Abolition of prosecutors' supplementary investigation powers raises victim burden
Platforms such as Easygosu, Master of Complaints and petition-drafting services emerge
Experts: positive aspects exist, but the system itself must be reformed
With the Prosecution Service set to be abolished on Oct. 2 and prosecutors' investigative powers — including the authority to order supplementary investigations — eliminated entirely, concerns are mounting over a potential gap in victim protection. Against that backdrop, lawyers are increasingly entering the online platform market, offering services such as drafting criminal complaints on behalf of clients. Legal experts say the market is responding to a widely shared outlook: as the criminal justice system undergoes sweeping changes, checks between investigative agencies will weaken and the burden of proof on victims will inevitably grow.
Experts predict that as investigative procedures grow more complex, lawyers will increasingly seek new avenues through accessible platforms, and that consumers of legal services will naturally gravitate toward them. The transformation of the criminal justice system, they say, will necessarily reshape how legal services are accessed — and the lowering of barriers to those services is seen as a positive development.
At the same time, experts say the system itself must be thoroughly reformed so that victims do not feel vulnerable under the new criminal justice framework. They also caution that relying on substandard services from the outset of a case could cause victims to miss the critical early window for action, potentially leading to further harm.
According to legal circles Tuesday, attorney Park Ji-yun of the Damduk law firm recently launched a legal platform called Easygosu. Formally retaining a lawyer typically costs between 3 million and 5 million won ($3,720), but through the platform, a lawyer handles complaint drafting and evidence organization for around 500,000 won. Other platforms are also in operation, including Master of Complaints from the Davinci law firm and a petition-drafting service launched by attorney Song Myeong-ho.
"As the investigative environment changes, it is becoming increasingly important to accurately lay out the facts of a crime, the evidence, and what investigation is needed — right from the complaint stage," Park told The Herald Business. "I created this service so that victims who feel burdened by the cost of retaining a lawyer can receive legal assistance at a reasonable price."
The proliferation of complaint-filing platforms is directly tied to changes in the criminal justice system. On Oct. 2, the current Prosecution Service will be dissolved after 78 years, replaced by two new agencies: a Public Prosecution Office to handle indictments and trials, and a Serious Crime Investigation Agency to handle investigations into major crimes. Revised criminal procedure laws will take effect at the same time, barring prosecutors at the Public Prosecution Office from conducting direct investigations and eliminating their supplementary investigation powers. Prosecutors will only be able to request that police and other investigative agencies conduct supplementary investigations.
Legal experts worry that victims will increasingly have to gather evidence on their own. Prosecutors' authority to correct flawed or erroneous police investigations has been curtailed. As a result, crime victims may need to build a precise factual account and organize their evidence from the very moment they file a complaint in order to receive a proper investigation.
Legal circles expect such legal service platforms to grow in number. The changes to the criminal justice system, combined with a steady rise in the number of criminal complaints filed with investigative agencies, are driving the trend.
Statistics from the Supreme Prosecutors' Office on criminal complaint filings show a consistent upward trend since the 2021 redistribution of investigative powers between prosecutors and police. The number of complaints filed stood at 322,438 in 2021, rose to 357,612 in 2022 and 394,477 in 2023, then surged to 478,372 in 2024. Last year, the figure dipped slightly to 456,602.
Experts said the services appear to have emerged amid growing concern that victims who do not retain a lawyer will struggle to receive a proper investigation.
Kim Tae-yeon, an attorney at the Taeyeon law firm who represented YouTuber Tzuyang in a case involving online harassment, said the platforms have merit. "In a situation where the gap left by the abolition of prosecutors' supplementary investigation function could be transferred onto the shoulders of crime victims, I think there is a positive aspect in that these services lower the barrier to legal assistance," she said.
However, she added, "A lawyer's fee is not simply compensation for drafting a single complaint document — it is payment for professional services that include understanding the facts of a case, reviewing applicable legal principles, selecting the necessary evidence, and setting the direction of the investigation." She said it would be important to assess whether lawyers using such platforms are conducting substantive reviews rather than merely going through the motions.
She also said that "fundamentally, the system should be refined so that victims can receive a thorough investigation even without these private services." If victims with financial means can retain lawyers or use private services while those without cannot receive adequate investigations, she said, "that could become a problem from an equity standpoint."
Kim Su-yeol, an attorney at the Newlawyer law firm with extensive experience representing victims of cybercrimes including defamation and insults, said that with the abolition of the Prosecution Service, "the content of a complaint and the organization of evidence at the early stage of an investigation will now have a major bearing on the direction of the entire case."
He said the platforms are "a good idea in that economically disadvantaged victims can get help with the complaint process at low cost," but added that the growing complexity of the investigative structure has placed a heavier burden on victims.
notstrong@heraldcorp.com
