Lee Jae-myung Administration's First Year: Status of Prosecutor, Judiciary, and Labor Reforms

Over the past year since the inauguration of the Lee Jae-myung administration, the prosecutor's office and judicial system have undergone major transformations. The core of these changes involves restructuring the prosecutor's role in investigations and trials; beginning October 2nd, the Prosecutor's Office will be abolished and reorganized into an Office of Prosecution, responsible for investigations and indictments, and an Office of Serious Crimes, handling investigations into major offenses.

Judicial reforms have also progressed, with the 'Judicial Reform Three Acts'—encompassing the establishment of a 'law distortion' offense, the introduction of judicial appeals, and an increase in Supreme Court justices—promulgated in March. The retention of prosecutors' supplementary investigative powers remains a contentious issue, with the outcome of whether prosecutors can still request supplementary investigations from the police or conduct their own investigations expected to be decided in discussions on revising the Criminal Procedure Act after the election.

Meanwhile, the labor sector has also seen considerable changes during the first year of the Lee Jae-myung administration. A 'war on industrial accidents' was declared concurrently with the administration's launch, and the number of industrial accident fatalities in the first quarter of this year decreased by nearly 20% compared to the previous year. The 'Yellow Envelope Act,' a long-sought goal for labor unions, has been passed. While there were initial concerns of confusion as subcontracted labor unions' demands for negotiations with prime contractors exceeded 1,000 cases, an assessment suggests the situation is stabilizing, with the rate of increase gradually slowing. Legislation for extending the retirement age has not been pursued, and discussions on utilizing corporate excess profits have emerged as another policy challenge.