You Have Been Defended [EN]: Chapter 29

“You Guys Are Defended – Episode 29

“Aigo, I’m so tired. Aigo, aigo.”

Beyond the veranda, I saw Tae-sik unnecessarily massaging his shoulders as he entered the office.

The guy who came in with two goons looked like a loan shark boss coming to collect debts.

“Did the boss arrive?”

“Ah, yes. Where is the prosecutor?”

“He’s smoking a cigarette on the veranda. He’s reviewing the materials because the client will be here soon.”

As Kang Min-jae pointed at me, Tae-sik and his two goons bowed to me at 90 degrees.

I nodded briefly and turned the last page of the document.

Meanwhile, Kang Min-jae was standing in front of the refrigerator, asking them the same old ‘What would you like to drink?’

“Prosecutor, I’m here.”

“I just saw you.”

As I sat down at the consultation table where they were, Tae-sik scratched the back of his head, looking embarrassed.

“Prosecutor, we,”

“Lawyer.”

“Yes?”

“Now you’re a lawyer, so call me Lawyer.”

“Ah, that’s right. Yes, anyway, Lawyer. We found that print shop. They use it when distributing scripts to the actors for filming, and they seem to entrust all their binding needs to them. They also send simple printing jobs there if the quantity is large.”

Tae-sik proudly slammed a memo on the table.

It was the address of a small print shop located not far from Blue Island Media.

Looking at the address, it was within the radius we had called, so why couldn’t we find it?

“Just know that these bastards didn’t register on the internet, so it was damn hard to find them. Hehe.”

“Still, you found it quickly.”

I thought it would be good to find the print shop before the client arrived today, but I didn’t really expect it to happen.

When I met Tae-sik in my past life, back in 2010, he was reliable, but not this fast.

At some point, he developed a sense of mission to uncover the corruption of Wooshin Group, and his movements became faster, so it took some time to teach him how to use it.

But what happened this time?

“Since you’ve opened your law firm, Lawyer, how about we sign a, what is it? Mother’s milk? Sign something like that, give us some work, and give us some money. We want to show you our trustworthiness by finding it quickly. What kind of relationship do we have? Isn’t it a connection made by the Prosecutor’s Office?”

“I think you mean MOU [Memorandum of Understanding], not mother’s milk…….”

Kang Min-jae interjected slyly, and Tae-sik glared at him.

“No, isn’t [MO] read as [Mo]? And U. So, mother’s milk.”

“……It would sound more like you’re reading it if you said Mo-woo, Boss. Isn’t the word a bit embarrassing?”

“Ah! Shut up! So, Lawyer, will you sign that MO… whatever it is, and work together for mutual benefit, or not?”

“I’ll see how you do.”

If he continues to do a satisfactory job in the future, it is natural to pay him accordingly.

“Anyway. Is there anything else you want me to do?”

“Kang, send the client’s script to Tae-sik.”

Kang carefully asked Tae-sik for his email address and sent him the script.

Tae-sik looked at me with a puzzled expression.

“I need to find out if this script has been printed there.”

“……You said we shouldn’t get caught by Blue Island Media, right?”

“That’s right.”

“But how do you find out?”

“That’s why you have to figure it out. Well.”

The goons who were standing behind the sofa with their hands clasped also looked at me as if they were dumbfounded.

“If you memorize the script and even a scrap of it comes out, you’ll have to find it, right?”

“……When was it printed?”

“Probably last year.”

“Then wouldn’t they have thrown it all away already?”

“Maybe, but maybe not. So you have to look into it, right?”

“……That’s true, but,”

“Should a busy lawyer do that kind of hard labor, Tae-sik?”

“No. I should do it…….”

This is called division of labor.

Each person takes on a specialized field.

That way, things proceed smoothly and quickly.

“Then keep that in mind,”

“Lawyer! Client! The client is here!”

Kang Min-jae, who had briefly opened the office door, shouted.

I suddenly looked at their appearance.

The two goons in black suits were okay, but Tae-sik’s visuals were likely to ruin any credibility he had.

If an elderly or weak person saw him, they might end up in the hospital with hyperventilation.

“You guys, hide on the veranda for now.”

“Yes? Why?”

“Kang was scared when he saw you, do you think a weak and young woman would be scared if she saw you, or not?”

