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Prosecutor resignations highest in 10 years amid plans to abolish service

Published: 24 Nov. 2025, 10:07 Updated: 24 Nov. 2025, 18:51

The Supreme Prosecutors' Office building in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on Nov. 18 [NEWS1]

The number of prosecutors who have resigned this year has reached the highest level in a decade following the passage of a government reorganization plan to abolish the prosecution service.

According to the Ministry of Justice on Sunday, 161 prosecutors stepped down between January and Nov. 10. That is around 30 more than last year’s total of 132 and more than double the number from four years ago in 2021, when 79 prosecutors left the service. The figure already exceeds the 146 resignations recorded in 2022, during the change in administrations, which had been the highest in the past 10 years. From 2016 to 2018, between 70 and 80 prosecutors retired annually.

The number is expected to climb even higher by the end of the year, as resignations submitted after Nov. 10 — including those of former acting Prosecutor General Noh Man-seok, former Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office chief Jung Jin-woo, former Gwangju High Prosecutors’ Office chief Song Kang and former Suwon District Prosecutors’ Office chief Park Jae-eok — have since been accepted.

Observers attribute the sharp rise in resignations, particularly among junior prosecutors, to the passage of the new government organization law that mandates the prosecution service’s abolition and its conversion to a new Office of Public Prosecution by October next year. This year, 52 prosecutors with less than 10 years of experience left the service, far exceeding the 39 in 2023 and 38 in 2024.

Many cite poor morale stemming from heavy workloads and the perception that prosecutors are the target of reform. At the same time, a record 32 former prosecutors were appointed as judges in September, indicating that many junior prosecutors are switching careers to the judiciary.

With more than 100 prosecutors dispatched to three major special investigations, mostly related to former President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife Kim Keon Hee, and resignations continuing to rise, case processing has slowed. The number of unresolved cases jumped from 73,395 in June to more than 100,000 at the end of October.

The Supreme Prosecutors' Office building in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on Nov. 18 [NEWS1]

Some prosecutors have raised concerns that the prosecution office might shut down from a lack of manpower before it is formally abolished next year.

Newly appointed leaders, including Acting Prosecutor General Koo Ja-hyun and Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office chief Park Cheol-woo, have prioritized “organizational stability.” However, concerns are mounting over a government-wide task force launched to identify civil servants who allegedly participated in Yoon's martial law declaration on Dec. 3, 2024. Critics say the task force could become another source of instability within the prosecution service.

The Supreme Prosecutors’ Office on Friday formed its own task force, led by Koo and deputy leader Kim Seong-dong, head of the inspection bureau. It includes around 10 members and external experts. The Ministry of Justice has also formed a separate team under Minister Jung Sung-ho.

Within the prosecution, some are pushing back against a directive from the Office for Government Policy Coordination, which stated that individuals suspected of participating in the martial law insurrection could face suspension or removal from their posts if they refuse to submit their mobile phones for inspection, with further criminal investigation also on the table.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY JEONG JIN-HO [[email protected]]