Are You Crazy? He’s only an Intern Lawyer?
Chapter 130 - 129: Receiving Citizens, Difficulty in Issuing Restrictions? (Please Subscribe)

Chapter 130: Chapter 129: Receiving Citizens, Difficulty in Issuing Restrictions? (Please Subscribe)

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...

The Civic Center Plaza.

A strange scene unfolded within the temporary pro bono stations set up by several major law firms.

While there were only a sporadic two or three people at the other reception points, one area in the middle was packed with a crowd.

Naturally, at the center of this crowd was Lawyer Tian Bin from Jincheng.

As the nearby citizens hyped him up, one thought flashed through everyone’s minds.

Lawyer Tian Bin is the most awesome!

So, more and more people gathered around him.

And, as the crowd grew, others who asked around also felt that Tian Bin was the best and joined the throng.

The more people there were, the more others wanted to squeeze in.

Thus, even lawyers from other law firms, including those from Jincheng, started to join in and watch the commotion.

They hold a Public Welfare Association event every year, but it’s always a matter of people coming in for consultations sporadically. Never had they seen such a spectacle as they did today.

A bunch of people surrounded Tian Bin as if he were a well-known top lawyer.

However, those familiar with Tian Bin knew that he was nothing more than a group leader, hardly ranking in the fame of Jincheng.

Amid the crowd, Tian Bin was also seeking help.

"Where are my subordinates, my subordinates?"

But he had barely spoken when the surrounding crowd silenced him with comments like "It’s no use," "We only recognize you," and "You, Lawyer Tian Bin, are the most powerful."

With no way out of his predicament, he had to accept his fate.

"Okay, I’ll help you, stop squeezing, my legs are going numb..."

Seeing the strong determination of the surrounding citizens, Tian Bin had no choice.

After all, the big boss cared a lot about this legal assistance event. If he didn’t offer consultations, and the big boss heard about it, he would be finished.

And now, surrounded by so many people, who knew if someone was recording a video or posting about it on social media platforms.

Better safe than sorry.

Upon hearing Tian Bin agree, the onlookers finally felt satisfied.

The crowd dispersed momentarily but quickly reconvened.

Tian Bin was a bit more comfortable than before, at least finding a table to sit at, but soon he was again besieged by an enthusiastic crowd.

"Lawyer Tian, we need pre-marital consultation!"

"Lawyer Tian, my ex-husband..."

"Lawyer Tian..."

Once the people around him voiced their concerns, Tian Bin felt on the verge of collapse.

What the heck? He was just a lawyer in the commercial team. How come even couples wanting to get married were coming to him for advice on prenuptial agreements?

And that woman whose ex-husband wasn’t paying alimony, why didn’t she talk to her ex-husband directly? We aren’t close, so coming to me is useless, right?

Moreover, the requests from the public were getting more and more outrageous.

A parent whose daughter was going abroad and who also wanted to emigrate should be seeing a travel agency, right?

Someone suspecting their wife of infidelity, wanting a divorce without evidence should hire an investigator or private detective. What good would a lawyer do?

In summary, Tian Bin found himself incapable of extricating himself from the demands and had to cope as best he could.

The commotion here also puzzled the returning members of the criminal department.

"Well, that’s not Tian Bin in there, is it?"

The "culprit" at this moment had not yet realized what he had done.

Zhang Wei only knew that he had finally handed out all the flyers, and he was touting Tian Bin’s awesomeness to everyone he met, describing just how incredibly powerful Tian Bin was.

He almost dubbed him Jincheng’s number one ace, albeit a non-existent ace.

Now, this so-called number one ace of Jincheng spoken of by Zhang Wei was surrounded by countless people who had come admiringly.

As for the two subordinates sent by Tian Bin to keep an eye on Zhang Wei and the others, they had now returned to the scene as well, but seeing Tian Bin’s situation, they extinguished any thoughts of approaching to report in.

After Zhang Wei and Tie Ruyun reunited, they could only chat and shoot the breeze near the assistance event to pass the time.

Slacking off truly is something that can bring joy to one’s soul.

And so, the first day of the assistance event concluded in the evening.

"End of work, please come back tomorrow!"

It was unclear which lawyer had shouted that phrase, but in Tian Bin’s ears, it sounded like music from heaven.