“…….”

Tae-sik didn’t answer, as if he admitted it inwardly but didn’t want to admit it.

But he led the goons to the veranda as I said.

The three of them crouched and hid in a blind spot that was not visible from inside the office.

I covered the parts that were visible from my chair, and soon the client came into the office.

“Hello.”

“Welcome. Please sit here. What would you like to drink…….”

Kang Min-jae, who had become a waiter again, asked.

The client tilted her head, looking at the empty cup on the table.

“It looks like someone was here.”

“Ah, an investigator came by. Please sit down.”

“Wow, you even have an investigator. Oh! I bought coffee. The part-timer at the cafe on the first floor said you both like Americano.”

“Yes? Who?”

Is she talking about Kim Yeon-joon?

He’s still the same as ever.

“Well, thank you for taking on my case.”

“No, we are grateful that you trusted us and came to us even though we haven’t been open for long.”

Kang Min-jae, who was 180 degrees different from when Tae-sik was there, answered kindly.

The client smiled slightly.

“I’m curious about your opinions. I guess you said you’d take on the case because there’s a chance of winning……, right?”

“That’s right.”

There’s a chance of winning.

And Blue Island Media is a subsidiary of Wooshin.

It’s a win-win situation, but I didn’t bother to say it.

“In what areas do you feel you have a competitive edge? I thought it would be good to prepare together.”

“The similarity is so severe that it’s serious, and the reliance [access to the original work] is sufficient. We have requested more information from the investigator to thoroughly review the reliance part.”

“I didn’t think the reliance was lacking. The email was also marked as read, and the judges must have read it…….”

The client muttered softly.

“That’s not wrong. But they can say that the email was a server error or that it was missed during the review process. If that is accepted, the reliance disappears. The three major elements of a plagiarism trial are the originality, reliance, and substantial similarity of the original work. Among these three, reliance will be the key point in the trial. Let me tell you in advance, substantial similarity is a very difficult area to be recognized.”

“Are you saying that a verdict may be reached that it is not similar?”

“That may be the case, but if we thoroughly investigate the data, we will be able to get it recognized. Above all, the amount of compensation they have to pay increases depending on the degree of similarity of the works. So, we have to prove substantial similarity at all costs. However, in the stage of proving this similarity, if reliance is clearly proven, we can push them more easily. So, we are trying to get complete evidence in our hands.”

“……It’s more difficult than I thought. I’ve heard that a lot, though.”

“First of all, what we found out is that Blue Island Media is binding and distributing works that have been selected up to the second round in the contest to all production team staff and judges. Assuming that the client’s work was selected in the second round, it would have gone to the print shop. We just found that print shop.”

“I didn’t know they were binding and watching it. That’s really amazing.”

It was information that I had easily found out with a phone call, but I didn’t bother to say it.

“The problem is how much information we can get from there. I will send you a detailed report in writing later.”

The client sighed.

Kang Min-jae slyly approached the printer and said to her.

“The journey may be difficult, but if the client is also enthusiastic, we can win. It’s easier to obtain evidence if you secure what you need to secure before suing. If they know they’ve been sued, they’ll try to destroy the evidence. Do you have enough time? It could be a long fight.”

“Yes. I’m a hopeful [aspiring writer], so I’m always working on manuscripts. I’m almost always at home or in a cafe, so what would I be busy with?”

“I see. Since the engagement has been decided, let’s start by writing a contract.”

As if water flowing, Kang Min-jae placed the contract that he had just pulled out of the printer in front of her.

When did he make the engagement contract again?

I didn’t tell him to, but he does these necessary things so well on his own, so I think I did a good job of accepting him.

“How much are you thinking about for the down payment?”

“I don’t have much, so I was thinking of something below five million won [approximately $3,700 USD]……. Would that be okay?”

“Ah, I see.”

Kang Min-jae looked at me with a pitiful expression.

The client was a little intimidated and even asked again, ‘Is it too little?’

“Let’s do this. I’ll only take about 3 million won [approximately $2,200 USD] as a down payment.”

“Lawyer!”

Kang Min-jae distorted his face towards me, as if to say that a down payment of only 3 million won for this kind of trial was ridiculous.

