[Defendant-Appellee] Plaintiff (Law Firm Digital Ballast, Attorney Lee Jong-sik, Counsel for defendant-appellee)

Seoul Regional Tax Office

March 31, 2011

1. The plaintiff's claim is dismissed.

2. The costs of lawsuit shall be borne by the Plaintiff.

The disposition taken by the Defendant against the Plaintiff on October 22, 2010 regarding the application for tax accountant registration filed by the Plaintiff shall be revoked.

1. Details of the disposition;

A. On January 31, 2010, the Plaintiff completed the Judicial Research and Training Institute as 39 years and acquired a lawyer’s license. On March 5, 2010, the Plaintiff was issued a certified tax accountant’s license by the Minister of Strategy and Finance.

B. On October 21, 2010, the Plaintiff filed an application for registration of a certified tax accountant with the Defendant. However, on October 22, 2010, the Defendant rejected the said application for registration of a certified tax accountant on the ground that the said application is not a “person qualified as a certified tax accountant after passing the qualifying examination for certified tax accountants under Article 5 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act” under Article 6 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act, and thus, the said application for registration was not registered in the

[Ground of recognition] Facts without dispute, entry of Gap evidence 1 to 3, purport of the whole pleadings

2. Whether the instant disposition is lawful

A. The plaintiff's assertion

Article 6 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act provides that a person who is qualified as a certified tax accountant is entitled to provide tax agent services in accordance with Article 3 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act; Article 2 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act; Article 6 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act provides that a person who is qualified as a certified tax accountant may provide tax agent services in the register of certified tax accountants; Article 6 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act does not prohibit registration of a lawyer; Article 8 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act and Article 35 of the Enforcement Decree of the same Act provide that registration shall be provided for administrative convenience such as necessity of integrated management of similar qualified persons in tax agent services; Article 8 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act and Article 35 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act are premised on registration of a certified tax accountant register for an attorney; Article 3 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act provides that a person who is qualified as a certified tax accountant shall be allowed to provide tax agent services; Article 1 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act provides that a person who is not in conformity with the above provision is not able to provide tax agent services.

(b) Related statutes;

As shown in the attached Table related Acts and subordinate statutes

C. Determination

1) Revision of Certified Tax Accountant Act

Article 3 (Qualifications for Certified Tax Accountants) of the former Certified Tax Accountant Act (amended by Act No. 7032 of Dec. 31, 2003; hereinafter "former Certified Tax Accountant Act") provides that "a person qualified as an attorney-at-law" among those qualified as a taxpayer under Article 3 (Qualifications for Certified Tax Accountants), and Article 6 (1) of the former Certified Tax Accountant Act provides that where a person qualified as a certified tax accountant intends to commence tax agent services, he/she shall be registered in the register of certified tax accountants kept in the Ministry of Finance and Economy, and Article 20 (Restrictions on Services, etc.) provides that a person other than those registered pursuant to Article 6 shall be registered in the register of certified tax accountants, and where a person registered pursuant to Article 3 of the Attorney-at-Law Act performs tax agent services, he/she may conduct the said services, and where a person is engaged in a

However, Article 3 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act (amended by Act No. 7032, Dec. 31, 2003; hereinafter “Certified Tax Accountant Act”) stipulates "a person qualified as a tax payer" as one of the persons qualified as a tax payer under Article 3. Article 20 provides that no person registered pursuant to Article 6 may provide tax agent services, but where a person is performing tax agent's services as a lawyer pursuant to Article 3 of the Attorney-at-Law Act, the above services may be provided, and where a person other than a person registered pursuant to Article 6 does not use the same name as a tax accountant, it is almost the same as the former Certified Tax Accountant Act. However, Article 6(1) of the former Certified Tax Accountant Act provides that "a person qualified as a tax accountant after passing a qualifying examination for certified tax accountant under Article 5 and passing a judicial qualification examination for certified tax accountant unlike the former Certified Tax Accountant Act." Article 6(2) provides that "a person qualified as a tax accountant under Article 2 of the Addenda of this case includes a person qualified under Article 3 of the former Certified Tax Accountant Act.

The purpose of the amendment of the Certified Tax Accountant Act as above is to enhance the role of certified tax accountants in accordance with changes in the tax payment environment, such as expansion of electronic tax payment, and to prevent fraudulent tax-free representation caused by mass discharge of certified tax accountants, etc., only the name of certified tax accountants who have passed the tax accountants examination, and to clarify liability for each qualification by using the name of certified public accountant, etc.

2) Whether an attorney-at-law under the Certified Tax Accountants Act (Completion 39 of the Judicial Research and Training Institute) can be registered in the Tax Accountants

In full view of the relevant provisions such as Articles 3, 6, and 20 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act, although an attorney-at-law is qualified as a certified tax accountant, a certified tax accountant cannot be registered as a certified tax accountant in the Certified Tax Accountant Register unless he/she passes a qualifying examination separately from a judicial examination, and fails to meet the qualifications of a certified tax accountant. Unless registered as a certified tax accountant in the Certified Tax Accountant Register, it is reasonable to deem that a certified tax accountant cannot perform his/her duties provided for in Article 2 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act except where a certified tax accountant conducts a tax agent's duties as a certified tax accountant pursuant to Article 3 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act. Such interpretation conforms to the purport of amending the Certified Tax Accountant Act that provides transitional provisions such as Article 2 of the Addenda

3) Judgment on the Plaintiff’s assertion

In addition, ① an attorney-at-law who is not registered with the Certified Tax Accountant Register under Article 3 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act can not be deemed eligible to perform all the functions of a certified tax accountant under Article 2 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act. ② Even if an attorney-at-law or a judicial trainee under Article 2(1) of the Addenda of this case is not qualified to be a certified tax accountant, it shall not be registered with the Certified Tax Accountant Register. ③ Article 8 of the Certified Tax Accountant Act provides that an attorney-at-law eligible to be registered as a certified tax accountant shall be registered with the Korean Bar Association, or the registration of an attorney registered as a certified tax accountant is revoked. Article 35 of the Enforcement Decree of the Certified Tax Accountant Act provides that the scope of “where a person becomes qualified as a certified tax accountant,” which is subject to the proviso to Article 2 of the Addenda of this case, is nothing more than the provision on qualification examination, registration, etc., but it is difficult to determine the qualification of a certified tax accountant as one of the attorneys-at-law’s qualifications to perform legal affairs, including tax accountants.

3. Conclusion

Therefore, the disposition of this case that the plaintiff rejected the plaintiff's application for registration of a certified tax accountant on the ground that the plaintiff was not qualified as a certified tax accountant after passing a certified tax accountant qualification examination cannot be deemed unlawful, and thus, the plaintiff's claim seeking its revocation is dismissed as it

[Attachment Form 5]

Judges Hah Jong-hee (Presiding Judge)