독일 환경법상 절차하자의 법리에 관한 연구 - 독일의 「환경권리구제법」을 중심으로 -

The system for protecting rights in public administration in Germany is under the pressure of changes. Access to judicial review, procedural rights in particular, can be defined as rights that make it possible to address environmental issues in a democratic way, and one of main points of the amended Environmental Appeal Act (Umwelt-Rechtsbehelfsgesetz) is related to procedural errors. Firstly, the infringement of procedural rights is divided into absolute procedural errors and relative procedural errors in Germany, based on the theory of protective norm (Schutznormtheorie). However, it seems impossible to evaluate functions of a procedure appropriately if provisions for third-party protection are cut off from procedural provisions of substantive law. Article 4 of the Environmental Appeal Act provides for procedural errors: paragraph 1 of that Article provides for absolute procedural errors, and paragraph 1a of the same Article provides for relative procedural errors. While the existence of an absolute procedural error invokes the plaintiff’s right to claim abolition, Article 46 of the federal Administrative Procedure Act of Germany is applicable only when a relative procedural error exists. Secondly, Article 4(1b)1 of the Environmental Appeal Act provides for the supplementation of a decision and a supplementary procedure. This provision applies not only to relative procedural errors but also to absolute procedural errors. In short, stimulated by EU law and the European Court of Justice, Germany is experiencing ceaseless expansion of procedural rights, particularly, in connection with the procedural rights under environmental law. It can be pointed out that the impact of the expansion and increase of procedural rights in the realm of environmental law has considerable implications on the legislation of the Republic of Korea as well, which has adopted a subjective right protection system as Germany has done.