MWC – Chapter 15 A Trial Test (4)

I AM DROPPING THIS NOVEL. IF ANYONE WANTS TO CONTINUE THEY CAN. IF POSSIBLE PLEASE SHARE THE LINK SO I CAN BINGE READ TOO.

The hearing court was much smaller than the trial court, with only a few seats for observers and no seats for a jury. The pBesscution and defense stood on either side of their respective parties.

Judge Feng Xuefan was impeccably dressed and looked to be under fifty, with his hair dyed jet black and shiny. He had a distinguished demeanor.

As he entered the courtroom from an inner door, the court clerk crisply called out, “All rise,” prompting everyone, including the few observers, to stand up.

Cheng Ye and Liu Hanliang both smiled, and even Judge Feng Xuefan nodded slightly at them as his gaze swept over.

In the empire, judges hold their positions for life and can only be removed by impeachment from the local (federal) legislature or by their own resignation or retirement. Otherwise, they remain in office until death. In Donghai, the city council holds the impeachment power over judges.

Thus, judges often have strong personalities and are fearless. For example, Judge Feng Xuefan did not avoid showing familiarity with Cheng Ye and Liu Hanliang.

Judge Feng Xuefan took his seat, and just as he was about to sit down, Lu Ming raised his hand.

“Your Honor, I request that you be recused from this case!”

The courtroom immediately fell silent. The court clerk, who was about to read the case summary, froze. She was a delicate young woman, dressed in a black professional suit, standing gracefully.

Liu Hanliang and Cheng Ye exchanged glances, a schadenfreude smile on their faces.

In fact, Judge Feng Xuefan was not their staunch ally. He was a reputation-seeker with ambitions to join the Donghai High Court, and he was generally fair in court. However, if someone offended him, he would be extremely petty and vengeful. This rookie lawyer, Lu Ming, would find it hard to survive in Beiguan if he antagonized the judge.

“Hmm…” Judge Feng Xuefan stared at Lu Ming as the court clerk quickly said, “The defense attorney is Lu Qianxing, a junior barrister.”

“Lu Qianxing, do you think I am not impartial? Do you believe I have a conflict of interest with the plaintiff?” Judge Feng Xuefan asked, appearing calm.

“No, Your Honor. Although I’ve only been in Beiguan for a few days, I’ve heard of your reputation for fairness,” Lu Ming replied.

Judge Feng Xuefan frowned, “Then state your reason for requesting a change of judge.”

Lu Ming nodded, “Because having you preside over this hearing is unconstitutional. The defendant is an Airyfeni girl. According to Appendix 5 of the Empire’s Old Covenant, all criminal and civil lawsuits and disputes involving Airyfeni people must be presided over by an Airyfeni judge. This appendix has never been explicitly repealed by the Empire’s Supreme Court or the Federal Parliament, so the Old Covenant remains part of the constitution!”

Judge Feng Xuefan was momentarily stunned. He vaguely remembered that, during the early days of the empire, there was such an Old Covenant that granted significant privileges to Westerners.

It was normal that such ancient laws had not been repealed because they had gradually fallen into disuse. In the empire, including the nearly autonomous Northern Provinces Federation, the chief judges at all levels were Westerners.

While there were instances where cases involving Westerners were adjudicated by Zhongzhou judges in Zhongzhou regions, who would dare wrong a Westerner?

These old clauses had gradually been forgotten.

However, Judge Feng Xuefan was unsure if the specific clause had ever been explicitly repealed.

After a brief moment of contemplation, Judge Feng Xuefan nodded, “The court is adjourned for twenty minutes.” He needed to consult with the chief judge.

Liu Hanliang and Cheng Ye were stunned.

Wang Daan, sitting in the audience, clenched his fist and silently cheered.

…

In the corridor leading to the rest area, both parties walked on opposite sides.

Cheng Ye smiled at Wang Daan, “Lawyer Wang, is your firm trying to compete with us?”

Wang Daan was taken aback, stammering, not really knowing what to say, his excitement evident.

Lu Ming smiled, “Today, it’s just me competing with you. You can’t represent the entirety of your firm’s twelve lawyers, can you?”

Cheng Ye looked at him with a sneer, “Lawyer Lu, you’ve successfully angered me! Initially, I intended to give you some face.” He took a document from his folder and turned to Pamela, saying, “Mrs. Pamela, this is an apology letter with the fingerprints of Jintao Hua and your daughter. You might not understand its significance, and your rookie lawyer probably hasn’t explained it clearly. So, you might want to ask Lawyer Wang Daan to explain it in detail for you!”