By the time the crowd finally dispersed, reluctantly, Tian Bin was drenched in sweat, his face pale.

He had been swarmed with people the entire afternoon, without a moment’s rest, a feat not just anyone could withstand.

"Lawyer Tian, you’re impressive!"

"Lawyer Tian, who would have thought you’d be this popular!"

Lawyers from several other firms nearby all came over to congratulate Tian Bin.

But Tian Bin no longer had the energy to argue.

"Damn it, why is everyone rushing at me!"

Tian Bin had one of his subordinates pour him a glass of water which he hastily drank, and it was only then that he recovered a bit of his strength.

"Chief, it was the kid from the criminal division who said it!"

One of his subordinates hurried over to report, and pointed at Zhang Wei, recounting everything he had witnessed.

"It was this kid!"

Upon hearing this, a surge of anger welled up in Tian Bin’s chest.

"You little rascal, look at the mess you’ve caused!"

Just thinking about the afternoon’s events was enough to stir his uncontainable rage, almost leading to an outburst.

Marching toward the people of the criminal division with fury, Tian Bin’s face was almost covered in dark clouds.

"Chief Tian, why are you exploding? Didn’t I do a great job?"

Zhang Wei let out a chuckle, seemingly oblivious to Tian Bin’s fuming demeanor.

"You asked us to hand out flyers, we had no objections, and each time I met someone, I would praise how amazing Chief Tian is. Have I done something wrong?"

"You..."

Zhang Wei’s words left Tian Bin at a loss for a response.

Distributing flyers was indeed an assignment he had given to the criminal division.

And as Zhang Wei handed out flyers while speaking "kindly" of Tian Bin, that should have been seen as a "good" thing, right?

But the thought of the afternoon’s grievances made Tian Bin’s anger rise steadily.

"You criminal division will also be receiving citizens’ consultations tomorrow!"

Wanting to blow up, but having nowhere to vent, Tian Bin could only shout that out before heading back to the coach bus.

"Starting tomorrow to receive citizen consultations, that shouldn’t be a problem."

Zhang Wei chuckled, exchanged a glance with Tie Ruyun, and then boarded the coach bus as well.

After returning to the law firm, everyone from Jincheng clocked out.

...

Wednesday.

Morning.

The coaches of various law firms once again arrived at the citizen center square.

The Public Welfare Welfare Association event was set to continue for a week, which also posed a significant challenge for the participating lawyers.

And today, Zhang Wei and his group were no longer distributing flyers; instead, they started receiving citizens at one of the consultation points.

"Chief, we need to hang up the sign!"

Zhang Wei remarked, hanging a sign that read "Jincheng Criminal Division, Only Handling Criminal Cases" at the consultation point table.

As citizens came for consultations, Zhang Wei would always ask, "Are you dealing with a criminal case?"

Almost all the citizens shook their heads.

"This is a civil litigation, please consult with Chief Tian Bin, that’s the one over there, the lawyer who looks very capable!"

It was the same old tactic; Zhang Wei directed civil, contract, marriage, and other non-criminal consultations straight to Tian Bin.

This wasn’t because he was shirking his duties; it was simply out of protocol that the criminal division shouldn’t handle civil consultations.

Frankly, if not for Li Qingshou and Wang Jianren’s behind-the-scenes instructions, they from the criminal division wouldn’t have even made an appearance at the public service event.

The citizens that Zhang Wei and his group were serving were mostly there for civil consultations.

With so many lawyers on-site dealing with civil cases, their job was essentially to direct citizens to the most appropriate consultation point.

So while everyone else was busy, the four people of the criminal division could actually chat and goof off.

"Old Tie, why don’t we head back to the firm? There’s no case for us here anyway, and at least at the firm we could be sorting out case work. Out here, we can’t do anything."

Zhang Wei looked around; due to his "contribution" from the day before, there were indeed many more citizens present, but unfortunately, they had little to do with the criminal division.

"Kid, do you really want to deal with the cases involving the insurance company and the cigar company?"

After directing a citizen to the civil group’s reception point, Tie Ruyun immediately turned his head and fired back a response.

"Yeah, at least those two cases have attorney’s fees to earn, that’s solid performance!"

"If they really could bring in performance, the commercial group and civil group wouldn’t discard them. Any case thrown into the trash heap by them is utterly worthless!"

