영미법상 신인의무 법리와 이사의 지위

Abstract

This Article reviews the fiduciary relationship in Anglo-American law and directors’ status in corporation to provide helpful insights for Korean law and practice. While the fiduciary relationship has been a part of Anglo-American jurisprudence for over 250 years, the exact contours of the concept have remained elusive. The fiduciary duties applicable to corporate directors, however, are well developed and revolve essentially around the core fiduciary obligation of loyalty. Part Ⅱ examines the origin and development of general fiduciary law, including historical background, general principles, and general justification for fiduciary duty. It can be said that a fiduciary relationship exists between two persons when one of them is under a duty to act for or to give advice for the benefit of another upon matters within the scope of the relation. Part Ⅲ addresses fiduciary issues in corporate law, including who is a corporate fiduciary, who are beneficiaries, and directors’ status in corporation. Given that typically directors have all powers of management over the corporation and its assets, directors are indisputably fiduciaries. The relationship between directors and corporation, however, is a unique one that cannot be analyzed by reference to other types of fiduciary relationships. Based on the analysis of the foregoing discussion, Part Ⅳ examines the issue of introducing fiduciary duty of loyalty into the Korean Commercial Code.