28: I just ask you, do you want to govern according to the law?

The Presiding Judge announced the start of the trial, beginning with the Court investigation phase.

Zhou Yun's request was simple: to confirm that the opposing party's forced demolition was illegal.

The reason was also simple: the principle of "compensation before demolition" was not followed, leading to a serious violation of procedures!

Next to Chai Yaoyang, lawyer Wang Zhongda began his defense.

Wang Zhongda was formerly a Judge at Dashan County Court; after resigning, he opened his own law firm, which does very well locally.

What kind of lawyers are the most formidable? It's these lawyers who resigned from being Judges or prosecutors.

It's not just their professional level; that's only one aspect. The other aspect is their intricate connections with the local Court and prosecutorial system.

They are very familiar with the internal unwritten rules of the Court and the disposition of each Judge, so their income is often particularly high.

In fact, Wang Zhongda did not take Zhou Yun seriously.

Although the opponent was a lawyer from Jinghai, in the eyes of a lawyer who had served as a Judge like him, it was nothing.

Looking at the young lawyer opposite, Wang Zhongda began his defense.

"Firstly, there was no situation of demolition before compensation on our part; the money had already been deposited into the corresponding special account at that time."

"Secondly, even if there was demolition before compensation, the compensation was still made according to the assessment of a third-party agency, and it was even higher than the assessment. Therefore, strictly speaking, this is merely a procedural flaw."

"The interests of the opposing party have not been harmed as a result, and the forced demolition should not be deemed illegal!"

Listening to Wang Zhongda's defense, Zhou Yun almost burst out laughing.

He had to admit, this Lawyer Wang was truly a master of sophistry; his mouth was full of nonsense.

Don't be surprised; if you handle many lawsuits, you'll find that lawyers talk nonsense in Court far too often.

Amidst such nonsense, both sides began presenting and cross-examining evidence.

Zhou Yun's side primarily had two key pieces of evidence.

"Evidence 1: The demolition dispute ruling made by the Demolition Office... This ruling does not state that the corresponding funds have been transferred to a special account."

"Evidence 2: My client Sun Jianshe's Bank statement, which shows that the Demolition Office only transferred the corresponding demolition funds to my client two months after the forced demolition."

"Both pieces of evidence prove that the forced demolition carried out by the Demolition Office involved serious procedural violations..."

Wang Zhongda immediately responded, "We acknowledge the legality and authenticity of Evidence 1, but we do not acknowledge its relevance."

"Although this ruling does not state that the corresponding funds have been transferred to a special account, they were actually transferred; it was merely an oversight in work, which is why it was not listed in the ruling."

"We acknowledge the legality and authenticity of Evidence 2, but we do not acknowledge its relevance."

"This evidence only proves that we transferred the funds to the other party two months after the demolition was completed, but it does not prove that we did not implement the compensation before demolition procedure initially."

These words sounded a bit convoluted, but upon careful consideration, one would understand: our transferring the money to you later does not prove that we did not transfer the money into a special account earlier.

Zhou Yun said nothing in response, thinking, 'Keep talking nonsense; what is said in Court needs to be supported by evidence!'

Without evidence, everything is just nonsense.

Wang Zhongda then began presenting evidence, which made Zhou Yun almost want to laugh.

The opposing party did indeed produce many procedural proofs, but the most crucial one—proof that they had transferred the money into that special account at the time—was not produced.

What does this indicate? It indicates that the opposing party never transferred it at all!

As expected, the opposing party quickly changed tack, beginning to present the third-party company's valuation report and evidence of payment to Sun Jianshe.

"Evidence 4 and Evidence 5 can prove that our actions did not harm Sun Jianshe's interests."

Zhou Yun now understood the opposing party's focus. This lawyer named Wang Zhongda simply wanted to express one thing: although the procedure might have been illegal, it did not harm the opposing party's interests; instead, it provided more compensation.

What does this indicate? It indicates that this administrative act should not be deemed illegal!

With the presentation and cross-examination of evidence concluded, the Court debate began.

Zhou Yun first stated that the opposing party's procedure was illegal.

