Chapter 47
Chapter 47
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 47
Chapter Title: The Invalid Complaint
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Spectator seats.
"Is there some kind of trick?"
Professor Cheon Woong-jae crossed his arms impassively, his expression grave.
He had been watching Kang Hyun, who was boldly making his statements up front, and now he was trying to mull over every expression and thought on Kang Hyun's face.
This was the most intriguing—and bewildering—case he had encountered in all the mock trial competitions he had overseen so far.
"It's all or nothing..."
This moment was either the birth of a new genius or a perfectly ridiculous farce to be laughed about over drinks.
One of the two.
"...If I may speak boldly, not as a judge but as an examiner, are you saying you have grounds for objection to the plaintiff's opening argument right now?"
The examiner asked with a suspicious look, a mix of caution—"don't go too far"—and curiosity.
If Kang Hyun was just nitpicking something absurd, it would be enough to warn him that it would be taken into consideration in the judging.
Yet it was also an intriguingly timed moment that piqued anyone's curiosity. Kang Hyun replied confidently, undaunted.
"Yes, there is clearly a matter for objection. May I speak?"
"Very well. Go ahead."
The examiner picked up his pen in a calm tone. It was to judge points deductions or additions.
But Kang Hyun smiled faintly, as if unconcerned, and addressed the examiner.
"Honored presiding judge. The plaintiff's complaint in this case is entirely 'improper.'"
"Im...proper?"
"...What nonsense..."
His statement instantly threw the courtroom into an uproar.
Tang tang tang.
"Quiet!"
The examiner tapped the small gavel three times to quell the murmurs.
Then he asked Kang Hyun again.
"Did you just say it's improper?"
"Yes. There is no need to deliberate on undisputed facts, procedural defects, abuse of discretion, or even whether the College Scholastic Ability Test question itself was correct or not. It is clearly improper."
"Your Honor! This objection makes no sense..."
Feeling some inexplicable unease, the student playing the lead counsel for the plaintiff trailed off in protest, but the examiner seemed unable to contain his curiosity.
"We will hear the reason. However, if the content falls short of the level required for the competition, we will stop it immediately."
"Falling short of the level" was a phrase directly tied to point deductions. It was something that could only be said because this was a mock trial competition, not a real one.
In other words, if it was purely psychological warfare or actions considering off-trial circumstances, it was subpar.
Or if it was dragging out time with absurd claims, subpar as well.
The examiner simply meant he would check if the argument was logically valid in legal interpretation and procedurally sound.
"Yes. Then I will begin."
As Kang Hyun's objection request was accepted, all eyes naturally turned to the right side, Team 3, participant number 13—Kang Hyun, sitting confidently in the middle.
"This case is an administrative lawsuit seeking the cancellation of an administrative disposition."
Kang Hyun began speaking, looking relaxed as he glanced at the opposing team, the spectators, and the judges.
"An administrative lawsuit seeking the cancellation of an administrative disposition must, in principle, name the administrative agency that issued the disposition under the title of an external 'minister' as the defendant. Let us confirm the evidence list together."
At Kang Hyun's mention of the "evidence list," everyone suddenly bowed their heads under their desks to rummage for documents, as if by magic.
"Exhibit A-1, pages 5, 9, 11, 17. Exhibit A-2, pages 5, 9, 11, 17. Exhibit A-3, pages 6, 11, 14, 20. Exhibit A-5, pages 1, 2."
Rustle rustle.
Everyone was frantically following his words. This included the examiner and the staff assisting the competition.
"Holding of the Objection Review Committee, details of the disposition, advisory from the education academy, appendix with academy opinions, etc. All the documents you see are titled under the Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation."
"Ah!"
Professor Cheon Woong-jae suppressed an exclamation that nearly escaped his lips only after Kang Hyun finished speaking.
The tiger-like face wrinkled at the cheeks, muscles twitching under his eyes.
"He spotted that?"
Indeed. Kang Hyun was right.
Before delving into the case, there was a major procedural error by the plaintiffs.
"The plaintiffs lost from the start."
Professor Cheon Woong-jae agreed with Kang Hyun's point and listened intently to his next words.
"As I mentioned earlier, a lawsuit seeking cancellation of an administrative disposition must, in principle, name the administrative agency. In other words, it should sue the Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation, not the Minister of Education."
The plaintiffs had clearly filed suit against the "Minister of Education." But it was procedurally impossible.
They had chosen the wrong party to compete against, so their argument couldn't possibly be right.
A critical blunder by the plaintiffs.
Kang Hyun had spotted with an eagle eye what everyone had overlooked because it was a "hypothetical case."
"Looking at the evidence in this case, the defendant 'Minister of Education' has not issued any disposition against the plaintiff in this matter. The plaintiff's complaint against the Minister of Education is improper. Therefore, in conclusion, cancellation of the administrative disposition cannot be demanded against the Minister of Education."
A clean closing from Kang Hyun.
"You can amend the defendant to the 'Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation' after the competition ends."
Silence reigned in the courtroom, broken only by his words.
