More than a year has passed since former President Yoon Suk-yeol was removed from office by the Constitutional Court, but the ensuing legal proceedings are far from over. Yoon currently faces eight criminal trials, of which only two have reached a conclusion. The remaining six are still in their first trial phase. The second comprehensive special counsel is accelerating investigations into new allegations, raising the possibility of additional indictments. While the impeachment delivered a political judgment on the disruption of constitutional order, judicial accountability remains a work in progress, and social conflicts surrounding the former president continue unabated.
According to legal circles on April 3, both the Constitutional Court and the regular courts have characterized the December 3 emergency martial law incident as an insurrection. The Constitutional Court and first-instance courts commonly determined that the deployment of military forces to the National Assembly constituted a riot aimed at paralyzing the legislature — an act with the purpose of "disrupting the constitutional order." Yoon's legal team has argued throughout the insurrection-related trials that the emergency martial law was a "warning-level martial law" and dismissed the charges as a "fabricated insurrection narrative." However, observers say the chances of the ruling being overturned on appeal are slim, as courts reached the same conclusion in the cases of former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, former Interior Minister Lee Sang-min, and other cabinet members charged with participating in key insurrection duties.
Yoon currently faces eight trials in court. These include: △ leading an insurrection; △ obstructing the execution of an arrest warrant by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO); △ allegations of deploying unmanned aerial vehicles over Pyongyang; △ external pressure on the investigation into a Marine corporal's death in the line of duty; △ former Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup's flight to Australia; △ receiving free opinion polling services from Myung Tae-kyun; △ publication of false information related to the Buddhist monk Geonjin; and △ perjury at former Prime Minister Han's trial.
The case progressing most quickly is the CIO arrest warrant obstruction case. The case is currently being heard by the 1st Criminal Division of the Seoul High Court, presided over by Senior Judge Yoon Seong-sik. Arguments are expected to conclude after the third hearing on April 6. The insurrection leadership case, in which Yoon was sentenced to life imprisonment at the first trial in February this year, has yet to have an appeal hearing date scheduled. The remaining six cases are still undergoing first-instance proceedings.
The comprehensive special counsel, which is investigating residual cases following the three major special counsel probes, is also digging into new allegations involving the former president and his wife. The special counsel is examining whether the couple may have intervened in investigations related to the so-called "salmon and alcohol party" witness tampering allegations. The special counsel has requested case transfers based on provisions in the Special Counsel Act concerning investigation status reporting and alleged abuse of investigative authority.
On April 2, the comprehensive special counsel raided the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office and the Supreme Prosecutors' Office to investigate allegations of lenient treatment in cases involving first lady Kim Keon-hee. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office had issued a final no-charges decision in 2024 on allegations that Kim received a Dior handbag and on allegations of stock price manipulation involving Deutsch Motors. The special counsel suspects that the former president and his wife intervened in those decisions as well. Some prosecutors who cleared Kim of charges were in fact named as counterparts (victims) of abuse of authority in search and seizure warrants. However, those prosecutors maintain that their decisions were made based on their own independent judgment.
Although a year has passed since Yoon's removal, his legal risks have not subsided but rather appear to be expanding. Social conflicts surrounding the former president persist.
Progressive and conservative civic groups plan to hold rallies near the Constitutional Court to mark the first anniversary of Yoon's removal. The "Insurrection Accountability and Social Reform Emergency Action Recording and Commemoration Committee," comprising 1,741 progressive organizations, will hold a rally on April 4 in front of Exit 6 of Anguk Station in Seoul's Jongno District. The New Freedom Alliance, which has advocated against the impeachment, plans to hold a "Yoon Again" rally at Marronnier Park in Dongsung-dong, Jongno District, on the same day before marching toward the Constitutional Court. Because the timing and routes of the two rallies may partially overlap, police are expected to prepare safety measures to prevent on-site clashes.
Cha Jin-a, a professor at Korea University School of Law, said, "Even after former President Yoon's removal, both ruling and opposition parties have been listening only to the voices of their own political bases rather than pursuing national unity." She added, "Politicians should be the first to show mutual concessions for the sake of national unity."
