Representative Director - Daihyotorishimariyaku

Japanese: 代表取締役 - だいひょうとりしまりやく

In companies other than those with a committee system, the representative director is the body that represents the company and executes business operations. In companies without a board of directors, in principle, each director is considered to be a representative director (Article 349, Paragraphs 1 and 2 of the Companies Act). However, the representative director can be selected from among the directors by the articles of incorporation, by mutual election of the directors based on the provisions of the articles of incorporation, or by a resolution of the general shareholders' meeting (Article 349, Paragraph 3 of the Companies Act). In companies with a board of directors, the representative director is a necessary body and is selected by the board of directors (Article 362, Paragraphs 2, Items 3 and 3 of the Companies Act). This is because the board of directors is a meeting body and is not suitable for representing the company or executing business operations.

[Shuzo Toda and Norihiko Fukuhara]

authority

The representative director's authority is to represent the company and to carry out business operations. The general shareholders' meeting or the board of directors is the meeting body that makes the "decision on business operations," and based on this decision, the representative director carries out the company's "business operations" and has the authority to represent the company. However, since business operations require speed, sometimes the representative director himself makes the "decision on business operations" within the scope delegated by the board of directors. In particular, decisions on day-to-day operations are left to the representative director. The representative director's right to represent the company extends to all judicial and extrajudicial actions related to the company's business (comprehensiveness, Article 349, paragraph 4 of the Companies Act), and even if the company places restrictions on this authority, it cannot assert that there are restrictions to (good faith) third parties who are unaware of these restrictions (unrestrictiveness, Article 349, paragraph 5 of the same Act).

[Shuzo Toda and Norihiko Fukuhara]

Representative Director

Directors who are not representative directors do not have the right to represent the company, but directors who are given titles such as president or vice president that give the false impression that they have the right to represent the company are called apparent representative directors. In Japan, in the articles of incorporation, it is common to appoint directors with titles such as chairman of the board of directors, president, vice president, senior managing director, and managing director, but it should be noted that these are conceptually separate from representative directors. And for the acts of this apparent representative director, even if that person does not actually have the right to represent the company, the company is held liable to third parties (in good faith) who are unaware that the acts were performed by a director without the right to represent the company (Article 354 of the Companies Act). Usually, people who are given titles such as president or vice president tend to believe that they have the right to represent the company, so this system was established to protect those who trusted the appearance. In case law, a third party with gross negligence is also considered to be in bad faith.

[Shuzo Toda and Norihiko Fukuhara]

"Internal Control of Directors and Auditors" by Yoshinori Tsuchida (2007, Chuo Keizaisha)

[Reference] | Company | Directors

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

Japanese:

委員会設置会社以外の会社において、会社を代表し、かつ、業務執行をなす機関。取締役会非設置会社では、原則として各取締役が代表取締役に該当することになる（会社法349条1項本文・2項）。ただし、定款、定款の定めに基づく取締役の互選または株主総会の決議によって、取締役のなかから代表取締役を定めることができる（同法349条3項）。取締役会設置会社では、代表取締役は必要的機関であり、取締役会が選定する（同法362条2項3号・3項）。取締役会は会議体であり、会社を代表・業務執行するには適しないからである。

［戸田修三・福原紀彦］

権限

代表取締役の権限は会社の代表と業務執行自体である。株主総会または取締役会という会議体の機関が「業務執行の決定」を行い、この決定に基づいて、会社の「業務執行自体」を行い、かつ、会社を代表する権限を有する。ただ、業務執行には迅速性が要求されるので、ときに、取締役会から委譲された範囲内で代表取締役自身で「業務執行の決定」がなされることもある。とくに、日常業務の決定は代表取締役にゆだねられている。代表取締役の代表権は、会社の業務に関するいっさいの裁判上・裁判外の行為に及び（包括性・会社法349条4項）、会社はこの権限に制限を加えたとしても、この制限を知らない（善意の）第三者に対して制限がある旨を主張することはできない（不可制限性・同法349条5項）。

［戸田修三・福原紀彦］

表見代表取締役

代表取締役でない取締役は代表権をもたないが、社長や副社長など代表権があると誤認させるような名称を与えられた取締役を表見代表取締役という。日本では、定款により、取締役のうち取締役会長、社長、副社長、専務取締役、常務取締役など、いわゆる役付取締役を設ける例が多いが、これと代表取締役とは観念上別個のものであることに注意を要する。そして、この表見代表取締役がした行為については、たとえ実際にはその者に代表権がないときであっても、会社は、代表権がない取締役の行為であることを知らない（善意の）第三者に対して責任を負うものとした（会社法354条）。通常、社長や副社長などの名称が付された者は、代表権があると信じられがちであるから、その外観を信頼した者を保護するためにこのような制度が設けられた。判例では、重過失のある第三者も悪意と同視している。

［戸田修三・福原紀彦］

『土田義憲著『取締役・監査役の内部統制』（2007・中央経済社）』

[参照項目] | 会社 | 取締役

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例

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