부동산 이중매매 예방을 위한 민사적 제도 개선 연구

This study aims to analyze the background and causes of double sales of real estate, diagnose the limitations of current civil and criminal regulatory frameworks in protecting the first buyer, and explore measures to improve the civil system to prevent such occurrences. The Korean Civil Code adopts the principle of formalism, which requires registration as a necessary condition for the change of real estate rights. Under this legal framework, the seller retains legal ownership even after the execution of a contract and the intermediate payment until the registration of the ownership transfer is completed. This creates a structural vulnerability where double sales can occur. In particular, the fact that the performance process of real estate sales has been left to the private sphere between the parties without public management to ensure transaction safety has been a primary cause of double sales. Traditionally, the Korean legal system has relied on ex post remedies for double sales, such as civil litigation based on the theory of invalidity of anti social legal acts and criminal punishment for breach of trust. However, civil remedies face limitations in providing effective relief due to the difficulty of proving the second buyer's "active participation" and procedural constraints. Meanwhile, criminal punishment is criticized for the excessive intervention of state punitive authority into the realm of private autonomy. Based on this awareness, this study examines preventive systems to block double sales in advance, moving away from the focus on ex post dispute resolution. By conducting a comparative analysis of international cases, this study considers strengthening the effectiveness of the real estate escrow system, enhancing the utilization of provisional registration system for the preservation of rights, and involving notaries in the real estate sales process. In particular, a system in which a notary, as a neutral expert, integrally manages escrow services and registration affairs could be an efficient way to substantially prevent double sales. These institutional mechanisms will not only fundamentally prevent double sales but also contribute to securing the authenticity of real estate registration in the long term, thereby laying the foundation for recognizing the public confidence of registration and enhancing transaction safety.