The Constitutional Court will resume hearings on the constitutionality and legality of President Yoon Suk Yeol’s December 3 emergency martial law declaration following a pause during the Lunar New Year holiday.
The court will convene its fifth session in Yoon’s impeachment trial at 2 PM on Tuesday. This marks the first hearing since Yoon was arrested and indicted on charges of leading an insurrection nine days ago.
During the holiday, Yoon prepared his defense with his legal team and is expected to attend the trial in person, as he did for the previous two hearings. He is likely to present his arguments and participate in witness questioning. The session will feature testimony from key military and National Intelligence Service officials who were involved in the state of emergency.
The court will hear 90-minute testimonies from former Seoul Defense Command chief Lee Jin Woo, former Army Counterintelligence Command head Yeo In Hyung, and former National Intelligence Service Deputy Director Hong Jang Won.
Lee was a central figure in the military operation that attempted to deploy troops to the National Assembly during the emergency under orders from then-Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun.
Hong previously disclosed that on December 6 last year, he received orders from President Yoon to “round up and deal with everyone” and an arrest list from the Counterintelligence Command.
These witnesses, called by the National Assembly—which passed Yoon’s impeachment motion—are expected to detail the orders Yoon and former Minister Kim issued before and after the emergency declaration.
The National Assembly aims to use this testimony to prove that Yoon directly ordered the military deployment and arrests of key political figures. Yoon’s defense is likely to challenge the credibility of these testimonies.
The court has scheduled additional all-day hearings for February 11 and 13, starting at 10 AM, following the fifth session on the 6th. This intensified schedule aims to accelerate the trial process.
There is ongoing interest in whether the court will address Yoon’s team’s request to recuse Acting Chief Justice Moon Hyung Bae and Justices Lee Mi Sun and Jeong Gye Seon. This request, submitted on February 1, lacks the legal weight of a formal application and does not require a separate decision unless the justices choose to take it up.
Since his arrest on January 26, Yoon may seek to pause the impeachment trial under a provision of the Constitutional Court Act that allows a delay if criminal proceedings on the same charges are ongoing.
For the upcoming fifth hearing, which Yoon is expected to attend, 3,346 people applied to observe. Only 20 were selected, resulting in a competitive ratio of 167.3 to 1.