The judgment of the court below is reversed, and the case is remanded to the Seoul Central District Court Panel Division.

The grounds of appeal are examined (to the extent of supplement in case of supplemental appellate briefs not timely filed).

1. Article 2 subparag. 1 of the Business Affairs of Licensed Real Estate Agents and Report of Real Estate Transactions Act (hereinafter “Licensed Real Estate Agents Act”) provides that “The brokerage means the brokerage of sale, exchange, lease and other rights between parties to a transaction regarding the object of brokerage as provided in Article 3.” Article 30(1) provides that “a broker shall be liable for damages to property of a party to a transaction by intention or negligence when he/she causes damage to property of a party to a transaction in performing brokerage.”

In this context, in light of the purport of the legal provisions aimed at the protection of a transaction party, whether an act constitutes a brokerage shall not be determined based on the subjective intent of the broker, not on the basis of whether the broker actually has the intention to mediate the transaction for the transaction party, but on the basis of whether the broker’s act is objectively deemed to be an act for mediating the transaction in light of social norms.

Therefore, in a case where a broker who mediates a sales contract does not merely act as a broker for the mere arranging the conclusion of a contract, but is anticipated to act as a broker for the smooth performance of contractual obligations by participating in the fulfillment of contractual obligations by a transaction party, such as the payment of an intermediate payment and the balance, the delivery of an object, and the registration of transfer of ownership, etc., even after the conclusion of a contract. Such broker’s act is objectively considered as an act for the brokerage of transactions, and is included in the category of brokerage (see, e.g., Supreme Court Decisions 2005Da5508, Feb. 8, 2007; 2012Da102940, Jun. 27, 2013). 2. The reasoning of the lower judgment and lawful