Open Decision Ledger · Civil procedure & enforcement
Judgment rendered with a party whose succession application was inadmissible
Supreme Court, Apr. 30, 2026, 2025Da220458 (judgment)
Case name: 소유권이전등기절차이행등의소
Official text on the National Law Information Center
Question
Was an appellate judgment unlawful where the court below accepted the plaintiff's application to substitute the deceased defendant's children as parties after the first-instance judgment, although one child's renunciation of inheritance had already been received and the court rendered judgment with that child as a party?
Holding
It was unlawful. Where a court accepts an inadmissible application for procedural succession and renders judgment with the applicant or the respondent to it as a party, the case has been heard and decided while a person who could lawfully take part was unable to perform procedural acts, which is illegal just as a judgment delivered without lawful representation would be. Here the succession respondent's renunciation of inheritance had been received, so that he had never been an heir from the outset, and the plaintiff's succession application as to him was inadmissible, yet the court below accepted it and rendered judgment with him as a party.
Summary of the holding, verbatim
법원이 부적법한 소송수계신청을 받아들여 소송을 진행한 후 소송수계신청인이나 소송수계피신청인을 당사자로 하여 판결을 선고하였다면, 소송에 관여할 수 있는 적법한 당사자가 법률상 소송행위를 할 수 없는 상태에서 심리되어 선고된 것이어서 마치 대리인에 의하여 적법하게 대리되지 아니하였던 경우와 마찬가지로 위법하다.
Unofficial English translation
If a court, having accepted an improper application for succession to the litigation and proceeded with the lawsuit, renders a judgment with the applicant for succession to the litigation or the respondent to the application for succession to the litigation as a party, the case has been tried and decided in a state where the lawful party who could participate in the lawsuit was legally unable to perform acts of litigation, and the judgment is unlawful, just as in a case where a party was not duly represented by an agent.
Disposition
Partly reversed and remanded Stated in the decision
원심판결의 주문 제3항 중 피고 망 소외인의 소송수계피신청인 ○○○에 대한 부분을 파기하고, 이 부분 사건을 대구지방법원에 환송한다. 원고의 피고 망 소외인의 소송수계피신청인 ○○○에 대한 소송수계신청을 기각한다.
Unofficial English translation
The portion of paragraph (3) of the order of the judgment of the court below concerning ○○○, the respondent to the application for succession to the litigation of the defendant, the late non-party, is reversed, and this part of the case is remanded to the Daegu District Court. The plaintiff's application for succession to the litigation against ○○○, the respondent to the application for succession to the litigation of the defendant, the late non-party, is dismissed.
Form of the test
Elements stated Stated in the decision
소송에 관여할 수 있는 적법한 당사자가 법률상 소송행위를 할 수 없는 상태에서 심리되어 선고된 것이어서 마치 대리인에 의하여 적법하게 대리되지 아니하였던 경우와 마찬가지로 위법하다
Unofficial English translation
the case has been tried and decided in a state where the lawful party who could participate in the lawsuit was legally unable to perform acts of litigation, and the judgment is unlawful, just as in a case where a party was not duly represented by an agent
Factors
- 소송에 관여할 수 있는 적법한 당사자가 법률상 소송행위를 할 수 없는 상태에서 심리되어 선고된 것이어서
- 마치 대리인에 의하여 적법하게 대리되지 아니하였던 경우와 마찬가지로 위법하다
- 정은 상속포기 신고가 수리되어 처음부터 상속인이 아니었던 것이 되므로
- 갑의 정에 대한 소송수계신청은 부적법한데도
Unofficial English translation
• the case has been tried and decided in a state where the lawful party who could participate in the lawsuit was legally unable to perform acts of litigation, and
• the judgment is unlawful, just as in a case where a party was not duly represented by an agent
• because D, the declaration of renunciation of inheritance having been accepted, is deemed never to have been an heir,
• although A's application for succession to the litigation with respect to D was improper,
Relation to precedent
Follows earlier decisions Stated in the decision
대법원 2019. 4. 25. 선고 2018다270951, 270968 판결
Unofficial English translation
Supreme Court Decision 2018Da270951, 270968 decided April 25, 2019
Decisions referred to
[1] 대법원 2019. 4. 25. 선고 2018다270951, 270968 판결, 대법원 2025. 7. 16. 선고 2025다211054 판결
Burden of proof
Not addressed Not in the decision
Open question and revisit condition
Would a judgment rendered with such a person as a party still be unlawful if the renunciation report were received only after that judgment had been given?
The remand judgment of the Daegu District Court on the part concerning the succession respondent will show how that part proceeds without him. A later decision on the effect of a renunciation received after judgment, or an amendment to Article 233, Article 241 or Article 424(1)(iv) of the Civil Procedure Act or to Article 1042 of the Civil Act, calls for this entry to be read again.
