The Constitution of Korea stipulates that qualifications for judges shall be set by the law. In accordance, the Court Organization Act defined the qualifications for judges as persons who have passed the National Judicial Examination and completed a two-year training program at the Judicial Research and Training Institute (JRTI) or those who have passed the bar exam. However, the National Judicial Examination will be abolished in 2017 with the introduction of law school system in 2009. In accordance with of the revision of the Court Organization Act on July 18, 2011, judges are only selected from people who are qualified as a lawyer with certain period of legal experience from January 1, 2013. The length of legal experience for qualifications of a judge will gradually increase until 2026 as follows:

According to the Court Organization Act, the qualifications of the justices of the Supreme Court require more than 45 years of age with 20 years of legal experience. The scope of legal experience will include those who have been in the following profession for not less than 20 years:
1) a judge, a public prosecutor, or a lawyer;
2) a qualified lawyer who has engaged in legal affairs at a government agency, local government, national or public enterprise, government-invested institution, or other juristic person; or
3) a qualified lawyer who has held a position higher than an assistant professor in jurisprudence at an authorized college or university. Former Chief Justices and other justices, for the most part, were judges prior to their appointment to the respective position.

The Chief Justice and justices of the Supreme Court are appointed by the President of the nation with the consent of the National Assembly. As for justices, the Chief Justice has to first submit recommendations for appointment to the President. Judges are appointed by the Chief Justice with the consent of the Council of Supreme Court Justices. The judges are assigned to their posts by the Chief Justice.

The Judges Personnel Committee was established as an advisory group to the Chief Justice to plan and coordinate personnel issues. The Chief Justice can evaluate service of judges and the outcome may be reflected in personnel management.

The term of office of justices, including the Chief Justice is six years. Whereas the Chief Justice can only serve a single term, justices can serve additional terms. Judges have a 10-year service term and may be reappointed. Judges must leave office when they reach retirement age even if their term remains. The retirement age is 70 for Supreme Court Justices including the Chief Justice and 65 for lower court judges.

No judge is subject to involuntary dismissal from office except by an impeachment or a sentence of imprisonment or heavier. Further, a judge cannot be subject to suspension from office, a reduction in remuneration, or unfavorable treatments except by disciplinary measures.

On the other hand, in case a judge is unable to carry out the duties due to grave mental disorder or physical impediment, if the judge is a justice of the Supreme Court, the President may order him/her to resign from office upon the recommendation of the Chief Justice. As for judges other than justices, the Chief Justice may order to resign.

Remuneration of judges is to be appropriate to the judges' duties and dignity.

During the term of office, a judge cannot become a member of the National Assembly or a local council, or a public official in any administrative agency, participate in a political activities, engage in a paid job without the permission of the Chief Justice, or hold a job for the purpose of any pecuniary profit, assume any post, regardless of its reward, as an advisor, officer or employee of a corporation or organization, other than government agencies, without the permission of the Chief Justice.

A judge is subject to disciplinary measures when the judge committed a serious breach of duties or was negligent in performance of the duties. Disciplinary measures may also be taken against a judge who has degraded himself/herself or damaged the dignity of the court.

Disciplinary measures are divided into three kinds: suspension from office, a reduction in remuneration, and a reprimand. If a judge is submitted to suspension from office, performing of the respective duties shall be suspended for not less than a month and not more than a year. During such period, remuneration is subject to suspension. If a judge is submitted to a reduction in remuneration, it can be cut by one-third for not less than a month and not more than a year. In case a reprimand is to be delivered, it is admonished in writing.

Discipline of judges is under the jurisdiction of the Judges Disciplinary Committee established in the Supreme Court. A resolution of the Committee requires a majority of all members as a quorum and the consent of a majority of the members present.

Appeals against the Committee’s decision can be made within 14 days from the date on which the judge is aware of the disciplinary decision by filing a request of disciplinary action cancellation claim at the Supreme Court. A case is to be heard once as a single trial.

When other government agency requests secondment of a judge to the Chief Justice, permission may be granted if it is deemed proper in light of the nature of service, and with judge's consent. Currently, judges are seconded to the Constitutional Court, the National Assembly, the International Criminal Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia, the Hague Conference on Private International Law, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Korea to the United Nations and the Vietnam Judicial Training School.

The Supreme Court has implemented overseas training programs to help judges gain advanced work skills, job expertise and motivation and for a systematic development of human resources with expertise. Such programs are also intended to introduce advanced judicial systems and operation methodologies of other nations to Korea as well as to establish a more efficient and optimal legal system in line with rapid changes and the trend of internationalization. Overseas training programs for judges can be classified as follows:

As of August 2015, the number of judges including the Chief Justice and justices of the Supreme Court and those in the special service such as professors of the JRTI stands at 2,837.