Supreme Court Justices are seated at the court before giving a verdict in this file photo. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Sept. 24 (Korea Bizwire) — The average number of annual cases per judge is far higher in South Korea than in other advanced countries.
According to data released by the National Court Administration of the Supreme Court, the number of judges totaled 2,966 in 2019, with the number of civil and criminal cases estimated at 1,376,438.
In other words, the average number of cases per judge was estimated around 464 cases.
This figure is far higher than that of Germany (89 cases), France (196 cases) and Japan (151 cases).
“Including lawsuits on merit and non-litigation cases, the average number of cases per judge is higher than that,” the Supreme Court said.
According to the data presented during the discussion hosted in February by a representative conference of judges, 89 percent of the respondents to the survey conducted with judges said that more judges were needed.
Two thirds of the respondents said that their physical health was affected by the performance of their duties, while 52 percent noted that they have experienced burnout due to the performance of their duties.
In fact, the death of judges for overwork occurs repeatedly, including a senior judge affiliated with the Seoul Western District Court who died while dining together with colleagues in 2020.
J. S. Shin (js_shin@koreabizwire.com)
