Chapter 167: The Case Ascending into Ideology
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After a round of questioning, Hobert concluded, "Did everyone hear that? There are absolutely no reminders about workplace safety in Arnold's factory. Even just a few phrases painted on the workshop walls with paint would suffice."
"As for what the opposing lawyer said, Arnold wasn't involved in management. However, Arnold is the legal owner of this factory, and he bears irremovable responsibility for everything that happens in the factory!"
After summarizing his statement, Hobert also called upon the witnesses he had found. After swearing to their respective deities, five witnesses successively proved that there were no reminders about workplace safety in Arnold's factory.
Hugo began questioning the witnesses, asking only one question: "Do you know how to write the phrase 'workplace safety'? If so, please write it down."
Only one worker wrote the crooked phrase "workplace safety," while the other four wrote phrases with incorrect grammar and spelling.
"That's already pretty good because they're workers who at least know some letters and phrases," Hugo shrugged. "See, how many people can understand such reminders like 'workplace safety'? What practical use do such slogans even have?"
This summary statement provoked laughter from Gustav and others, sounding like mockery or ridicule.
"I do, sir," one witness suddenly said. "Although I can't write it, I would recognize it if I saw it."
Hugo was taken aback.
The other three witnesses chimed in, "I know too!"
"I recognize the phrase if I see it."
Hugo immediately changed his line of questioning, asking, "Did anyone receive money or goods from the plaintiff's lawyer in return for testifying?"
The witnesses replied, "Yes, we did receive compensation for lost wages."
The more questions Hugo asked, the more he realized that the witnesses' answers were flawless. He even began to suspect that Hobert had trained these people.
Therefore, he set aside all his disdain and regarded Hobert as the most formidable opponent he had encountered to date.
This is not to say that Hugo the lawyer's defense direction was flawed or slow.
Rather, since becoming a lawyer, he had never handled a worker's case. He simply did not understand workers, or workers were just a concept to him.
In Hugo's concept, workers were crude, ignorant, unreasonable, and entirely a group of curly haired baboons.
But he underestimated a person's determination to survive. Even if a person was ignorant, they would show a shrewd side when it came to survival.
As described by Hobert yesterday afternoon, these five witnesses already understood that the outcome of this lawsuit would affect their future living environment. Therefore, today they were fully prepared.
For Hugo, this was just a very lucrative lawsuit. Even the defense materials and finding witnesses were handled by his assistants, as usual.
However, this lawsuit would be very difficult to win if conducted according to usual practices.
In the first round of witness testimony, the plaintiff side had a slight advantage.
During the second round of defense, Hugo made efforts to steer the defense in a direction where he excelled: "The Loen Kingdom is most renowned for its freedom and democracy.
[T/N: it's a monarchy though?]
"Although these two terms and their meanings were invented by the Intis Republic, they have been better practiced here. I believe it is Arnold's freedom to hire whomever he wishes to work for him, and it is Bob's freedom to decide whether to work in Arnold's factory.
"All of this is achieved on the premise of voluntary agreement. Now that Bob is injured, blaming Arnold entirely for all responsibilities is clearly an unreasonable demand!"
Hobert countered in defense, "Yes, 'freedom' is a good word, but it must be restrained.
"The defendant's lawyer's idea of freedom includes the freedom to buy and sell locals as cattle in the Southern Continent, and the freedom to exploit locals without any bottom line in the Rorsted Archipelago. Often, such freedoms represent the darkest side of human nature.
"The law is the bottom line of freedom, and Arnold's behavior has been without such restraint. My client had already entered into an employment relationship when he entered Mr. Arnold's factory.
"In this state, Mr. Arnold is responsible for the injuries sustained by my client."
The judge did not prevent them from engaging in ideological debate because this lawsuit already had a certain social significance.
After looking at the judge's expression, Hugo continued, "As a citizen of Loen, I have sufficient rights.
"My client only needs to be responsible for fixed responsibilities. However, if all responsibilities in the factory are to be borne by my client, how can we demonstrate democracy in the Kingdom of Loen?
"Bob has his rights and responsibilities, but this does not include the right to excessively claim compensation from the employer. If this claim is successful, Bob's interests are protected, but what about my client's interests?
"As a citizen of a democratic country, my client should not ignore his rights. Otherwise, the economic rules of Backlund will be seriously undermined!"
Hobert defended, "The defendant's lawyer's idea of democracy is merely democratic in terms of money. Ladies and gentlemen, in the Lower House, with so many members of parliament, how many represent workers? How many represent farmers?
"Is democracy that cannot represent all classes really democracy?"
At this point, Bob's coworkers cheered, but Hobert noticed that the reactions of others were quite normal.
Hobert saw the smile on Hugo the lawyer's face and suddenly realized that this was deliberately provoked by Hugo to elevate the conflict between Bob and Arnold to a class struggle.
Indeed, he's a great lawyer! Hobert sighed in his heart, realizing so quickly where the crux of the matter lay.
He immediately changed his strategy, "The defendant belongs to those who not only fail to understand freedom but also don't understand what true democracy is. Such people are quite rare in Backlund, and he has always been using personal grievances to provoke conflicts throughout Backlund.
"Ladies and gentlemen, are you willing to pay for the consequences of Arnold's inaction?"
Hugo immediately stopped smiling. He hadn't expected a quiet lawyer like Hobert to react so quickly.
Hobert's speech continued, "May I ask, are you all aware that an ordinary workplace injury compensation case has garnered such widespread attention throughout Backlund?
"Why has it received such broad attention? It's because the defendant hopes to escalate the situation and thereby evade compensation.
"Otherwise, why would everyone care about an ordinary workplace injury compensation case?"
Hearing Hobert's words, those sitting in the gallery nodded in agreement, especially the noble children who were hearing about a workplace injury compensation case for the first time.
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