"Old Tie, that’s where I have to disagree with you. In my eyes, there are no worthless cases, only lawyers who can’t litigate!"

After Zhang Wei rebutted, he quickly added, "Once I even saw someone who choked on water, sue the water company, and the key is, there was a lawyer who took the case. Tell me, isn’t that absurd?"

"This..."

Upon hearing about this case, Tie Ruyun instinctively felt it was ridiculous, but seeing Zhang Wei’s earnest expression, he actually couldn’t come up with a rebuttal.

"Does it have to be that crazy?"

Li Yueqin and Lin Yumeng sitting nearby, were confused as well.

To think that someone would sue a water company for choking on water, wasn’t that just preposterous?

"That’s why I say, don’t worry about whether a lawsuit is reasonable. The most outrageous lawsuit I’ve seen was filed by a woman. She claimed the sun belonged to her family and attempted to charge the entire human race rent, and in the end, a country actually gave her 500,000. You guys didn’t see that coming, did you, that she actually got the money?"

"This..."

The trio from the criminal group was baffled once again. What kind of cases have you been dealing with, constantly pushing the boundaries of humanity?

"So you see, we shouldn’t care about how ridiculous a case is. As long as it’s a case, as lawyers, we just need to consider our clients’ situation. If they insist on suing, we can also..."

Zhang Wei was midway through his sentence when he suddenly stopped because someone had arrived.

"Hello, we’re from the Jincheng criminal group, responsible for handling criminal cases. Do you have any consultations or commissions regarding criminal matters?"

Lin Yumeng stood up and greeted the newcomer with a smile, explaining.

"Lawyers, my husband has been sued in another city, and it seems to be a criminal case. What should I do?"

The visitor was a woman, and she was also dealing with a criminal case, which sent a shiver down the spines of the members of the criminal group.

Business had arrived!

"Who’s taking it?"

Zhang Wei looked around, soliciting volunteers with his eyes. Everyone was eager to try.

"I’ll take it, I’ll take it!" Li Yueqin was always first in line, and this time was no exception.

"Then Old Tie, you keep an eye out and chip in when needed!"

Zhang Wei pointed at Li Yueqin and signaled to Tie Ruyun.

Old Tie naturally knew what to do. While Li Yueqin listened to the woman’s situation as she sat down, he also sat down next to them, ready to offer advice.

"Hello, is this the criminal group?"

Just then, another person came for a consultation.

This time it was a young girl, who looked like a high school student.

"May I ask what you need consultation on?" Zhang Wei quickly stepped forward.

"Well, I was hoping to speak to a female lawyer for some advice..." The girl dodged Zhang Wei’s gaze, not daring to look at him.

"Xiao Meng, your turn!"

Zhang Wei couldn’t do anything about it, as the girl had specifically asked for a female, so he pushed Lin Yumeng forward.

"Excuse me, is this the criminal group?"

Suddenly, another citizen walked in.

Zhang Wei had wanted to check on Lin Yumeng’s consultation, but with a new client seeking advice, he had no choice but to take it on himself.

"Strange, why have the consultations suddenly increased?"

Zhang Wei sensed something peculiar and turned to look at the nearby area.

He saw Tian Bin standing not too far away, surrounded by a group of citizens.

While he was talking, he pointed in the direction of the criminal group. Several citizens nodded and started walking towards them.

"Good grief, so this is the reason, is it revenge for yesterday’s incident?"

Zhang Wei sneered internally, realizing it was Tian Bin stirring up business for them!

But this tactic was out in the open; since the consultations were for criminal cases, all he could do was attend to each one.

The initial consultations were quite sensible, and Zhang Wei was able to give out some of his best advice.

However, as time went on, the consultations became increasingly ludicrous.

"Young lawyer, my son caused an accident drunk driving, and now he has gone into hiding in the countryside. Is there any way to keep him out of prison?"

"Sir, I suggest that your son turns himself in. If he shows a good attitude in admitting his guilt and the victim’s family issues a letter of forgiveness, he might avoid prison."

"Isn’t that going to cost money? Is there a method that doesn’t require spending any money?"

"Sir, your request is quite outrageous. Your son has hit someone, and it’s a case of drunk driving and hit-and-run. If taken seriously, it could be considered premeditated murder, reckless driving!"