After saying that, he smiled at Lu Ming and, along with Liu Hanliang, pushed the door open and entered the plaintiff’s rest area.

…

The defendant’s rest area was directly opposite the plaintiff’s. As soon as they entered the room, Wang Daan became anxious and shouted at Jintao Hua, “What were you thinking, writing that letter?! If you didn’t understand, why didn’t you ask someone who did? Do you realize that you’ve not only harmed yourself but also Bess?!”

Pamela bit her red lips and said to Lu Ming, “Go talk to them now and see how much we need to pay to settle this.”

She understood a bit of law and knew that having an apology letter like this meant they had already lost most of the case.

Jintao Hua, her face streaked with tears, said, “I… I didn’t know. They told me that as long as we wrote an apology letter, they would forgive us. So, Bess and I wrote it. Who knew they would still sue us…”

Lu Ming nodded, “So, your apology letter didn’t get their forgiveness, which means it’s an incomplete settlement agreement.”

“That doesn’t matter!” Wang Daan said, looking at her with frustration, “If you really want to help, go apologize now and seek a settlement. Don’t ruin it for Mrs. Pamela and Miss Bess!”

Lu Ming waved his hand, looked at Bess, and said, “I want to keep fighting for you. Don’t be afraid. Even if we lose, the jury will probably just make us pay compensation. If it comes to that, I’ll sell my car to pay for it, okay? For now, let’s keep fighting.”

“That Liu Hanliang can easily fake his injury. Can you afford it? Is that car even yours to sell?! You live right across from me! Does a truly wealthy person live there?!” Wang Daan said, getting more and more agitated.

Lu Ming looked at him and nodded inwardly. Initially, he just had a decent impression of him. Now, his opinion improved a bit more. Despite being timid and cautious, Wang Daan had a kind heart.

Pamela sighed softly, “Lawyer Lu, thank you, but let’s settle. If you don’t want to apologize, I will…”

Bess, however, looked at Lu Ming with tears in her eyes and said, “Uncle, I didn’t do anything wrong…” She bit her lip, holding back her tears. “Uncle, I want you to tell the judge, tell everyone, I didn’t do anything wrong. I’m not a bad kid…”

Everyone was stunned, silent for a moment. Only Bess’s tearful, innocent voice echoed.

“I didn’t do anything wrong. I’m not a bad kid…”

It inexplicably made everyone feel a pang in their hearts.

Wang Daan sighed deeply.

Pamela’s delicate face showed a complex expression, and she finally said, “Let’s fight this. If we lose, we’ll appeal. If we lose again, I’ll borrow money if I have to.”

“Thank you, Mom…” Bess turned and threw herself into Pamela’s arms, sobbing softly.

Pamela gently stroked her doll-like smooth golden hair and kissed her cheek tenderly.

Wang Daan wanted to say something but couldn’t find the words. He sighed inwardly, realizing they could only take things one step at a time.

…

The court bailiff notified them that the hearing would resume in a few minutes.

Everyone returned to the courtroom. As Liu Hanliang passed by Lu Ming, he snorted coldly, “From now on, if you want to settle, you’ll have to kneel and beg me!”

Lu Ming pretended not to hear him. In court, every word had its value, and using them on Liu Hanliang was a waste.

Unexpectedly, when everyone stood up, an elderly lady, clearly of Central Continent origin and not the Western chief judge, walked from the hearing room’s inner door to the judge’s seat.

The elderly lady seemed to be over seventy, her body hunched and appearing quite small. The large black judicial robe wrapped around her, but she walked briskly, looking sharp and energetic.

Out of the corner of his eye, Lu Ming noticed the expressions on Liu Hanliang and Cheng Ye’s faces, which looked like they had swallowed flies.

“Don’t raise any objections. This is Deputy Judge Li Wenhua. She…” Wang Daan, leaning forward from the first row of the audience, was about to remind Lu Ming when the elderly lady’s sharp gaze swept over him, causing him to shrink back in fright.

Judge Li took her seat and cleared her throat. “Chief Judge Christine has entrusted me with the hearing of this case.”

She looked at Lu Ming, “Lawyer Lu Qianxing, do you find this acceptable?”

