Former Judges-Turned-Attorneys Receive Finalized Prison Sentences for Secret Representation and Bribery

[Financial News] Former judges-turned-attorneys who secretly represented clients without officially registering as legal counsel in exchange for bribes have received finalized prison sentences.
On the 30th, the Supreme Court of Korea's 3rd Division, presided over by Justice Lee Heung-gu, upheld the lower court's ruling that sentenced Attorney A and Attorney B, who were indicted for violating the Attorney-at-Law Act, to one year and one year and six months in prison, respectively. The court also maintained the forfeiture orders of 80 million won and 120 million won for each attorney.
Broker C, who was tried alongside them, also received a finalized sentence of one year and six months in prison and a forfeiture of approximately 150 million won.
Attorneys A and B, both former judges, were brought to trial for secretly representing a demolition contractor indicted for bid-rigging in a redevelopment project between 2019 and 2020, without an official legal contract. They leveraged their connections with the presiding judge to secure a total of over 220 million won in advance, under the pretense of success fees and other payments.
Broker C, who delivered the money to Attorneys A and B, was also accused of receiving over 100 million won from the client in return for providing entertainment to the Chief of Security, Correctional Institution, and Police.
In the first trial, they were sentenced to prison terms ranging from eight months to one year, but the appeals court increased the sentences to one year and one year and six months.
Although all parties appealed, the Supreme Court of Korea dismissed the appeals, stating, "There was no error in the lower court's judgment that would have affected the outcome, such as failing to conduct necessary hearings, violating the rules of logic and experience, exceeding the limits of free evaluation of evidence, or misunderstanding the legal principles regarding the establishment of the crime of violating the Attorney-at-Law Act."

jisseo@fnnews.com Seo Min-ji Reporter