"I don’t care, I don’t want my son to go to jail, nor do I want to pay any money..."

"Well then, there is a compromise."

"What is it?"

"It’s simple. You sever the father-son relationship. Then he’s no longer your son, and whether he goes to jail or not won’t be your concern anymore, right?"

"I qnmlgb..."

After sending off a cursing old man, Zhang Wei was left speechless.

To wish for your son not to go to jail after a hit-and-run, and dangerous driving incident without compensating, how could there be such a good deal.

"Disrespectful to the elderly, disregarding the law!" Zhang Wei muttered under his breath as he watched the old man curse and swear into the distance.

"Excuse me, young lawyer, is this where I can get criminal law advice?"

But in the next moment, another person came seeking advice.

"Yes, may I ask what issue you have?" Zhang Wei could only put on a smile and started attending to the newcomer.

This time it was a woman dragging a child along. The woman looked unwell, but the child was quite lively, holding a toy gun and frolicking nearby.

"The thing is, lawyer, I want to issue a restraining order against my ex-husband, he..."

"He also didn’t pay child support on time, but that’s a civil lawsuit, we’re in the criminal department, you know?"

"No, you misunderstand, lawyer. My ex-husband and I recently got a divorce... How should I put this? Our relationship has become very strained, and he’s also threatened me in front of many people... I am concerned about his violent temper, he’s impulsive, and I am afraid that he might..."

The woman spoke haltingly, her voice carrying a note of fear.

"You mean, your ex-husband might act irrationally, even threatening your life?"

"Yes, exactly!" The woman nodded.

Zhang Wei thought for a moment, then asked, "How long have you been divorced?"

"About two weeks or so..."

"That’s a tricky timing."

Zhang Wei shook his head somewhat helplessly and said, "Generally speaking, a couple that has just divorced less than two weeks ago is in a phase of mutual hatred, followed by a cooling-off period."

"And your current situation, lies within that phase. The court will consider that you’ve just divorced, and that both parties might be irritable. They usually won’t grant a restraining order."

"But the things he said..."

"That’s normal. For instance, when a young couple breaks up, they might say things to each other that are more threatening than what your husband said. Or take the average person whose ex-girlfriend starts dating someone new; they’ll curse that couple too, right?"

Having explained, Zhang Wei said to the woman, "Just in Dongfang Capital alone, there are 20 million people, and among them, surely at least a million are young couples. If after every argument where the man says something severe, the woman rushes to the court for a restraining order, can you imagine how overwhelmed the judges would be?"

"But I have a child, and I am worried he might..."

"If you’re really that concerned, I can accompany you to the court, but don’t get your hopes up. Because all the things I just told you will be communicated by the judge in the courtroom!"

Zhang Wei glanced at the crowd near the reception area. Although he was doubtful about the woman’s request, he still decided to make the trip to the court.

The main reason being that, at the reception point, they rarely received big cases. Those who came in to consult typically had minor cases.

Consultations like the woman’s were likely to be many.

"Old Tie, I’m going to accompany this sister to the court!"

After briefing Tie Ruyun with that, and receiving a nod from him, he led the woman and child to the subway station towards the city’s civic center.

They took the subway straight to the city court and then headed to the judge’s office.

However, clerks and secretaries usually handle these kinds of issues. Only when it’s necessary to sign a restraining order would a judge be involved.

"You want to sign a restraining order?" the clerk asked Zhang Wei while listening to the woman’s explanation.

"Yes, even though it may seem excessive to you, we insist!"

"Alright, I’ll inform the judge. But to sign a restraining order, we must notify the man, and then call a motion to decide!"

With that, the secretary left to inform the judge.

Zhang Wei and the woman waited in the courthouse for an hour before the secretary returned.

"The motion is scheduled for 2 p.m. We’ve notified your ex-husband’s company, and he will come with a lawyer. The judge has decided to hold a hearing, but I have to say, your request will be difficult to fulfill."

The secretary said that much, but to Zhang Wei, it was no surprise at all.

He too had said that it was indeed a difficult task.

Especially for couples who have just divorced, there is no such thing as an amicable separation.

Aren’t men and women who have just divorced usually seeing each other as mortal enemies?

Expecting a judge to issue a restraining order for every divorced couple would probably drive them to exhaustion.