Lu Ming stood up, “No objections, Your Honor. According to the third annotation of Appendix 5 of the Old Covenant, if a judge appointed to hear an Eryphenian’s case receives authorization from a Gryphenian judge, the hearing and adjudication are legally valid.”

The elderly lady’s sharp eyes showed a hint of surprise. She scrutinized Lu Ming and nodded slightly.

She had assumed this rookie lawyer had only heard legends about the Old Covenant and was taking a wild shot, but it turned out this young man was quite familiar with its details.

Even she had spent a long time searching through documents to find this information.

“Let’s begin!” she waved her hand.

“Your Honor, I represent the victim, Mr. Liu Hanliang…” Cheng Ye had just stood up and started speaking when Lu Ming immediately interrupted, “Objection. The plaintiff’s lawsuit has not yet been formally filed. Therefore, I object to the plaintiff’s attorney referring to the plaintiff as a ‘victim’ in court. This term has legal implications, and there is currently no victim.”

Everyone in the courtroom, including Wang Daan, was taken aback. Even the few people in the audience, who were there out of curiosity, had picked up some legal knowledge over time.

It was the first time they encountered such a meticulous lawyer.

Cheng Ye’s face showed anger, “I object to the defendant’s attorney interrupting my case statement.”

The elderly lady blinked her small eyes, thought for a moment, and pointed at Lu Ming, “Your objection is sustained.” Then she looked at Cheng Ye, “Your objection is overruled.”

Cheng Ye gritted his teeth, “Yes, Your Honor.” He paused and continued, “I represent Mr. Liu Hanliang, accusing Ms. Bess Stuart of failing to clean up the water in the restaurant in a timely manner, causing my client to slip and suffer significant losses.”

The elderly lady reviewed the various pieces of evidence submitted by the plaintiff, frowned, and looked at Lu Ming.

“Ms. Bess did not intentionally…” Lu Ming began, but the elderly lady shook her head and picked up her gavel to decide to proceed with the case and form a jury.

“Such reasons should be heard by a jury!” she said, feeling a bit disappointed with Lu Ming. Initially, Lu Ming’s thorough knowledge of the Old Covenant and his meticulous objections to the plaintiff’s language had been quite refreshing and impressive.

She didn’t expect that in such a simple case, Lu Ming wouldn’t immediately point out the restaurant’s liability, making him seem quite soft for a rookie.

Moreover, whether the defendant acted intentionally or not had nothing to do with the hearing.

The hearing was primarily for examining the plaintiff’s evidence to see if it was sufficient. If it was, the case would move to the trial phase.

Actual responsibility differentiation would be determined during the trial by the jury.

She wondered how this rookie lawyer even got his license.

Her initial high expectations turned into disappointment.

Seeing her motion with the gavel, Liu Hanliang and Cheng Ye’s faces lit up with joy.

“Your Honor, please give me two minutes…” Lu Ming hurriedly said.

“One minute!” she put down the gavel.

“Your Honor, the restaurant was very busy at the time, but although my client Bess did not clean the water or put up a warning sign as required, she did block the water with a broom. Moreover, the water was in a very secluded spot. Please look at my diagram.”

He held up a roughly drawn map, and a court clerk took it to the judge’s bench.

Lu Ming continued, “Normally, people would avoid it. It’s not on the way to the restroom but in a corner. Normally, people going to the restroom wouldn’t walk sideways like crabs.”

“Objection!” Cheng Ye stood up, “Objection to the defendant’s lawyer’s insult to my client.”

The elderly lady gestured for Cheng Ye to sit down.

Lu Ming continued, “Moreover, Your Honor, the water was spilled by the plaintiff himself out of dissatisfaction. I believe there is no fault with the restaurant or Ms. Bess. Even though there was a contractual relationship between the plaintiff and the restaurant, the restaurant and Ms. Bess only needed to provide a safe and comfortable dining environment and value-for-money meals. The unsafe factor was created by the plaintiff, and all consequences should be borne by him. Not to mention, my client did her best to eliminate the danger…”

“Time’s up…” the elderly lady checked her watch and pondered, “It’s still somewhat far-fetched. When a customer spills water in a restaurant, doesn’t the restaurant have the duty to clean it up?”

She paused, “Moreover, these arguments should be heard by a jury, who will decide your respective responsibilities, not by the hearing court.”

