Stories the JRF Told Me: 2017 Summer Intern Reflections

Why come to the JRF? Many people have asked me this. Law is a long and winding road, and I need to ensure that this is a profession to which I can dedicate my passion for a lifetime; therefore, I must do everything I can to understand it.

Let me talk about a case I handled at the JRF. When I first encountered this case, I was greeted by a thick stack of dossiers. The petitioner was Hsiao-hsing (a pseudonym), who married and moved to Taiwan and worked as a manicurist. Hsiao-hsing ran her own small shop with a thriving business, but she was repeatedly pressured by her landlord. She decided to terminate her lease with the landlord when it expired. However, the landlord deliberately evaded returning the security deposit, so Hsiao-hsing in turn refused to return the remote control for the shop's rolling shutter door. Consequently, the other party filed a lawsuit against her for the return of the property. Before the lawsuit concluded, a dispute broke out between the two parties once again, and the other party ultimately filed a criminal complaint against Hsiao-hsing for assault. The judgment became final, with the court finding that on the night of the incident, Hsiao-hsing had attacked the landlord's face with her bare hands and struck his lower body with a high-heeled shoe.

After studying the case for two weeks, I met Hsiao-hsing, the protagonist of this story. She wore light makeup and a gentle smile as she softly greeted us. I learned from the trial transcripts that she stated in court she did not hit anyone; rather, the landlord had choked her from behind, and she was only able to escape when a passerby stepped in to subdue the landlord. However, without immediate police reporting, the inability to find that passerby to testify, and the absence of a medical diagnosis certificate, the court clearly did not believe her version of events.

"Why do they all bully me? This is not fair," Hsiao-hsing said.

This case is not yet over, and exoneration is no easy task. Aside from God and the parties involved, I can only rely on tracing timelines and piecing together evidence to restore the truth. At the JRF, cases big and small just like this are constantly being discussed and studied every day. The filing cabinets are filled with dossiers of past cases from all corners, and every single folder contains a Hsiao-hsing—a story told in the name of justice.

An intern once said that this is a place that makes their soul whole. For me, this is a place that allows me to understand the soul. The petitioners who come here seeking help may be unreasonable or reasonable, but behind each of them lies a heavy story that deserves to be told to society. Lawyers, whom people often dismiss as boring, mundane, and conscience-less profiteers, utilize the hours after regular office workers have gone home to rest, gathering here tirelessly to discuss difficult and even unindicted cases, hoping merely to restore fairness to the parties involved. They are all composed yet passionate, confident yet humble. People always ask me: "If you become a lawyer in the future, can you bring yourself to defend a defendant against your conscience?" I always reply: "A lawyer's job is to ensure that those who do not understand the law are not disadvantaged in court." Here, I have become even more certain of this belief. Meanwhile, the specialists here handle various sorrowful and heavy cases every day yet consistently display professionalism and passion. It is they who have solidified the conviction here and comforted every wounded soul seeking help.

Every day I witness the bravest people in the world and listen to uniquely textured stories of protagonists fighting for their lives and the system. There is also a group of unsung heroes fighting for the lives of others and for justice. If you too are someone who loves a life with stories and yearns for such a fulfilling existence, come join us at the JRF and be part of our volunteer life!