- 學位論文
董事民事責任之再建構—美國法之借鏡
The Reconstruction of Directors’ Civil Liabilities — Lessons from American Law
摘要
觀察我國近年來關於股份有限公司董事之修法趨勢，可發現我國已逐步強化董事義務與責任之內涵，且股東對於違法董事之責任救濟管道已逐漸完備，於此發展之趨勢下，確實有助於減少董事的自利行為與企業弊案之發生，達到保護公司股東權利之效果。惟如若法制上僅一味的強調董事之義務與責任，忽略了董事權利義務之平衡，使股東得輕易指摘董事經營行為違法而使其被訴風險增加，長此以往恐產生董事怯於任事而採取保守性經營，甚至影響到優秀人才擔任董事之意願，如此種種皆非吾人所樂見之情況。因此在我國強化公司董事之經營者責任同時，亦應思考建置一套相對應之配套措施，以避免公司董事權利義務失衡而產生負面影響。 比較法上，美國法為降低過重之經營者責任帶來之負面影響，開展出一系列之董事責任減免機制，包含經營判斷法則、董事責任限制或免除制度、公司對董事之責任補償制度以及董事責任保險制度，藉由此些制度來移轉董事之經營責任風險，使得董事之權利與義務回歸平衡。在我國逐步修法以強化董事責任與訴追管道之時，是否也應該思考建置一套責任減免機制以兼顧董事之權利，即有進步研究之空間。職是之故，本文將先研究並分析美國法上董事責任減免機制之內涵及其實務運作下之優缺，以此為基礎分析並思考應如何建置適合我國法制環境之責任減免措施，並於文末提出修正草案以作為未來立法時之參考，期望能對於我國董事責任法制之建構有所助益。
並列摘要
In these past few years, the liabilities of corporate directors have been increased through each amendment to Company Act. In addition, remedies for shareholders to approach among discovering directors' illegal activities have also been perfected. Naturally, these adjustments help prevent corporate directors from abusing their power in order to protect shareholders' rights. However, this legal system seems to neglect the balance between directors' rights and obligations, by only emphasizing the liabilities. For instance, shareholders can now easily accuse directors of illegal business practices, escalating directors' risk of being sued. Therefore, directors may manage company affairs passively, fearing the consequence of active management. On top of that, the talented may be discouraged to serve as a corporate director. Hence, while increasing the liabilities of directors, legislators should simultaneously establish a mechanism to avoid the aforementioned negative impact. From a comparative view, to reduce the negative impacts of corporate directors being over-weighted with liabilities, company laws in the United States have established a series of mechanisms. Which includes the business judgment rule, the liability limitation or elimination rule, the corporate indemnification rule, and the director's liability insurance. These mechanisms aim to allocate the risk directors face and strike a balance between the obligations and rights of corporate directors. On the other hand, while Taiwan Company Act is gradually increasing directors' liability, should we also establish a mechanism to restore the balance between obligations and rights? To answer this question, this article will first analyze the pros and cons of the director's liability relief mechanisms in U.S. law. Then, use it as a basis to consider how to establish a liability relief mechanisms suitable for the legal environment in Taiwan.