative Constitutions Project (Constitute) · Legislation · 1987 · link verified 2026-07-27
The Comparative Constitutions Project (Constitute) English translation of the Constitution of the Republic of Korea (originally 1948, wholly revised in the ninth amendment of 1987, in force from 25 February 1988), read directly and re-confirmed. An UNOFFICIAL translation; the Korean text is authoritative. Supports Art. 3 (the territory is the Korean peninsula and its adjacent islands — a single indivisible unitary state); Art. 12 (warrants issued by a judge "upon the request of a prosecutor"); Art. 101 (judicial power vested in courts); Art. 103 ("Judges shall rule independently according to their conscience and in conformity with the Constitution and law"); Art. 106 (tenure — removal only by impeachment or criminal punishment); Art. 107 (a court doubting a statute's constitutionality refers the question to the Constitutional Court — concentrated review); Arts. 111–113 (the Constitutional Court's jurisdiction, nine adjudicators, and the six-vote requirement); and Arts. 117–118 (local self-government limited to local administrative/welfare matters, not justice).