Cross-family AI independent reading & axis check
5 of 8 axes matched GPT-6 Astra (OpenAI, codex CLI) · 2026-10-24
A reader from another model family (GPT-6 Astra), given the official text but not the primary reading, agreed on 5 of the 8 axes; the readings differed on axis 4 (form of the test), axis 5 (factors), axis 8 (open question and revisit condition).
Axis 4 (Form of the test): Primary “Elements stated” vs Independent “Existing test applied”
The text combines a general rule on judgments following improper succession with its application to an accepted inheritance renunciation, allowing the primary to emphasize stated requirements and the independent to emphasize case application.
정은 상속포기 신고가 수리되어 처음부터 상속인이 아니었던 것이 되므로 갑의 정에 대한 소송수계신청은 부적법한데도, 원심이 이를 받아들이고 정을 당사자로 하여 판결을 선고한 것은 잘못이라고 한 사례.Axis 5 (Factors): Primary “소송에 관여할 수 있는 적법한 당사자가 법률상 소송행위를 할 수 없는 상태에서 심리되어 선고된 것이어서 / 마치 대리인에 의하여 적법하게 대리되지 아니하였던 경우와 마찬가지로 위법하다 / 정은 상속포기 신고가 수리되어 처음부터 상속인이 아니었던 것이 되므로 / 갑의 정에 대한 소송수계신청은 부적법한데도” vs Independent “제1심 변론종결 후 을이 사망 / 정이 원심 계속 중 을에 대한 상속포기 신고를 하여 그 신고가 수리 / 처음부터 상속인이 아니었던 것이 되므로 / 정을 당사자로 하여 판결을 선고”
The primary emphasizes inability of the lawful party to act, defective representation, and improper succession, while the independent emphasizes the procedural chronology and judgment against the renouncing person, sharing chiefly the renunciation and its retroactive effect.
제1심 변론종결 후 을이 사망Axis 8 (Open question and revisit condition): Primary “Would a judgment rendered with such a person as a party still be unlawful if the renunciation report were received only after that judgment had been given?” vs Independent “Who should properly succeed to the deceased party's position in the remanded proceedings?”
The primary asks about renunciation accepted after judgment, while the independent asks who should properly succeed on remand.
법원이 부적법한 소송수계신청을 받아들여 소송을 진행한 후 소송수계신청인이나 소송수계피신청인을 당사자로 하여 판결을 선고하였다면, 소송에 관여할 수 있는 적법한 당사자가 법률상 소송행위를 할 수 없는 상태에서 심리되어 선고된 것이어서 마치 대리인에 의하여 적법하게 대리되지 아니하였던 경우와 마찬가지로 위법하다.Raw responses and comparison record: Protocol · Blind readings (JSONL) · Axis comparison (JSONL) · SHA-256 (JSON)
Lower-court contrast & scope of application
Lower-court reading vs. Supreme Court holding
Lower-court context: The Daegu District Court, sitting on appeal, in its judgment of 27 November 2025 (2024Na328965), treated the plaintiff's application of 3 February 2025 to change the party designation as an application for procedural succession. It recognised the appellate co-defendant and the succession respondent as lawful successors of the deceased, closed the hearing on 2 October 2025, dismissed the plaintiff's appeal in full and varied the first-instance order so that each defendant pays KRW 12,822,650 with interest at 5 per cent a year to 19 November 2024 and at 12 per cent a year thereafter.
Supreme Court standard: The Supreme Court held that the succession respondent, whose renunciation report of 23 January 2025 had been received by the adjudication of 24 April 2025, had never been an heir, so the plaintiff's succession application as to him was inadmissible. Accepting it and rendering judgment with him as a party was therefore the error of hearing and deciding the case while a lawful party could not perform procedural acts. It reversed paragraph 3 of the order below in so far as it concerned the succession respondent, remanded that part to the Daegu District Court and dismissed the plaintiff's succession application as to him, on the unanimous opinion of the Justices concerned.
Distinguishing conditions
- A case in which the person joined as a party is an heir who has not renounced the inheritance, so that the application for procedural succession is admissible.
- A case in which the court did not accept an inadmissible succession application, or did not render judgment with that person as a party, since the illegality the Court found rests on both.
- A case in which the renunciation report has not been received, since the Court relied on the reception making the person never an heir from the outset.
Record verification notes
Set the dates against the file: the renunciation report of 23 January 2025, its reception on 24 April 2025, the closing of the appellate hearing on 2 October 2025 and the appellate judgment of 27 November 2025. Then identify which part of paragraph 3 of the order below depends on the succession respondent alone, because the Court reversed only that part and left the rest of the judgment, including the co-defendant's share, in place. Finally check whether the application was made as a change of party designation or as a succession application, since the court below read the former as the latter.
