South Korean President-elect Park Heun Hye nominated a former judge and co-chairman of her election campaign team to the post of prime minister Thursday.
Kim Yong Joon, 74, "has been at the forefront of efforts to put the country's law and order in place according to firm personal beliefs and principles all his life as a judge," Park was quoted as saying by Yonhap News Agency.
Kim was a judge for 30 years before heading the Constitutional Court in 1994. He was named chairman of the transition committee after the December 19 elections.
Park said Kim was "the right person to put the rule of law and principles in place and to clear public anxieties about tattered public safety and open up an era of the people's happiness where the socially weak are protected."
He was an inspiration to others facing hardships, she said. After suffering from polio as a child, Kim took the bar at the age of 19, and became the country's youngest judge in 1960.
His nomination now passes to the parliament for approval.
The prime minister has limited power in South Korea, but Park has said she would increase the responsibilities of the position. She was due to take office on February 25.