All appeals are dismissed.

The grounds of appeal are examined.

1. Article 85 Subparag. 5 of the former Act on the Maintenance and Improvement of Urban Areas and Residential Environments (amended by Act No. 13508, Sept. 1, 2015; hereinafter “former Act on the Maintenance and Improvement of Urban Areas”) provides that “executives of a cooperative who arbitrarily promote projects under the subparagraphs of Article 85(3) without a resolution of a general meeting under Article 24 shall be punished,” and Article 24(3) provides for matters subject to a resolution of a general meeting.

As can be seen, the former Urban Improvement Act requires a resolution of a general meeting on certain matters, and penal provisions that punish the executive officers of an association who violated the Act, are to ensure procedural opportunities for cooperative members to participate in matters that directly affect the rights and obligations of union members, and to prevent the decentralization of union executives (see, e.g., Supreme Court Decisions 2016Do138, Oct. 27, 2016; 2009Do14296, Jun. 24, 2010). The lower court found the Defendants guilty of the instant facts charged (excluding the portion of innocence) on the following grounds.

A. The phrase “additional charges” to be paid by members according to each sales contract concluded with the members of K Apartment Housing Reconstruction and Improvement Project Association (hereinafter “the instant association”) constitutes “the details of allocation by each partner of the rearrangement project costs” as stipulated by the resolution of the members’ general meeting under Article 24(3)9 of the former Act.

B. Article 24(3) of the former Act separately provides for “The details of allocation of rearrangement project costs to each partner of the association (No. 9)” and “the formulation and amendment of a management and disposal plan under Article 48 (No. 10)” as a resolution by the general meeting of partners.

(c)

On January 15, 2012, the instant association has passed a resolution on a management and disposal plan that determines the estimated amount of the cost of rearrangement project, the scale and timing of sharing the burden of the association members, etc. at the special meeting, and on February 22, 2013, the said management and disposal plan was amended at the special meeting.