선박건조계약의 해제사유로서의 이행기 전 이행거절에 관한 연구- 대법원 2017. 5. 30. 선고 2014다233176, 233183 판결을 중심으로 -

The shipbuilding industry of Korea had prospered before the global financial crisis beginning in September 2008. Thereafter, especially, small & medium shipbuilders of Korea faced financial difficulties. Buyers tried to rescind shipbuilding contracts because they thought that maritime economy of the world greatly decreased. Lawsuits in respect of shipbuilding contracts, therefore, greatly increased. Generally speaking, shipbuilding contracts could be regarded as contracts for the sale of goods in English law. Under the shipbuilding contract, the buyer has the right to rescind it because of delay in delivery, failure of the vessel to meet the technical requirements of the contract, financial defaults, total loss of the vessel prior to delivery, and so on. Conversely, the builder has the right to rescind it when the buyer fails to make timely payment of any installment of the contract price. In respect of the shipbuilding contract, recently the Korea Supreme Court decided that the buyer's rescission was not lawful on the ground that the buyer was in default because he failed to make timely payment of second installment of the contract price in the stage of steel cutting. Furthermore, the Korea Supreme Court rejected the buyer's argument that the builder was anticipatory breach of the shipbuilding contract because he was under debt workout procedure of the Korean Corporate Restructuring Promotion Act. The reasoning of the Korea Supreme Court is that the debt workout procedure under Korean law is totally different from winding-up or dissolution that means termination of the company’s existence under English law. A repudiation is a manifestation by one party to the other that the first cannot or will not perform some of its obligations under the contract. In case of a repudiation, the injured party might treat the contract as terminated and claim damages. A repudiation may be one of the defaults under the case law of Korea.