President Ma Ying-jeou nominated four new justices to the Constitutional Court on Thursday. Four of the incumbent 15 justices will end their eight-year term on September 30.
One of the nominees is a lawyer, the first to be nominated since the legislature approved an amendment adding lawyers to the list of eligible candidates for justices. President Ma spoke about the decision.
"This nomination is special because the legislature just passed an amendment in February adding lawyers as a category eligible for selection as justices," said Ma.
"Huang Horng-shya will be the first. You have a big responsibility to take. We have felt that if we can broaden the sources of our justices, it will be a positive development in reflecting the different aspects of society. We’re glad that two months after the amendment passed, we have been able to take a lawyer into consideration for the nominations," said Ma.
Ma said he hopes that the legislature will approve the four nominees.
The Constitutional Court’s 15 justices are responsible for the interpretation of the constitution and other statutes. They also have the power to rule on any impeachment of the president or vice president.