No further arguments were needed.
The microphones for Woo Si-hyung and Yoon Chan-rim, next in line, didn't even light up red.
It was an overwhelming victory for the defense.
Professor Cheon Woong-jae glanced at his watch.
10:51 a.m.
Mock trial competitions that started at 10 a.m. usually ran until at least 5 p.m., even the impromptu argument rounds taking at least two hours to conclude. Yet this one ended in just 51 minutes.
The preliminaries proceeded smoothly.
Evening of the final day.
"Good work. You can leave right away."
"Please check your personal items."
The competition staff bustled about.
With the last round finished, it was Thursday.
The four-day preliminaries had finally concluded.
And one history-making record was etched.
A team composed entirely of first-year undergraduates, without even an advising professor.
They had been completely off everyone's radar, not even worth labeling as underdogs.
Even if made up of touted geniuses, it was deemed too early for them to have both the insight and skills to analyze cases.
But the experts' predictions were thoroughly wrong, with Kang Hyun at the center.
In particular, ending the first tournament match in just 50 minutes was a fresh shock to Korea University and various academies.
Summary of the first match:
- Delivered a KO victory by piercing a fatal flaw that left the opponents unable to recover.
It was trial content rarely seen even in mock trial competitions, not to mention at Bismuth or Jeseop, teeming with flying geniuses.
In the mock case of the first match, failing to notice that the defendant side was not clearly specified was the plaintiffs' mistake, but originally, nitpicking such details was something only practitioners would do.
Kang Hyun's ability was in tearing into it without hesitation, and the question committee, unable to fault him, immediately issued a statement promising to clarify any such procedural ambiguities in future cases.
In any case, results came out on the day all matches ended, so Kang Hyun, Woo Si-hyung, and Yoon Chan-rim packed their belongings and stood in front of the electronic board displaying real-time results.
It didn't take long for the announcement to echo and appear on the convention center's mock trial monitors.
'Win: Participant No. 13. Tournament Team 3: Kang Hyun, Woo Si-hyung, Yoon Chan-rim.'
"Alright!"
"Good job, you guys."
"Yeah. Everyone did great!"
The three exchanged light greetings.
Surprisingly, they were calm.
They hadn't encountered any real powerhouses despite repeated wins, and qualification had already been expected among them.
But their 4-0 record drew fervent cheers from all other spectators, ensuring the three would be watched closely from here on.
Many teams advanced undefeated, but Kang Hyun's team stood out under the spotlight.
"The press is gonna go wild."
"Si-hyung oppa! Don't run away this time—interview together."
"No, I don't want to."
"Ah, oppa~."
As Yoon Chan-rim and Woo Si-hyung bickered, Kang Hyun let out a short sigh.
Even a calm victory couldn't prevent the excitement from bubbling up once the tension released.
Moreover, right after the results, they had to deal with an incoming reporter and campus newspaper staff.
"It'll be in tomorrow's university paper. Who is this Kang Hyun student?"
"There he is!"
Naturally, Kang Hyun was their first target.
But at that moment.
Kang Hyun's attention snapped elsewhere. His face hardened as he stared intently at his phone, clearly something wrong.
"Kang Hyun-ssi, right? A quick interview..."
"...Hold on. You guys talk first?"
But unwilling to ruin the good day, Kang Hyun calmly raised his hand.
"What's up, hyung? Something happen?"
"Yeah, what's wrong?"
"No, just a sec. Sorry!"
Kang Hyun grabbed his phone in one hand and his earpiece, moving away to take the call.
"Hello? Can you hear me?"
The person on the line seemed to have some problem.
His expression was outwardly composed, but his actions looked urgently tense.
A black car by the roadside.
The car was parked on the shoulder with hazard lights flashing.
"Let go of my hand!"
"Hey, why are you being so prickly!" "I said let go!"
"Hey, you think you're too pretty for this? You really gonna act like this?"
"Let go of my hand right now?"
Beyond Yoon Haneul's smooth shoulder line, a rough male hand clung precariously to her wrist.
She was dressed in a mini dress with straps and long wavy hair. Without paying close attention, one might slip and blurt out "pretty," but her face and aura were icy as thin frost.
On the roadside with cars whizzing by, her cheeks flushed in the unusually chilly night air, she stood ramrod straight, glaring murderously at the man without budging.
She was trying to steady her breathing to hold back her anger, but her shoulders heaved uncontrollably, failing at anger management—she was on the verge of exploding.
In contrast, the man was fully focused on berating and mocking her.
He suddenly snatched the cellphone from Yoon Haneul's hand, then crossed his arms as if she had committed some grave wrong, continuing in a semi-threatening tone.
"Hey! If you keep living like this, you'll hear everywhere... Hoo... Never mind."
The man pressed a hand to his forehead, shaking his head dramatically.
Yoon Haneul bit her lip hard, reaching the limit of her patience, and snapped sharply.
"Hear what everywhere!"
"That you've got tails all over you. That's how all these little actions add up."
"Are you insane?"
Her eyes quivered at his words.