What's wrong with this lawyer?!

They say it's important to listen to the tone of voice, but in fact, court judgments are often about parsing and interpreting text closely.

Although it's true that due to the shortage of judges, many judicial assistants and even clerks are writing judgments, any judgment issued must be reviewed.

And it surely reflects the court's will regarding the case, so the court's perspective on the matter is easily discernible within the judgment.

In Old Tang's view, the idea to muddy the waters in this case couldn't be clearer. On one hand, the court probably thinks that detaining someone for ten days over such a trivial matter was obviously wrong, which is why the judgment was revoked.

On the other hand, even though you have ample reasons, the impact of these kinds of administrative cases must be considered, hence letting the public security organs reissue the punishment.

As long as both sides stop causing trouble, the high court would most likely maintain the original verdict, and that would be the perfect judgment.

Many people who have never been involved in a lawsuit think that courts are there to uphold fairness, to seek justice on their behalf, and to clarify matters and whatnot.

This is where your understanding falls short, why source-tracing management is important, and why we have instigated measures to end disputes without litigation. The point is to prevent you all from stirring up trouble, for the sake of social stability.

However, Zhou Zhixing's neighbors in the audience didn't know that. When they heard the judge say the administrative punishment was revoked, they thought the case had already been won!

"Can this really be won? I originally thought it was impossible to win a case against the officials."

"You didn't see who their lawyer is. That's the famous online lawyer Tang Fangjing. But what does overturning the punishment mean?"

Everyone shook their heads in confusion. No one is a fool; the punishment was overturned, but the person was already detained for ten days, so what good would an overturn do now?

The members of the collegial panel left, and some neighbors came over to inquire.

Old Tang said, "Of course there is significance, but let's not rush things now. We must wait for the second-instance judgment to come out."

On the other side, Yu Niandong and his colleague went straight back to their office and reported the situation to their superiors.

Their boss didn't show any particular reaction, but it was clear that he too was dissatisfied with the judgment. Casual allegations of bribery against the traffic police department—if not met with some form of punishment, how will it be dealt with in the future?

But once he knew the appeal had been filed, he nodded. The case was essentially closed at that point.

Compared to Yu Niandong and his colleague, their boss stood in a higher position and understood the significance of the intermediate court's judgment. On one hand, the revocation of the punishment consoled Zhou Zhixing to some extent, and on the other, it left some leeway for the public security organs.

"Alright, since the appeal has been filed, let's get ready for that. Let's leave it at this for now."

After saying this, the boss stopped concerning himself with the matter because normally, that would be the end of it.

Little Liu and Yu Niandong returned to their office, sharing a similar view that the court's judgment indicates a certain attitude.

Since both sides appealed, the hearing would not take place in Lincheng but at the Handong Provincial High Court. However, a court session would most likely not be held, as now neither side has new evidence.

Lawyer Tang and his party made their way back to the hotel, and shortly after, Zhou Zhixing couldn't help but ask, "Lawyer Tang, you didn't say in court what we are supposed to do next. What's our plan?"

He too was excited when he heard the judgment, thinking that the revocation of the administrative punishment meant he wouldn't have to carry the stigma of having "been in."

Although administrative detention is completely different from actual imprisonment, people don't care about the distinction, especially those at his workplace and the property management who mocked him.

They said he was overreaching, that he had been "beaten while he's down." If this legal procedure by the court was simply a formality, then it wouldn't really help him much.

Upon hearing the question, Old Tang's face took on a serious expression: "Next, we need to do two things. First, you must make a formal complaint to the Lincheng City Bureau's Disciplinary Committee with your real name. With the current evidence, there is enough to lodge a complaint."

"The real purpose of this formal complaint is to prove one thing: You had no intention of provoking trouble. All your actions were based on citizen oversight after discovering evidence!"

The constitution explicitly guarantees this right—no one can deny a citizen's right to supervision!

"Moreover, if the other side responds quickly, we might even have new evidence before the second-instance trial…"

To put it plainly, this matter targets the entire district traffic police brigade, and the relevant investigations certainly cannot be conducted by themselves. It's common knowledge that it's unacceptable for one to investigate oneself and conclude that no problems exist.

The Eighteenth Central Committee's third plenum once stated, "Supervision and investigation of corruption cases are primarily led by the higher-level Disciplinary Committee," which must be implemented everywhere. Hence, making a formal complaint to the higher-level Disciplinary Committee is entirely appropriate.

In fact, given the circumstances, the Changshan side should take the initiative to report to the higher-level Disciplinary Committee…

"But... Lawyer Tang, hasn't the punishment been revoked already? Is this step really necessary?" Zhou Zhixing hesitated slightly upon hearing this.

Being part of the system himself, he had reservations about making official complaints to a disciplinary department.

"Of course, it's necessary. I will reiterate to you again, the court revoked the punishment but also demanded a reissue. If we just accept it, then indeed there's no need because the matter would be finished."

"I can assure you that the Changshan sub-branch will not impose any further punishment on you."

Although Old Tang had never worked within the system, he understood the situation: as long as you remain calm, that reissue of punishment could be ignored.