Juridinio asmens valdymo organo narys, nevykdantis arba netinkamai vykdantis pareigas, nurodytas įstatyme ar steigimo dokumentuose, privalo atlyginti visą juridiniam asmeniui padarytą žalą, jei įstatymai, steigimo dokumentai ar sutartis nenumato kitaip. Naujų Darbo kodekso ir Akcinių bendrovių įstatymo nuostatos, reglamentuojančios akcinės bendrovės vadovo atsakomybės klausimus, nustato, kad vadovui taikytinos ne civilinės atsakomybės taisyklės, o darbuotojų materialinės atsakomybės taisyklės, įtvirtintos Darbo kodekse. Tokiu atveju galima situacija, kai dėl vadovo kaltės padaryta žala gali būti atlyginta tik ribotai, tuo pažeidžiant trečiųjų asmenų ir pačių juridinio asmens dalyvių interesus. Svarbu tai, kad žalą, atsiradusią dėl vadovo kaltės, juridinis asmuo pirmiausia privalės atlyginti tretiesiems asmenims, o tik po to galės pasinaudoti regreso teise.
Įstatymai numato specialų teisių gynimo būdą, kad būtų išvengta žalos, padarytos dėl vadovo kaltės. Juridinių asmenų organų sprendimai gali būti teismo tvarka pripažinti negaliojantys, jeigu jie prieštarauja imperatyvioms įstatymų normoms, juridinio asmens steigimo dokumentams arba protingumo ar sąžiningumo principams. Ieškinį gali pareikšti juridinio asmens kreditoriai, o jeigu sprendimas pažeidžia jų teises ar interesus, atitinkamas juridinio asmens valdymo organas, juridinio asmens dalyvis arba kiti įstatymuose numatyti asmenys. Tokiems ieškiniams nustatomas trijų mėnesių ieškinio senaties terminas.
Juridinio asmens dalyviams ar tretiesiems asmenims, siekiantiems apsaugoti savo turtinius interesus, rekomenduotina su vadovais sudaryti laidavimo ar garantijos sutartis arba reikalauti įmonės vadovo civilinės atsakomybės draudimo.
The Problems of the Employers’ Representative Material Liability in Labor Law
Bibliographic Description: Tomas Bagdanskis, „Darbdaviui atstovaujančio asmens materialinės atsakomybės problemos“, @eitis (lt), 2021, t. 1 713, ISSN 2424-421X.
Previous Edition: Tomas Bagdanskis, „Darbdaviui atstovaujančio asmens materialinės atsakomybės problemos“, Jurisprudencija, 2004, t. 56 (48), p. 87–96, ISSN 1392-6195.
Institutional Affiliation: Lietuvos teisės universiteto Teisės fakulteto Darbo teisės ir socialinės saugos katedra.
Summary. The status and problems of the Employers’ representative material Liability in Labor Law are shortly discussed in this publication. The general obligations of Employers’ representative, provided in variable Lithuania laws, including the main Civil code, are observed. As an object of research is a head of most popular companies form in Lithuania – closed Joint Stock Company. Peculiarities of applying the laws of material Liability in practice are indicated. The separate cases of Employer’s representative material Liability are provided. The article is prepared under comparative method of study, analyzing the new Labor Code of Republic of Lithuania, issued on 2002. The questions of Employers’ representative material Liability are not enough analyzed in law doctrine. They also deemed to be actual in practice. The rulings of Juridical Board of Civil Cases Department of Supreme Court of the Republic of Lithuania dealing with Employers’ representative material Liability are provided. There are made conclusions at the end of the Article, revealing problems of employers’ representative material Liability arising in practice.
The main aspect of the publication is to observe status and liability of a person, who is a head of a legal person and works as ordinary employee in accordance with labor contract, but his rights and duties are specific. The status of a director of a company is double-faced. From one side, he is an employee and do the job of administration of a company’s activity, from the other side – he has powers and duties, which are specific comparing with others employees. There are obligations called “Duty of care,” “Business judgment rule,” which are applied only to head persons. In that case the liability of such persons should be also regulated specifically. Hereby, Employers’ representative liability shall be incurred due to a violation of law during which a head of a company causes damage to Employer through non-performance of work duties or by performing them unsatisfactorily. Liability shall be incurred when all the following conditions are present: 1) damage has been caused; 2) damage has been caused through illegal activity; 3) there is a causal relationship between an illegal activity and damage; 4) the offender is guilty; 5) the offender and the victim were in a labor relationship during the violation of law; 6) the resulting damage relates to work activities. The main issue is to define what kind of legal relations are between company and directors – civil or labor.
There are two kinds of employees’ material liability in labor law – full and limit. An employee must compensate all damage caused but not in excess of the amount of his three average monthly wages, with the exception of cases specified below: 1) damage was caused deliberately; 2) damage resulting from a criminal act of the employee determined according toe the procedure laid down in the Criminal Code; 3) damage caused by an employee with whom a contract of full liability has been concluded; 4) damage resulting from the loss of instruments, clothes, protective equipment issued to the employee for use at work, also from the loss of materials, sub-products or products in the course of the production; 5) damage caused in any other way or to any other property full liability for which is provided in special laws; 6) damage caused by an employee under the influence of alcohol or narcotic or toxic substances; 7) where this is provided for in a collective agreement.
New Law on Companies provides that a contract of full liability may be concluded with the director of the Company. So, if such contract is not concluded, the liability should be limit. In accordance with Judicial practice, Juridical Board of Civil Cases Department of Supreme Court of the Republic of Lithuania has made decision that between a director and a company are civil relations, despite of labor contract made between parties. In the opinion of the author a liability of a Employers’ representative shall be full, because of its specific status, and new Law on Companies does not guarantee a security of third persons and participants of the company. The amount of the damage to be compensated shall comprise direct losses and the income, which has not been received. Another special case is that Employer shall compensate damage caused by the Employers’ representative to third persons when the employer acquires by the right of recourse due to the compensation of damage caused by an employee. Hereby, it could be situation that Employer will fail to recourse the compensation, because an employee must compensate all damage caused but not in excess of the amount of his three average monthly wages, with the exception of cases specified in Labor Code and Law on Companies.
Keywords: material liability, damage, employee, employer, head of a company (director).
