The amendment to the Commercial Act, which failed to pass due to the exercise of the right to request reconsideration (veto) by Acting President and Prime Minister Han Ducksoo, is being pursued again. This time, the Democratic Party of Korea is pushing for a single-point amendment that imposes only the duty of loyalty, requiring directors to act in the interests of all shareholders.
On April 22, Lee Soyoung, a lawmaker from the Democratic Party of Korea, stated, "I am proposing an amendment to the Commercial Act that clearly stipulates the duty of directors to act loyally for all shareholders when performing their duties."
The newly proposed amendment is a single-point revision that only includes the imposition of the duty of loyalty to shareholders on directors. Lee explained, "I proposed it in a single-point format so that the duty of loyalty to shareholders can be imposed on directors as soon as possible."
Previously, the Democratic Party and other opposition parties passed an amendment to the Commercial Act at the plenary session on March 13, which included both the imposition of the duty of loyalty to shareholders and the concurrent holding of electronic general meetings of shareholders. However, the amendment did not become law because Acting President Han exercised his veto on April 1, and in the subsequent re-vote, it received only 196 votes, falling short of the required two-thirds majority of all lawmakers.
Lee's office explained, "This amendment adds 'the interests of all shareholders' as the target of the director's duty of loyalty and makes it clear that the interests of specific shareholders must not be prioritized." In addition, the amendment stipulates that it will take effect immediately without any separate preparation period.
Lee stated, "Decisions that favor only the largest shareholder's family are repeatedly being made under the pretext of acting in the company's interest, which undermines the order of the capital market and damages the nation's status and credibility." She added, "For genuine responsible management and shareholder protection, the National Assembly must act to pass the law as quickly as possible."
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