단계적 제도개선과 평등 위반 심사의 정당성 여부 ― 상향적 가치구현을 위한 일시적 불평등의 수용성 ―

Inequality constantly demands equality. Inequality occurs routinely in human life and is also a problem raised through legislation. The state continually alters legislation and strives to realize higher legal values to eliminate such inequality. However, in pursuit of achieving a state of equality where higher values are realized, legislators may reflect temporary situations of inequality in legislation. The issue arising in such scenarios is precisely the attempt at ‘gradual institutional improvement.’ Gradual institutional improvement often necessitates considerable time for the state due to limitations in financial capacity or legislative techniques across various legislative areas. To address this, the state categorizes and stages minority groups, economically disadvantaged individuals, or traditionally discriminated groups to prioritize access to the higher values it seeks to achieve. In this context, legislation is characterized by provisionality or temporality in terms of its continuity, which aims to provide legislators with time for legislative adjustments and to guarantee broader legislative discretion. This legislative approach is frequently employed when the state attempts major institutional reforms or regulates issues requiring significant financial expenditure. Such gradual institutional improvement influences the standards or intensity of review by the Constitutional Court, which is the arbiter of the relevant legislation. The Constitutional Court has long employed this logic in reviewing equality violations, generally utilizing it as a mechanism to lower the intensity of review. The logic and judgment methods of the Constitutional Court cannot always be deemed appropriate; therefore, this article critically analyzes cases where the upward implementation of legal values through gradual institutional improvement was applied.