"According to Article XX of the XX Law and in accordance with the contract statement, I represent the plaintiff, China Central Television, and the defendant... and other companies to propose a total compensation of US$3.832 billion, 5,008 US dollars."
When Wilson proposed the compensation, John and other representatives from the defendant's unit were shocked!
They didn't know the amount of the claim before, they just knew it was a big number. But when they heard it, they realized that the number was not just big, but an astronomical figure!
Wilson then began to elaborate on the reasons for his claim, enumerating the losses caused to CCTV by these companies' false advertising. Then refer to existing foreign cases and combine it with Chinese laws to propose the reasonableness of the claim amount.
The other party's legal team was stunned for a moment, and then made a comprehensive refutation. First of all, foreign cases are not applicable to China because the national conditions and legal systems are different.
Secondly, this claim is completely illegal because they are the victims. It is unreasonable for CCTV to remove their product advertisements from the shelves, and it has caused irreparable impact on their company and brand.
The two sides began to argue in court, but the lawyers they hired were not famous to begin with. One lawyer even stuttered during the debate, which made a big joke.
Even though Wilson is British, he has learned Cantonese for many years and has often worked in the mainland in recent years. Although his Mandarin is not particularly standard, he can still understand it clearly. The important thing is that his winning attitude overwhelms the opponent in terms of momentum.
Naturally, there is no outcome in the first court session, but everyone has seen from the results of the debate in court that Wilson is in the lead.
When everyone came out, a bunch of reporters gathered at the door, not only from various Chinese media, but also from foreign media.
This is big news. China's state-owned enterprises and public opinion mouthpieces are in lawsuits with some foreign-funded enterprises. Of course, they are very concerned about it, especially since this news has also become a hot topic abroad.
"Excuse me, Lawyer Zhang, what was the outcome of this trial?"
"I would like to ask Lawyer Zhang, how do you feel when you represent a foreign company in a lawsuit against your country's CCTV?"
"I would like to ask Lawyer Zhang, someone on the Internet said that you are a traitor. What is your response to this?"
…
Here, Lawyer Zhang and others invited by John and the others became very anxious, but the foreign media did not come to interview him. Instead, they went to interview Wilson and others, because Lawyer Zhang and others... did not understand English!
Wilson still looked relaxed there, with a faint smile on his face the whole time.
"Excuse me, Barrister Wilson. As a British Crown Counsel, do you feel any different when defending others in China?"
"Excuse me, Barrister Wilson, when did you obtain your lawyer's license in Mainland China?"
"Barrister Wilson, one of the companies you are suing is British. Do you have anything to say about this?"
…
Wilson deftly answered reporters' questions and easily debunked those who attacked him. He spoke righteously on behalf of the Central Television Station of China and condemned those foreign-funded enterprises because of their confusion of right and wrong.
Wilson has long been familiar with handling this kind of scene. Although these reporters are difficult to deal with, they are still weaker than the scene in Xiangjiang where the paparazzi squats at your door and even secretly takes pictures of you through your window.
Not far away, Wilson saw Lawyer Zhang and others dealing with reporters sweating profusely, and Wilson walked over with a smile. The reporters who were originally interviewing Lawyer Zhang immediately turned around and started interviewing Wilson.
"Lawyer Wilson, just now Lawyer Zhang said that you will lose the next time the trial is held. Do you agree with this?"
"Mr. Wilson, I would like to ask you, did the result of the court session just now, as Lawyer Zhang said, completely refute you?"
"Lawyer Wilson, Lawyer Zhang said that they are going to file a counterclaim against you and that your claim is unreasonable. Do you agree with what he said?"
…
Wilson replied with a smile: "I understand all your questions, and I will just say two points. The first point is that we will win this lawsuit because we stand on the side of the law and reason. The second point , Lawyer Zhang once had a record of suspected bribery to witnesses, and thus was under scrutiny for a long time."
Everyone looked at Lawyer Zhang, whose face turned red: "This is slander. That incident has proven that I am innocent!"
Wilson shrugged and turned away. Whether he is innocent or not, he doesn't know. Even if Lawyer Zhang is innocent, will the people believe him
As expected, reporters frantically surrounded Lawyer Zhang, asking him to explain what the incident was all about.
In the afternoon of that day, the news on the Internet was updated, reporting on the trial, and then mentioned Lawyer Zhang’s suspected bribery.
Lawyer Zhang was once a well-known barrister, but he was involved in a suspected bribery incident, so he fell silent for a long time. Otherwise, with his former reputation, he would not have taken on such a case. He needs to make a splash and get himself back to the top. And John also promised him that after this success, he would help him obtain American citizenship, so he dared to sue CCTV.
But now these dreams may be shattered. The Internet used to denounce those foreign-funded companies, but now, they denounce him and his team of lawyers.
Before evening, several lawyers in his team asked him to resign, saying that they could not fight the lawsuit. Others said something happened at home and they needed to go back quickly.
In short, there are various excuses, but I just don’t want to get involved. Yes, filing this lawsuit can quickly improve their reputation, but if the reputation is negative, it is better not to do so.
They were in Lawyer Zhang's team, and even their parents called and scolded them. How could they participate
Only those foreign lawyers were still helping Lawyer Zhang, but Lawyer Zhang looked at his own team and saw that there was not even a slight gap between his own team and the other party's team, and he suddenly lost his temper.
At this time, foreign media also began to publish some similar foreign cases, all of which were cases with top claims amounts. The above analogy to this case means that Wilson’s claim amount is reasonable.
Lawyer Zhang scoffed at this, it’s so unreasonable! In China, the claim amount is not that high!
Even if the lawsuit is lost, at most the compensation will be double the advertising fee. Such a claim of dozens of times is absolutely impossible, and the court will not dare to award it.
Lawyer Zhang suddenly realized that in his heart, he had already considered the possibility of losing the case. Once this happens, it proves that he has still lost confidence.
Maybe I really shouldn’t have taken this lawsuit in the first place.
(End of chapter)