68 Million Won for Prosecutors’ Overseas Training; 14 Fail to Fulfill Mandatory Service

[Financial News] Over the past five years, an average of at least 68 million won in state funding has been spent per prosecutor who took part in overseas training, according to the findings. More than 10 prosecutors have resigned without completing their required service, despite receiving substantial taxpayer support.
According to data the Ministry of Justice submitted on the 11th to the office of Rep. Kim Yong-min of the Democratic Party of Korea, an average of 68.57 million won in training costs was spent per person for the 422 prosecutors who took part in overseas training from 2021 through early September.
The Ministry of Justice provides prosecutors with opportunities for overseas training and research under the Public Officials Education and Training Act and other laws. Training normally lasts one year, but can be extended to 18 months or up to two years if necessary.
The number of prosecutors selected for training each year was 75 in 2021, 78 in 2022, 76 in 2023, 66 in 2024 and 77 last year. Another 50 have been selected so far this year. By country, the United States led by a wide margin with 289 prosecutors, followed by Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands, Japan and Australia.
Prosecutors sent overseas for training also receive separate payments for living expenses and tuition. Over the past five years, support per person ranged from at least 13.47 million won to as much as 224 million won. The prosecutor who received the largest amount—about 220 million won—was found to have trained at a U.S. Ivy League law school for two years starting in August last year.
The problem is that prosecutors continue to resign after completing their training without serving the required period, which is typically twice the length of their leave of absence. A total of 14 prosecutors failed to meet the service requirement over the past five years: two in 2021, four in 2022, four in 2023, two in 2024 and two last year.
Support funds have been recovered from 13 of them, while a lawsuit seeking repayment from the remaining one is currently underway. Of the four people designated for repayment this year, funds have been recovered from three.
Rep. Kim’s office strongly criticized the scale of the current overseas training program, saying its lavish spending of taxpayers’ money—nearly 70 million won per person on average—does not meet public expectations. It added that training ostensibly intended for research into advanced legislation is in practice being exploited as a stepping stone to post-retirement work as a lawyer leveraging former official ties, and called for a major cut to the program and tougher penalties for failing to complete the required service. 

[email protected] Kim Dong-gyu Reporter