From the official text
Points at issue
[1] 법원이 부적법한 소송수계신청을 받아들여 소송을 진행한 후 소송수계신청인이나 소송수계피신청인을 당사자로 하여 선고한 판결이 위법한지 여부(적극) [2] 갑이 을을 상대로 제기한 소송의 제1심 변론종결 후 을이 사망하였고 이후 제1심판결이 선고되었는데, 갑이 제1심판결에 대하여 항소를 제기한 다음 을을 그의 자녀인 병과 정으로 변경하는 당사자표시정정을 신청하였으며, 원심이 이들을 을의 적법한 소송수계인으로 인정하여 소송절차를 진행한 후 병과 정을 을의 소송수계인으로 표시하여 판결을 선고하였으나, 한편 정이 원심 계속 중 을에 대한 상속포기 신고를 하여 그 신고가 수리되었던 사안에서, 정은 상속포기 신고가 수리되어 처음부터 상속인이 아니었던 것이 되므로 갑의 정에 대한 소송수계신청은 부적법한데도, 원심이 이를 받아들이고 정을 당사자로 하여 판결을 선고한 것은 잘못이라고 한 사례
Unofficial English translation
[1] Whether it is unlawful for a court to accept an improper application for succession to the litigation, proceed with the lawsuit, and then render a judgment with the applicant for succession to the litigation or the respondent to the application for succession to the litigation as a party (affirmative) [2] A case in which, after the close of oral argument in the court of first instance in the lawsuit filed by A against B, B died and thereafter the judgment of the court of first instance was rendered; A filed an appeal against the judgment of the court of first instance and then applied for a correction of the designation of parties, replacing B with C and D, B's children; the court below recognized them as B's lawful successors in the litigation and proceeded with the litigation proceedings, and then rendered judgment designating C and D as B's successors in the litigation; however, meanwhile, D, during the pendency of the proceedings in the court below, filed a declaration of renunciation of inheritance with respect to B and that declaration was accepted, and it was held that, because D, the declaration of renunciation of inheritance having been accepted, is deemed never to have been an heir, A's application for succession to the litigation with respect to D was improper, yet the court below accepted that application and rendered judgment with D as a party, which was erroneous
Summary of the holding
[1] 법원이 부적법한 소송수계신청을 받아들여 소송을 진행한 후 소송수계신청인이나 소송수계피신청인을 당사자로 하여 판결을 선고하였다면, 소송에 관여할 수 있는 적법한 당사자가 법률상 소송행위를 할 수 없는 상태에서 심리되어 선고된 것이어서 마치 대리인에 의하여 적법하게 대리되지 아니하였던 경우와 마찬가지로 위법하다. [2] 갑이 을을 상대로 제기한 소송의 제1심 변론종결 후 을이 사망하였고 이후 제1심판결이 선고되었는데, 갑이 제1심판결에 대하여 항소를 제기한 다음 을을 그의 자녀인 병과 정으로 변경하는 당사자표시정정을 신청하였으며, 원심이 이들을 을의 적법한 소송수계인으로 인정하여 소송절차를 진행한 후 병과 정을 을의 소송수계인으로 표시하여 판결을 선고하였으나, 한편 정이 원심 계속 중 을에 대한 상속포기 신고를 하여 그 신고가 수리되었던 사안에서, 정은 상속포기 신고가 수리되어 처음부터 상속인이 아니었던 것이 되므로 갑의 정에 대한 소송수계신청은 부적법한데도, 원심이 이를 받아들이고 정을 당사자로 하여 판결을 선고한 것은 잘못이라고 한 사례.
Order
원심판결의 주문 제3항 중 피고 망 소외인의 소송수계피신청인 ○○○에 대한 부분을 파기하고, 이 부분 사건을 대구지방법원에 환송한다. 원고의 피고 망 소외인의 소송수계피신청인 ○○○에 대한 소송수계신청을 기각한다.
Unofficial English translation
The portion of paragraph (3) of the order of the judgment of the court below concerning ○○○, the respondent to the application for succession to the litigation of the defendant, the late non-party, is reversed, and this part of the case is remanded to the Daegu District Court. The plaintiff's application for succession to the litigation against ○○○, the respondent to the application for succession to the litigation of the defendant, the late non-party, is dismissed.
Provisions referred to
[1] 민사소송법 제424조 제1항 제4호 / [2] 민사소송법 제233조, 제241조, 제424조 제1항 제4호, 민법 제1042조
Read 2026-10-24 · Cross-read 2026-10-24. All quotes matched against the official text. The Chinese-character placeholders the court used for anonymised parties are given in their Korean readings, and parenthetical Chinese-character glosses are omitted.
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