Lu Ming said, “My point is that our many precedents place too much emphasis on uniformity without analyzing and distinguishing the specific interactions in each case. The allocation of legal responsibilities should depend on the parties’ specific interactions. In this case, Mr. Liu Hanliang obviously caused trouble intentionally, and taking this to trial would only waste court resources. The hearing court should exclude such frivolous and malicious lawsuits.”

“Your Honor…” Cheng Ye stood up and took out the apology letter from Jintao Hua and Bess.

Lu Ming quickly said, “Your Honor, it’s my turn to present my case.”

The old lady gestured, and Cheng could only sit down reluctantly.

Lu Ming held up a piece of paper, “Your Honor, this is the settlement agreement proposed by the plaintiff. Of course, given Mr. Liu Hanliang’s reputation, my client immediately refused.”

The court clerk delivered the paper to the judge’s bench. It was the agreement that Bess would serve as a maid to take care of Liu Hanliang until his leg healed.

The old lady looked at it, her brows immediately furrowed, and she glanced up at Bess, who was as cute as a doll but now looked timid and pitiful.

Then she looked at Liu Hanliang’s lecherous face, and anger flashed in her eyes.

Lu Ming said, “Of course, from my perspective, I believe that all unresolved settlement agreements should not be presented in court.”

The old lady let out an “oh,” and looked at Lu Ming with interest, “What do you mean?”

“Because a settlement agreement is never evidence. For example, if my client hopes that an apology will end the matter, she might apologize to avoid further trouble and seek a settlement.”

“But if such an apology settlement agreement is seen by the judge and the jury, they may assume my client is at fault, which would bias the judge and jury’s judgment.”

“For a fair trial, the judge and jury should not have preconceived notions and should follow the evidence presented in the trial to ensure impartiality.”

The old lady’s small eyes flashed with a hint of surprise. After thinking for a while, she said, “That makes sense.”

Cheng, holding the apology letter, was almost fuming. Are you even human? How can you do this?

Oh, you show the judge my settlement offer, and then you ramble on about how unresolved settlements shouldn’t be shown in court because they could bias the judge?

After you’ve already influenced the judge, you say no one else should?

The old lady looked at the settlement agreement with obvious disgust, then said, “I agree with the defense lawyer. The primary responsibility in this case lies with the plaintiff. And since the plaintiff could attend the hearing, it seems he wasn’t seriously harmed, so there’s no need to waste public resources on a trial!

“However, the defendant should apologize to the plaintiff. Case dismissed!”

She banged the gavel.

“Your Honor, here is the apology letter from the restaurant owner, Jin Taohua, and the defendant, Bess…”

“I also agree with the defense lawyer. Unresolved settlement agreements should not be presented in court as they can bias the judge and jury. From today on, this practice is abolished in my court!” She banged the gavel again.

Cheng was dumbfounded, “Your Honor…”

“Case dismissed!” The old lady banged the gavel once more and stood up.

“All rise!” The clerk’s voice rang out crisply.

The old lady walked down the steps towards the inner door. Before leaving, she turned back and saw the restaurant owner tearfully thanking the novice lawyer. She understood that Lu Ming hadn’t blamed the restaurant to avoid ruining them financially. Additionally, since the other side had an apology letter, if he had blamed the restaurant, she wouldn’t have dismissed the case but rather proceeded to trial to determine the facts through evidence presented by both parties.

Hmm, unresolved settlement agreements shouldn’t be seen by the court or the jury to avoid preconceived notions.

An interesting and reasonable viewpoint.

It felt like she had been pondering this for a while but hadn’t pinpointed the exact reason until this novice lawyer spelled it out.

Suddenly, she stopped and called out, “Lu Qianxing, accompany me to a bar for a drink tonight.”

On the other side, Lu Ming was smiling and talking to Cheng, “Since you have our formal apology letter, my client doesn’t need to apologize verbally!”

Cheng was furious.

At that moment, Judge Li, who had reached the inner door, suddenly made her call.

Everyone in the courtroom was stunned. It wasn’t surprising that Judge Li asked someone for a drink, given her unique personality and high status in the legal field, which made her untouchable.

What was surprising was that Judge Li favored a novice lawyer.

Cheng gritted his teeth, thinking that judges shouldn’t serve for life, which created such eccentricities. Yet, she was untouchable.

Liu Hanliang stared at Lu Ming with a grim face.

Cheng saw Liu’s expression and was terrified. Liu was known for getting what he wanted, and now that Cheng had messed up, he was afraid he would face consequences.

His heart was filled with fear, momentarily forgetting to curse the old lady judge.

