[1] In a case where a dispute over a local Confucian school constitutes the substance of a dispute over the important elements of an unincorporated association, whether the existence of procedural defect should be examined in accordance with the legal principles of collective law (affirmative)

[2] In a case where a corporation or an unincorporated association is admitted to a higher-level organization, whether the rules established by a higher-level organization regarding the organization and operation of a member organization shall be governed (negative in principle)

[3] Standard for determining jurisdiction of a local Confucian school, and whether a spawn has the authority to reduce the jurisdiction of a local Confucian school and thereby change its membership (negative in principle)

[4] The case holding that, in the case where Gap's franchisium approved the establishment of Eul's franchisium and rejected the appointment of Eul's franchisium residents as executive officers of Eul's franchisium, although Eul's franchisium approved the establishment of Eul's franchisium and approved the establishment of Eul franchisium and excluded the above specific area from the jurisdiction of Eul's franchisium, it cannot be deemed that the change of Eul's jurisdiction and the qualification of its members takes place, and thus, refusal to appoint the above specific area residents as executive officers of Eul's franchisium without a clear collective law is null and void due to its defect

[1] Since the sexual fungs and local Confucians have the nature of an independent unincorporated association as a religious organization with regard to the school's character, even in disputes over the local Confucians, the general principles of the Civil Code concerning organizations should be applied when the substance of such disputes is about the specificity of an association. It is a kind of religious and academic research organization in which both the local Confucian Schools and the sexual fungs have the character of a kind of religious and academic research organization that propagates the school and conducts teaching culture, and the sexual fungs are actually superior organization with the local Confucians, and the disputes arising within the limited scope between the local Confucians and the forests should be resolved autonomously by making efforts with the local Confucians and the local forests. However, in consideration of the fact that it is desirable to autonomously resolve the disputes arising within the limited scope between the local Confucians and the forests, such as the region under the jurisdiction of the local Confucians and the qualifications of members, if they form the substance of the dispute, not only the characteristics or autonomy of the religious organization, but also the existence of procedural defects in accordance with the general legal principles.

[2] Where a juristic person or an unincorporated association is admitted to a higher-level organization, the authority to direct and supervise a higher-level organization as a member of the higher-level organization may be recognized, but such authority shall be limited to the extent that it does not infringe on the independence of the member organization. In this regard, unless the member organization receives the rules of the higher-level organization or its articles of incorporation, it shall not be deemed that the rules established by the higher-level organization regarding the organization and operation of the member organization are governed by the rules established

[3] Since the jurisdiction of a local Confucian School is directly connected to the establishment purpose of a local Confucian School, which is an independent non-corporate association, and the qualification of its members, it is reasonable to view that the association of a non-corporate association is determined by the articles of incorporation or rules of the local Confucian School pursuant to Article 34 of the Civil Code, which applies mutatis mutandis. In addition, insofar as the local Confucian School, which is an independent non-corporate association, does not accept the articles of incorporation or decision of the sexual intercourse with regard to the jurisdiction and the qualifications of its members as its own, it cannot be deemed that the sexual intercourse has the authority to arbitrarily reduce the jurisdiction of the local Confucian School without the consent of the pertinent Confucian School, which is the interested party, and thereby change its membership.

[4] The case holding that, in the case where Eul established a local Confucian School within the jurisdiction of Eul's local Confucian School, which approved the establishment of Eul's local Confucian School and rejected the appointment of Eul's residents as executive officers of Eul's local Confucian School, even though Eul did not change the jurisdiction of Eul's local Confucian School, and although Eul approved the establishment of Eul's local Confucian School and excluded the specific area from the jurisdiction of Eul's local Confucian School, it cannot be deemed that the change of the jurisdiction of Eul's local Confucian School and the qualification of its members takes place, and thus, refusing to appoint specific area's residents as executive officers of Eul's local Confucian School without a clear collective law is null and void.

[1] Articles 31 and 34 of the Civil Act / [2] Articles 31 and 34 of the Civil Act / [3] Articles 31 and 34 of the Civil Act / [4] Articles 31 and 34 of the Civil Act

[1] Supreme Court en banc Decision 2004Da37775 Decided April 20, 2006 (Gong2006Sang, 851)

Plaintiff 1 and 9 others (Law Firm continental Aju, Attorney Park Jae-in, Counsel for the plaintiff-appellant)

Gender Equal (Attorney Lee Jae-hoon, Counsel for the defendant-appellant)

Seoul High Court Decision 2006Na26535 decided September 29, 2006

The judgment below is reversed and the case is remanded to Seoul High Court.

