【Episode 32 – Contract of Psychos, Creative Defense (1)】
"Looks like this year's Halloween party costume is decided."
"Psy? Gangnam Style?"
"As long as it's not that. There are already four people who told me they're wearing that to this year's Halloween party. So it's basically over. There'll be like thirty Psy lookalikes. Heon, you're coming, right? What are you going to wear?"
"Can't go."
"Ah, why? Donguk hyung is coming with nuna too."
"Nuna?"
"Goeun nuna. Donguk hyung's wife."
"When you said nuna, I thought you meant someone else."
"She said she had fun after coming to our party last time. She said she really wanted to go to a costume party, so she's coming along. You should come too. Sein, you're coming, right?"
"Huh? Ah... yeah."
'Sein is going too?'
It was unexpected.
The Sein I knew before wasn't someone who went to parties like this. She was uncomfortable even with wine and cheese gatherings, and rarely attended unless it was absolutely necessary, but...
"It's because Goeun unni said we should go together...."
"Sein, what are you wearing?"
"Me? I... I just..."
"You can't get in without a costume."
"I heard."
"Hey, if you were planning to wear a judge's robe, change your mind now. I heard fifty people wear those every year."
"I wasn't going to wear a judge's robe."
"Then what were you going to wear? The fact that you're saying no means you have something in mind. Spill it. Hurry up and spill it to this oppa. Quickly."
"Actually... Goeun unni said we should dress up as Psy and Yoo Jae-suk from the Gangnam Style music video.... Donguk oppa decided to dress up as Noh Hong-chol...."
Even though she spoke as if she didn't really want to go and was only going because of her sister-in-law, her expression said otherwise.
There are new things even in the second round. To think Sein liked parties.
"Well, it's better than all three of you dressing as Psy. Anyway, Heon, so you should come too. She's coming, I'm coming, even Donguk hyung, a married man in his thirties, is coming, so all four of us on the 'Moot Court Team' should come. 'All for one, one for all.' Dumas? Ah! I got a great idea! Instead of that, should the four of us go in Three Musketeers costumes?"
"Oh-. Ah, but then what about unni?"
"Goeun nuna can be a princess. 17th-century French style. Marie Antoinette."
"Would there even be a place to get something like that?"
"There is. Don't worry about that. I have all the connections. So, are you coming, Heon?"
Sein's eyes sparkled at the ideas Michael was throwing out. She looked visibly excited at the thought of going to the Halloween party.
"Can't go."
"Ah— why on earth?!"
"Professor Madison's research assistant work has piled up a lot."
It was true. While defending the
Mia said it was fine, but I couldn't keep putting off the work I was being paid to do for fun forever.
"It's just one night? You can't even do that?"
"Yeah. I can't. But anyway, even if you go to the party, it's not like anyone will even see you, so why do you keep telling me to come?"
"The star has to come. There are quite a few girls asking me if you're coming. I heard you're famous at Columbia Law School too. Let's share the spotlight together, okay?"
"That's an exaggeration...."
"Hey, don't tell me... the party at Jindda law school is too boring, so you're lying to us about doing research, but you're actually going to Sujeong's school Halloween party? If you really are... take me with you too."
"Hey, Michael!"
"I'm not. If you want to check, come to the library that day."
"Oh, no. I'll pass."
"But, Heon, what is Sujeong doing that day?"
That day, Sujeong was...
"She said she's busy."
"I see."
"By the way, Michael, what were you originally planning to dress up as?"
"Me? Professor Alastair Mitchell."
***
A few days ago, after an article about us regarding the
[Sujeong: Jeheonje, what are you doing?]
[Sujeong: I saw the news. Ooh— you were a little cool.]
[Sujeong: The kids at our school said you're handsome.]
[Sujeong: But you're not photogenic.]
[Jeheon: Just pick one. Compliment or criticism.]
[Sujeong: lol Ah, what are you doing for Halloween?]
[Jeheon: Working.]
[Sujeong: Really? That's a relief.]
[Jeheon: What do you mean?]
[Sujeong: I'm working too.]
[Sujeong: I got asked to design a dress.]
[Jeheon: Good for you. Congratulations.]
[Sujeong: So I was worried that our Heonje would be alone at home on Halloween, but that's a relief.]
[Jeheon: I'd rather you didn't worry about that.]
[Sujeong: Why? Because you're someone who appears on the news? lol]
[Sujeong: I'm going to be busy from now on. So don't get mad at me if I can't contact you.]
[Sujeong: Make sure you eat well.]
[Sujeong: I'll contact you from time to time.]
[Jeheon: Okay.]
After finishing the text exchange and sitting in my room, the Halloween from ten years ago suddenly came to mind.
Back then, I had gone to a Halloween party hosted by Sujeong's Parsons friends with her.
I wore a Dark Knight Batman suit that Sujeong made for me, and she wore a Joker costume.
Pfft—
There were moments like that too.
When I looked back on this time before the regression, the regret over things I had missed was great, but now that I think about it, there were many happy moments too.
'But, I don't think there were things like dress design requests back then....'
***
October 31st, Halloween Day.
If you look up the origins of Halloween, it is said to be the eve of All Saints' Day, that is, the eve of 'All Hallows' Day'.
There is a theory that it is a festival with roots in the magical significance of the Celts, a theory that it originated from Catholicism, and also a claim that it was influenced by the Day of the Dead festival in South America.
At any rate, Halloween is one of North America's biggest festivals.
It is very commercially useful, so when Halloween comes around, every corner of the city is dyed pumpkin orange and 'living ghosts' roam the streets.
"Now, since it's Halloween today, shall we talk about an interesting lawsuit related to Halloween?"
