Constitutional Court President Kim Sang-hwan was found to have used approximately 10 million won for the travel expenses of his spouse, who accompanied him on a business trip to Madrid, Spain, in October of last year.

According to data submitted by the Constitutional Court to the office of People Power Party lawmaker Yoon Sang-hyun on the 3rd, President Kim visited Madrid, Spain, for a week starting October 26 last year to attend the World Conference on Constitutional Justice.

A total of six people accompanied him on the schedule, including President Kim and his wife, Justice Kim Hyung-du, the Chief of Staff to the Constitutional Court President, a constitutional research officer, and an investigator.

The budget spent by the Constitutional Court on the business trip expenses amounted to 58.219 million won, of which 10.313 million won was used for the travel expenses of President Kim's spouse.

The travel expenses for President Kim himself totaled 13.368 million won.

At the time, the Spanish Constitutional Court sent an invitation stating, "Each delegation can consist of up to four members, including accompanying persons or security personnel."

An official from the Constitutional Court explained, "Spouses have always accompanied [delegates] when attending the World Conference on Constitutional Justice in the past, and we also received approval from the organizers for an additional two people. In Europe, same-sex marriage and similar arrangements are frequently recognized, so the expression 'accompanying persons' was used instead of 'spouse'."

The Constitutional Court side also added that while the general assembly invites four people every year, an additional two people accompany them separately if a regular member of the Venice Commission—an advisory body on constitutional law—attends.

They stated that Justice Kim Hyung-du accompanied them in his capacity as a regular member of the Venice Commission, resulting in two additional people, including an accompanying research officer.

The Constitutional Court general assembly is held on a three-year cycle. The next general assembly will be held in Cairo, Egypt, in 2028.

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