The Supreme Court ruled that a golf club's bylaw change requiring higher fees for unnamed members unaccompanied by a corporate regular member is invalid without the consent of existing members. The decision means a golf club cannot unilaterally curtail the core benefit of high-priced corporate memberships—applying the same fees to "unnamed members."
The Supreme Court's First Division (Presiding Justice Shin Sook-hee) said on the 28th that on the 8th it overturned an appellate ruling that had found a fee change valid in a lawsuit filed by Human Airtech Co. against Shinan General Resort seeking access to a golf course, and sent the case back to the Seoul High Court.
Shinan General Resort operates Welli Hilli CC, a members-only golf club in Dunnae-myeon, Hoengseong-gun, Gangwon. Human Airtech bought a VVIP corporate regular membership in December 2019 after paying a 600 million won admission deposit. At the time, the membership applied the same fees as for regular members not only to one registered member but also to four unnamed members.
In May 2022, Welli Hilli CC sent Human Airtech a text message notifying a fee change. It said if a regular member personally visited, weekday fees would rise from 60,000 won to 80,000 won and weekend and holiday fees from 70,000 won to 90,000 won. If only unnamed members visited without a regular member, the club would charge 120,000 won on weekdays and 140,000 won on weekends and holidays.
Human Airtech used the course 23 times from July to November 2022, when the new fee policy applied. It later filed suit seeking a refund of 3.88 million won, arguing the unilateral change in fees without member consent was invalid.
The first trial sided with Human Airtech. The first trial court said, "This change does not simply raise fees; it applies them differently based on whether the member visits," adding, "It constitutes a significant change to membership status, so it cannot be applied unilaterally without an individual agreement with the plaintiff."
The second trial, however, dismissed Human Airtech's claim. The appellate court said, "The change went through a lawful board resolution and a golf course operations committee vote," finding it valid because there were no procedural defects.
The Supreme Court saw it differently. It found that Welli Hilli CC recruited members by highlighting as a key benefit the application of the same fees to unnamed members regardless of whether a regular member visited. It also determined that the corporate membership Human Airtech bought was relatively expensive compared with general memberships because it presumed favorable treatment for unnamed members.
The Supreme Court said, "A bylaw change that causes an important alteration to the fundamental status of members cannot be applied without individual approval from existing members," and held that the fee change in question is not effective against Human Airtech.