Professor Richard Cox, who taught commercial law, appeared dressed up like Psy from the "Gangnam Style" music video.
Not all professors dress up for Halloween, but occasionally there are those who are serious about this day.
Professor Cox was one of them. He even came wearing sunglasses.
"It's a product liability lawsuit case called Ferlito v. Johnson & Johnson...."
In 1984, Frank Ferlito and Susan Ferlito, a couple living in Michigan, attended a Halloween party dressed respectively as Bo Peep and a sheep.
Mrs. Susan Ferlito used cotton balls made by Johnson & Johnson to personally make a sheep costume for her husband Frank to wear, and the accident occurred at the Halloween party when husband Frank was lighting a cigarette.
The sheep costume made by Mrs. Ferlito covered the entire body except for the head, hands, and feet, and when the cigarette fire transferred to the cotton balls covering the left sleeve, it spread across his entire body in an instant.
Due to the accident, husband Frank suffered severe burns over one-third of his body, and the Ferlitos claimed that Johnson & Johnson had failed to properly warn about the flammability of its cotton ball product, causing this accident, and filed a lawsuit for damages against Johnson & Johnson.
"What do you think the result was? Anyone want to guess? Psy."
Professor Cox, having explained the outline of the case, looked around at the students and asked.
And he pointed to Frank, who had come wearing the same Psy costume.
"Well, the fact that they sued for something like that is stupid in itself...."
"No no, it's not stupid, Psy."
"Um, I'm Frank."
"It's creative, Harry. A lawyer must be creative."
"Ah— yes... Professor Psy?"
Krk—snicker, snicker.
Laughter burst out from all over the classroom.
"So, what do you think the result of this lawsuit was?"
"It should obviously be dismissed, but since you said it was an interesting lawsuit, maybe they unexpectedly won?"
"No, it was dismissed."
"Huh? Then I don't really understand what's so interesting...."
"What's interesting is that the jurors sided with the plaintiff Ferlitos. The jurors decided that the defendant Johnson & Johnson should pay husband Frank $550,000 and wife Susan $70,000 in damages...."
Thus, the court also rendered a judgment respecting the jurors' decision. However, Johnson & Johnson claimed there was a legal error in the jury's decision and filed a motion to set aside the verdict, and as a result, a new trial court determined that the manufacturer had no duty to give advance warnings regarding accidents that could occur when using cosmetic cotton balls for purposes other than their original intended use, such as costumes, and overturned the existing judgment.
"Frank, earlier you said these people were stupid, right?"
"...Yes."
"Then were the jurors stupid too?"
"..."
"Before questioning the reasonableness of this case's verdict, it's something a lawyer should think about at least once. An excellent lawyer must be creative. You have to be able to see from angles others can't see. Last year, there was such a case in Denver. A man loved popcorn so much that he ate microwave popcorn every day for ten years, and one day when he got examined, he had developed a lung disease. So what do you think this man did? He sued the popcorn company. He claimed his lungs became like that because of the smoke that comes out when you microwave popcorn. Do you know what the result was, Frank?"
"I don't know."
"A verdict was handed down for seven million two hundred thousand dollars in damages."
It was because the popcorn smoke contained harmful substances.
"Everyone think about it carefully. Then have a good Halloween, and next time I plan to hold a small mock trial about the formation requirements of a contract, so come prepared. Happy Halloween. Oppan Gangnam Style. Wa-wa-wa-."
America is truly a funny country.
All kinds of bizarre lawsuits are filed.
A kidnapper suing the victim for breach of contract because they ran away while the kidnapper wasn't looking,
someone suing to share Michael Jordan's profits because they look like Michael Jordan,
someone suing because they drank beer after seeing an advertisement implying you'd become popular, but didn't.
As Professor Cox said, it is truly a country of "creative" legal professionals.
"Hey, hey, did you hear that? A male student at Dunham Law School sued his girlfriend because she wouldn't have sex with him."
Contract of Psychos, Creative Defense (2)
The school, which had been abuzz with talk of parties and costumes, returned to normal as if nothing had happened as soon as November came.
"How was the party?"
"It was killer."
"You passed out in the bathroom again?"
"Yeah. I actually don't remember."
Still, it seemed like it had been quite fun.
Stories about what happened at the party were blooming here and there on campus.
"So? How was the reaction to your Professor Alastair Mitchell costume?"
"It was killer."
"Where did you get that red beard?"
"You saw it? Ah, you saw the photo I posted on Twitter. I asked a part-timer who works with movie props to get it for me."
"A part-timer who works with movie props? Where on earth do you meet people like that?"
"At a New York Film School party."
"Wow— so now you're going all the way there to party."
"I told you. I'm going to get to know future clients."
"A movie props part-timer is a future client?"
"Do you know what Mr. Quentin Tarantino did before he became a great film director?"
"I don't know. Ah, did he say he worked at a video rental store?"
"Before that."
"Before that? How would I know that. Do you know?"
"He was an usher at a porn theater."
"Ah, really?"
"You never know the future. The kid who lent me the red beard might later become a director on the level of Quentin Tarantino."
"You said you're going to be a criminal defense lawyer."
"He might later become a serial killer."
"You're still drunk."
"Do you have Tylenol? Ah— my head still hurts."
"I don't."
"I should go buy some. Well then, see you later, Heon."
"Sure. Drink a little less."
"Ah, right, did you hear about that?"
"What."
"The story about some guy at Dunham Law School who sued his girlfriend because she wouldn't have sex with him?"
"I don't know."
"It's going around on Twitter. Check it out, heh, it's funny. Well then, I'm heading out."