Handonghun "Shareholders' Meeting Process Must Be Digitized"… Proposed at Advanced Legislative Forum

"Time to Establish a Rational and Efficient Shareholders' Meeting Process"

On the morning of the 19th, attendees of the Advanced Legislation Forum held at the Grand Intercontinental Seoul Parnas on Teheran-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, are taking a commemorative photo. Photo by Ministry of Justice

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin, Legal Affairs Specialist] Minister of Justice Han Dong-hoon proposed on the 19th to digitize the entire shareholder meeting process, including notification, voting, and the overall meeting.

Minister Han made this announcement in his opening remarks at the Advanced Legislation Forum held under the theme of "Digitization of the Shareholder Meeting Process" at the Grand Intercontinental Seoul Parnas in Seoul on the morning of the same day.

Minister Han emphasized, "The need to protect the rights of minority shareholders has recently increased, and considering the ESG management philosophy, which expands beyond the concept of shareholder interest to the scope of shareholder welfare, it is time to establish a rational and efficient shareholder meeting process."

He continued, "To this end, I propose digitizing the shareholder meeting process, including notification, voting, and the overall meeting. Going forward, we will continuously improve important laws such as the Commercial Act in line with global standards and develop the legal infrastructure, which is the foundation of economic growth and social development, to a world-class level."

The "Amendment of the Commercial Act for the Introduction of Electronic Shareholder Meetings" was previously included in the Ministry of Justice's new government work report.

The Advanced Legislation Forum is a group of experts from various fields formed to share ideas on economic legislation and to quickly collect legislative information.

At this forum, measures to digitize the shareholder meeting process, including notification, voting, and the overall meeting, were discussed to modernize Korea's corporate law to a global standard, activate shareholder meetings, and ensure the effective protection of shareholder rights.

The forum was chaired by Song Jong-jun, Honorary Professor at Chungbuk National University Law School and former president of the Korean Securities Law Association. Over 40 participants, including members of the Advanced Legislation Forum, key related institutions, organizations, and corporate officials, exchanged diverse opinions.

Professor Kwon Jae-yeol of Kyung Hee University Law School, who delivered the presentation titled "Digitization of the Shareholder Meeting Process," discussed types of electronic shareholder meeting systems, global trends, and proposed amendments to the Commercial Act to enable digitization of the shareholder meeting process.

Designated discussants included Park Cheol-young, Executive Director of Korea Securities Depository; Song Young-hoon, Managing Director of Korea Exchange; Kim Chun, Ph.D., of the Korea Listed Companies Association; and Hwang Hyun-young, Ph.D., of the Korea Capital Market Institute. They discussed the necessity of introducing electronic shareholder meeting systems and the considerations and legislative tasks to be reviewed in light of operating electronic shareholder meetings.

The Ministry of Justice stated, "We plan to reflect the various opinions presented at this forum in legal administration and refer to them in amending the Commercial Act, including the introduction of electronic shareholder meetings."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.