Presiding Judge Jee Kui-youn of the Seoul Northern District Court was indicted without detention on September 4 over allegations that two lawyers provided hospitality worth more than 1 million Korean won at a reservation-only bar in Seoul’s Cheongdam-dong in August 2023. The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) said lawyers A and B paid the 4.09 million-won bill, which amounted to approximately 1.36 million won when divided among three people. Jee’s lawyer argued that the judge attended only briefly, that the lawyers had not handled cases connected to his official duties for 10 years, and that the two payments should not be treated as coming from a single person. The CIO did not indict Jee for bribery, citing insufficient evidence of a connection between the hospitality and judicial favors, while the Supreme Court’s internal audit found no grounds for disciplinary action. The indictment was notified to the court so disciplinary procedures could proceed. Jee previously presided over the first trial of former President Yoon Suk-yeol’s insurrection case and sentenced him to life imprisonment in February.