Then Wang Zhongda immediately began to focus on the procedural flaw.

"What is the cause of demolition disputes? It's compensation disputes; the parties feel the compensation is too little."

"Therefore, after forced demolition, many displaced households file lawsuits to confirm the forced demolition as illegal, in order to obtain more compensation."

"However, our evidence can prove that the opposing party has already obtained sufficient compensation in this demolition act, and this compensation is twenty percent more than the assessment given by the appraisal agency!"

"Therefore, it is meaningless to dwell on whether the forced demolition was illegal. Even if there were certain procedural flaws in our demolition act before, they were merely flaws, and this cannot be used to deem the act illegal."

After Wang Zhongda finished speaking, Chai Yaoyang's expression improved. As expected of the lawyer recommended by Judge Zhang, he truly had a way.

We directly admitted it, but we stated our position: it was a procedural issue, and sufficient compensation had already been provided afterwards, so there was no need to confirm it as illegal at all.

As he thought, Chai Yaoyang looked at Zhou Yun opposite him. He really wanted to know how Zhou Yun would respond to this.

Zhou Yun narrowed his eyes. This Wang Zhongda indeed had a certain level of skill.

However, did he think he could defeat him so easily?

When the Presiding Judge asked if he had anything else to say, Zhou Yun spoke, "Presiding Judge, I believe the defendant's agent is equivocating!"

"We need to be clear about one thing: if compensation is given after a house has been forcibly demolished, then this compensation is no longer compensation, but rather restitution!"

As his words fell, Sun Chenhui, who had been sitting beside Zhou Yun, looking very worried, was stunned, and Chai Yaoyang and Lao Mingcheng reacted the same way.

All three widened their eyes. This wasn't compensation anymore?

Zhou Yun continued, "What is compensation? It is economic compensation made by the government or developers to the displaced persons according to legal procedures and standards in a lawful demolition, in order to protect the legitimate rights and interests of the displaced persons."

"And restitution is compensation of an infringing nature given to displaced persons due to an illegal demolition act!"

Why must compensation precede demolition? The core lies in safeguarding the rights of the displaced.

Someone's perfectly fine house, and you just come and demolish it, then say, 'I'll compensate you'?

What do you call that? You call that hooliganism!

If you can't understand, take an example: I don't like you, so I just go up and slap you twice, then say, 'I'll compensate you, isn't that enough!'

Can that work? Absolutely not! You're committing provocation and must spend a few days in detention; you must pay for your actions!

The same applies to a house. You directly demolish the house and then talk money with me, without paying any other price. What a joke.

You are an administrative organ; does that mean it's not hooliganism?

Therefore, the Supreme Peoples Court specifically issued a case: if it is an illegal forced demolition, then an additional twenty to thirty percent must be added on top of the assessment!

This is why Zhou Yun was both angry and helpless.

They should have given that much for a forced demolition anyway, but the other party treated it as a condition, a condition for Sun Weitao to plead guilty and accept punishment!

Zhou Yun continued, "The opposing agent is substituting the concept of tort compensation for compensation, which is a serious equivocation. Adding twenty percent on top of the assessment is what they should do!"

"And now, the opposing agent uses this as an excuse to claim that my client's rights have not been violated, which is utterly ridiculous!"

"Compensation before demolition is a matter of principle; it is the boundary between lawful demolition and illegal forced demolition, not merely a simple procedural flaw as the other party claims!"

"On the contrary, the opposing party's view that this is a procedural flaw is clearly a serious trampling of laws and regulations!"

"Moreover, even if we concede ten thousand steps, if procedural violations are considered insignificant, then what do we need procedural law for? What do we need law for? Do we still need to administer according to law?"

Zhou Yun's words were forceful, leaving Wang Zhongda stunned.

He now had only one thought: 'Brother, why are you so agitated? We're just agents.'

While Wang Zhongda was bewildered, Chai Yaoyang beside him could no longer hold back and shouted directly, "What are you saying? What do you mean, huh, what do you mean!"

"You explain yourself clearly, or this matter isn't over with you!"