The Constitutional Court in the Context of Democratization: The Case of South Korea

Abstract

[The Constitutional Court of South Korea was established in 1988. Since then, the Court has become an important institutional arbiter of the pace and extent of the transition to democracy. This paper aims to provide an overview of recent South Korean experience in operating a constitutional court system from a socio-legal perspective. Following the introductory description of background, jurisdiction and composition of the Constitutional Court, some major cases are examined along with the statistics of disposition of cases. Further, the general trend and character of Korean constitutional adjudication are discussed. Attention is focussed on the conditions and limits of judicial activism. The final section inquires into an institutional factor for the successful operation of a constitutional adjudication system. It is argued in particular that the European type of constitutional court system is preferable to the American judicial review system.]