The selection of a successor for retiring Supreme Court Justice Noh Tae-ak is expected to take place after the Lunar New Year holiday on March 3. Typically, the Supreme Court Chief Justice is expected to recommend a nominee to the President within two weeks after the selection committee has made its recommendations. However, this time, over three weeks have passed without any nomination, which could lead to a substantial delay in the appointment process. The delay puts the new justice's swearing-in at risk of occurring after Noh's retirement.

As of January 13, the Chief Justice Cho Hee-daeh had yet to formally recommend a nominee to President Lee Jae-myung, even though the Congressional nomination committee had already suggested four candidates for the Supreme Court position. These candidates are experienced judges, with backgrounds in both judicial practice and legal administration, which indicates a deliberate choice aimed at enhancing the qualifications of the Supreme Court’s future composition.

The process, however, could be complicated by past experiences where disagreements arose between the President's office and the Chief Justice regarding nominations. Historical incidents, such as the episode during Roh Moo-hyun's presidency when the Chief Justice faced backlash for not diversifying the Court's leadership, suggest that the current nomination delay might be linked to the need for preemptive consensus between the Chief Justice and the President, potentially leading to a situation where a nominee could be rejected during the National Assembly hearings after the recommendation is finally made.