“Instead, how about 30% of the compensation amount that the client will receive as a success fee?”

Looking at previous precedents, if the defendant’s drama is recognized as a remake of the plaintiff’s scenario, about 1/3 of the deceased writer’s fee is paid.

Jung Hye-jin’s fee per episode is 40 million won [approximately $30,000 USD].

She is paid 960 million won [approximately $720,000 USD] for all 24 episodes.

Of course, I’m thinking of asking for more, but even if I only get recognized for this much, 30 percent is about 320 million won [approximately $240,000 USD].

However, the defendant is not only Jung Hye-jin, but also Blue Island Media, which made the drama.

In that case, we may be able to receive even greater damages by adding the profits that Blue Island Media made from this drama.

Furthermore, if it is recognized as complete theft, the amount will be even greater.

The money that Distance Between You and Me> is making now is enormous.

It is known to be about 20 billion won [approximately $15 million USD], including main broadcast revenue, PPL [product placement] revenue, advertising revenue before and after the drama, and VOD and OST [original soundtrack] revenue.

And their net profit is estimated at about 10 billion won [approximately $7.5 million USD].

If we win the case, the client may get a lot of money overnight.

Of course, all the profits that Jung Hye-jin and Blue Island Media have earned are what the client should have received in the first place, but…….

To judge coldly, it is best to bring as much of the money they have earned as possible.

“Okay.”

Kang Min-jae quickly added special provisions and made a contract.

The client immediately began to write the contract without hesitation.

“What is it that Na Eun-sung ultimately wants?”

I asked her after she finished signing the contract.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, when you decided to sue, how did you want to be compensated for the damage?”

She seemed to be trying to recall her past emotions as she rolled her eyes.

“At first, I just thought that my work had been stolen and that I had to find it somehow.”

“But when I looked for similar plagiarism cases, there were many cases where it was talked about a little on the internet and ended without even a trial. So…….”

“Yes.”

“I just want to let people know. The fact that this work is originally mine.”

“Don’t you want monetary compensation?”

“……It would be a lie to say I don’t want it. I want to take away all the writer’s fees that Jung Hye-jin received and the profits that Blue Island Media made, but I know I can’t.”

“You mean you want to take as much as possible.”

“Yes.”

It’s not bad to want monetary compensation.

No one can live without money, and that goes for even monks and priests.

Creators have to make money from their creations, and lawyers have to make money from trials.

She is asserting her legitimate rights.

Rather, I’m glad she didn’t say, ‘I don’t need money.’

“Okay. Let’s start with the goal of taking as much as possible.”

“……Thank you, Lawyer. I’ll deposit the down payment right away. If you give me the account number,”

“Please deposit it here, Na Eun-sung.”

Kang Min-jae quickly gave her my business account number.

Really, I can’t beat him.

Na Eun-sung, who had transferred the down payment, left the office, saying that she would contact us day and night if there were any parts where her opinion was needed.

At the same time, the veranda door opened and the bulky guys poured out.

“Aoh, my legs are numb!”

“My arms are numb, Boss!”

“I don’t know how much it hurt because you were stepping on my foot, Boss. Awoo, awoo.”

“So what, you bastards. So! What do you want me to do, you sons of bitches!”

They were hitting each other’s heads and grabbing each other’s collars, so I waited until they were done playing.

Eventually, Tae-sik, conscious of my gaze, cleared his throat and straightened his clothes.

“Did you hear what the client said?”

“……Yes.”

“Go find the client’s script at the print shop. Again this time,”

“Yes. Without Blue Island Media knowing.”

Tae-sik interrupted me and replied.

Then he bowed to me and walked to the door.

“Do you think I can’t find it?”

Before leaving the office, Tae-sik turned around and shouted at me.

I met his eyes.

Suddenly, the last image of him I saw in my previous life overlapped.

I smiled lightly.

“No. I think you’ll find it.”

“…….”

Tae-sik was silent.

He stared blankly at me, then bowed again.

“I’ll contact you as soon as I find something new. Rest comfortably.”

“Rest comfortably!”

After Tae-sik and the goons left the office, everything became quiet in an instant.

I leaned back in my chair and sighed.

It’s my first civil trial.

I have to make sure that nothing happens to tarnish my career, which has never lost a case.

“Let’s move.”