화환신용장 거래에서 은행의 불일치서류 거절의 적시성에 관한 연구 -Federal Bank Ltd. v. VM Jog Engineering Ltd.의 사건에서의 인도 최고법원의 판결을 중심으로-

Analysis on Timely Refusal to Accept Discrepant Documents in Documentary Credit Transactions -with a special emphasis on Federal Bank Ltd. v. VM Jog Engineering Ltd, Indian Supreme Court Decision-

This paper is aiming at analyzing case law of India in relation with reasonable time to make decision whether to accept or to refuse the documents received from the presenter in credit transactions. As specified in UCP, the failure to refuse to accept the documents within a reasonable time precludes the Issuing Bank, Confirming Bank (if any) and Nominated Bank from asserting that they are discrepant. Compliance of the stipulated documents on their face with the terms and conditions of the credit shall be determined by international standard banking practice as reflected in this Articles of UCP 500. The Issuing bank is only to be held responsible for honoring the documents presented by beneficiary through the nominated banks if they are strictly in compliance with terms and conditions of the Credit. As any well experienced banker knows, however, a word-by-word, letter-by-letter correspondence between the documents and the credit terms means a practical impossibility. Thus the notion of reasonable care in conjunction with the doctrine of strict compliance mixed with International Standard Banking Practices has not played a right functional standard for checking the documents as stipulated in the credit and UCP 500. And so the rejection rate is highly estimated at approximately 50% in EU and 40 to 70% according to their geographical locations in the USA. As a result, it can possibly be inferred from this fact that the credit industry would be facing the functional failure as the international trade credit facility, if not supported with motive power as a relevant scheme in UCP 500. It is quite important to note that UCP 500 Article 13(b) which specify the time limit for the banks to notify the presenter their decision not to accept the documents within a reasonable time not to exceed seven banking days following the day of receipt of documents would be the motive engine to improve the negotiability of documents in international trade financial facility.