The grounds of appeal are examined.

1. A. Both the Defendant and the local Confucian Schools are religious organizations with the aim of maintaining and distributing relics through activities such as the conduct of native folks, the maintenance of literature and seedlings, and the research and education of the ideology of Confucians. However, although the Confucian Schools in the past held the status of a local educational institution established by the State, modern Confucian Schools are changing into a non-corporate body composed of local forests and continuing to be incorporated into a non-corporate body. In other words, today's local Confucian Schools today have the substance of non-corporate body, including the establishment of autonomous norms in the area under their jurisdiction of the past and the election of representatives and the general assembly, which is a decision-making body, and the management of property.

In addition, even though the sexual men had a position as the highest educational institution established in the central level by the state in the past, they were abolished during the Japanese occupation period, and lost their status, and since the tidal wave, the past sexual men was born by the Japanese occupation, and the defendant was an unincorporated association in charge of a similar role as the highest institution representing various Confucian groups including local Confucian Schools, which has been organized by the defendant.

As such, the Defendant and the local Confucian Schools have the character of an independent unincorporated association as well as the character of a religious organization with respect to school building. Thus, even in disputes over local Confucian Schools, when the substance of such disputes is about the specificity of an association, the general legal doctrine on organizations under the Civil Act shall apply (see Supreme Court en banc Decision 2004Da37775, Apr. 20, 2006).

B. Where a juristic person or an unincorporated association is admitted to a higher-level organization, the authority to direct and supervise a higher-level organization as a member of the higher-level organization may be recognized, but its authority shall be limited to the extent that it does not infringe on the independence of the member organization. In this regard, unless the member organization receives the rules of the higher-level organization or its articles of incorporation, it cannot be deemed that the rules established by the higher-level organization regarding the organization and operation of the member organization are governed by the rules established.

2. According to the facts established by the court below, Samyang-gun was established in 1398 and operated as Samyang-gun-gun-gun-gun-gun under its jurisdiction, and as its members had been engaged in forest activities within the districts under its jurisdiction. In Samyang-gun-gun-gun-gun's autonomous norm, 9 persons can be elected in the area of Samyang-gun-gun-gun-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-U.S.-dong-J.-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-U.S.-J.-dong-dong-dong-dong-dong-U.S.-dong-dong-U.S.-J.-dong-dong-dong-dong-U.

3. We examine the above facts in light of the legal principles as seen earlier.

A. Unlike in the past, as a Confucian School was established by the State as a local educational institution, it was divided into a local administrative district within which the scope of influence of the authority of the Confucian School was established by the State, the jurisdiction of the local Confucian School has been changed to a non-corporate association at a local educational institution. The jurisdiction of the local Confucian School has functioned to determine the qualification of members of the Confucian School, a member, as an independent organization, to manage the properties of the Confucian School, such as a literature and tomb, and to maintain and distribute the spirit of the Confucian School.

As such, since the current jurisdiction of a local Confucian School is directly connected to the establishment purpose of a local Confucian School, which is an independent non-corporate association, and the qualification of its members, it is reasonable to view that the association of non-corporate associations is determined by the articles of incorporation or rules of the local Confucian School pursuant to Article 34 of the Civil Act, which is applied mutatis mutandis. In addition, if the non-corporate associations still engage in the activities of a non-corporate Confucian School as a member of the local Confucian School, it seems that the establishment of the non-corporate associations constitutes the articles of incorporation. However, the three-party Confucian School, which is established by the non-corporate associations, actually recognized the membership of the Confucian School as a member of the Confucian School, and was actually engaged in the activities of the Confucian School with the establishment of the three-party Confucian School under its jurisdiction. However, even though some of the districts within its jurisdiction were involved in the establishment of the Dayang Confucian School and the establishment of the Mayang School, the establishment of the Confucian School and the establishment of the Mayang School cannot be excluded from the jurisdiction of the Confucian School.