Seeing the stunned Lu Ming, Judge Li mischievously winked, “Don’t worry, I’m too old to be interested in young men. Don’t be afraid I’ll eat you!”

Lu Ming smiled wryly, “Judge Li, it would be an honor to have a drink with you.”

“Seven o’clock tonight, Fiona’s Bar!” she said, and then pushed open the door to the inner chambers.

Lu Ming was speechless. Fiona’s Bar was like a club, noisy and more suited for teenagers, yet this old lady was so trendy.

Lu Ming scratched his head, ready to leave, but the pretty female clerk hurried over, “Lawyer Lu, Lawyer Cheng, please follow me to check your assessment score changes!”

Cheng’s face turned pale. He had forgotten this. Having a case dismissed directly was worse than losing a trial, as it carried the most severe penalty, doubling the point deduction.

Normally, losing a trial would deduct ten percent of one’s score or ten points, whichever was greater. But having a case dismissed would deduct twenty percent.

With 156.75 points, Cheng was in the higher tier among ordinary lawyers in Beiguan. Now, he would lose over 31 points.

Seeing Lu Ming in a daze and Wang Daan happily hugging him in celebration, Cheng was furious but helpless. He could only follow the clerk to register his new score. Watching as she entered the new score into his file and gave him the new score certificate, he felt that today was the unluckiest day of his life.

…

Outside the court, Wang Daan’s excitement gradually faded. Seeing the calm Lu Ming, he was speechless.

What a case! One lawsuit, and his assessment score surpassed his highest record. For over thirty years, his score fluctuated between negative 90 and positive 50, barely maintaining it above negative 100 to avoid losing his license.

Now, his score was dangerously close to losing his license, only a step away.

This guy, however, had just become a registered lawyer and already negated decades of hard work.

When the goddess of luck smiles on someone, nothing can stop them.

But this guy was indeed impressive. His arguments were not only persuasive but also legally sound, indicating that his teacher must be a top lawyer.

Watching Lu Ming comforting the crying Bess, Wang Daan decided not to interrupt, “Manager Jin, let me give you a ride!”

Wang Daan approached Jin Taohua. He had driven his old car worth a hundred yuan.

“I want to thank Mr. Lu,” Jin Taohua hesitated, seeing Lu Ming and Pamela talking, unwilling to disturb them.

“There will be plenty of opportunities in the future!” Wang Daan smiled.

Jin Taohua agreed, “Thank you, Lawyer Wang.” She followed him to his car.

“Alright, stop crying, or you’ll ruin your pretty face!” Lu Ming teased the cute girl clinging to him.

Bess gradually stopped crying but still held onto Lu Ming’s arm.

Having never had a father, this was her first time finding someone who could shield her from the storm.

Pamela frowned at Bess’s behavior but couldn’t bear to scold her. She turned to Lu Ming, “Mr. Lu, thank you!”

Lu Ming smiled, “Let’s go, I’ll take you home.”

Pamela nodded slightly, walking with Lu Ming towards his car, with Bess still holding onto his arm.

“How much is the legal fee? I’ll write you a check later…” Pamela asked as they walked.

Lu Ming, amused by Bess, was lost in thought, remembering his father lifting him up by one arm.

Father, mother…

Suddenly, Lu Ming felt overwhelmingly sad.

He never thought about it, but today, Bess’s actions reminded him of the loved ones he might never see again.

Lost in sorrow, a gentle breeze brought Pamela’s soft voice to his ears.

“Lawyer Lu? How much is the legal fee?”

Lu Ming snapped out of it, smiled, and said, “This is my first case in Donghai, so it’s free.”

“That won’t do. I’ll write you a check in a few days.”

Lu Ming understood her situation but didn’t want to embarrass the Western lady, so he smiled and said, “Whenever, I’m not in a hurry.”

They arrived at his sleek black car.

“Nice car!” Pamela looked at Lu Ming suspiciously, “Mr. Lu, are you wealthy?”

Lu Ming rubbed his nose, noticing that she had only just paid attention to his car. Clearly, she was usually indifferent to such things, focused on her daughter’s well-being and distracted by the case until now.

“Get in,” Lu Ming said without much gentlemanly flair, opening his car door and getting in first.

Pamela hesitated, “Lawyer Lu, could you come to my laundry shop? I have some legal issues to consult you about.”

Lu Ming nodded, “Sure, I live just above your laundry shop.”