B. As seen above, since a local Confucian School was established as a local educational institution of the State, and the entity was changed as an unincorporated association independent of the State or local administrative agency, even though the Defendant had been in charge of the function of the central educational institution established by the State in the past, the Defendant cannot be deemed as the founder of the local Confucian School, and the present local Confucian School cannot be deemed as a subordinate organization within the region of the Defendant, and thus, the Defendant cannot be deemed as having a direct authority over the operation of the local Confucian School. Therefore, insofar as the local Confucian School, an independent non-corporate entity, has not accepted the Defendant’s articles of association or decision regarding the jurisdiction and the qualification of its members, it cannot be deemed that the Defendant arbitrarily reduced the jurisdiction of the local Confucian School without the consent of the pertinent Confucian School, which is a party to interest, and thus, has the authority to change its membership.

In addition, it is not clear whether the jurisdiction of the previous local Confucian School is reduced as a matter of course when a new Confucian School is established by the defendant's articles of association or rules, etc. around May 2000 when the defendant changed the previous position, or whether the defendant prescribed the collective legal basis or procedure to reduce or change the jurisdiction without the consent of the previous local Confucian School. Therefore, it is reasonable to judge that the defendant was given the authority to establish the previous Confucian School and to resolve the problems of jurisdiction of the individual Confucian School as well as the authority of the court below.

In conclusion, it is reasonable to see that the jurisdiction of the Samyang Confucian School still extends to the area of Seongbuk that is the previous jurisdiction, and even if the defendant approves the establishment of the Samyang Confucian School and takes the position of excluding the jurisdiction of the Samyang Confucian School, the reason alone cannot be said to have the effect of changing the jurisdiction and the qualification of the members.

C. As such, even though the proviso of Article 16 of the Mandong School Act is applicable to the area under the jurisdiction of the Mandong School, the Plaintiffs, who reside in the area of the Mandong School, are eligible to be appointed as the head or auditor, who is the executive of the Mandong School. Therefore, on the premise that the Defendant was excluded from the jurisdiction of the Mandong Confucian School without the consent of the Mandong School, it is reasonable to deem that the Defendant refused to appoint executive officers by denying the eligibility to be the executive of the Mandong School, who resides in the area of the Mandongdong School, and thus, refused to appoint executive officers by denying the eligibility to be the executive of the Mandong School.

In addition, local Confucian Schools and the Defendant have the character of a kind of religious and academic research organization that both disseminates teaching bridge and studies teaching culture, and the Defendant, as a substantial higher-level organization, is performing teaching activities throughout the nation with local Confucian Schools. The dispute in this case occurred within the limited range between the principal school and the Confucian school in the East Sea, and thus it is desirable for the Defendant to autonomously resolve the dispute by endeavoring between the principal and the relevant region. However, in this case where the important elements of non-corporate associations, such as the qualification of the district and the members of the local Confucian Schools, are constituted the substance of the dispute, the existence of procedural defects should not be considered as a religious organization, but rather, in accordance with the general legal principles of organization law.

In full view of the above circumstances, it is reasonable to view that the defendant's refusal to appoint executives of the three-party Confucian Schools to the plaintiffs without a clear ground for organization law is a violation of the Sungchin Confucian School Organization, which infringes on the essential part concerning the activity area and the composition of members of the three-party Confucian Schools, which is an unincorporated association, and brings about a huge obstacle to the activities of the United States forest in the North Sejong Metropolitan City.

4. Nevertheless, the lower court determined otherwise based on the autonomy of the religious organization that the decision to refuse appointment of this case cannot be deemed null and void solely on the ground of the circumstances indicated in its reasoning. In so doing, the lower court erred by misapprehending the legal doctrine on the independence of the local Confucian school which has the status as an unincorporated association, the procedure for modifying the matters to be prescribed in the articles of association or bylaws of the unincorporated association, and the legal doctrine on the substantive nature of the dispute as an association, thereby adversely affecting the conclusion of the judgment

On the other hand, the Supreme Court Decision 2003Da63104 Decided February 10, 2006 cited by the court below is inappropriate to invoke the case as it is because it differs from the case in this case.

5. Conclusion

Therefore, all of the judgment below regarding selective claims shall be reversed (see Supreme Court en banc Decision 92Da46226 delivered on December 21, 1993) and the case shall be remanded to the court below. It is so decided as per Disposition by the assent of all participating Justices on the bench.

Justices Cha Han-sung (Presiding Justice)