Chapter 11 : Team

Lee Han-woong, one of the founders of Lee & Yeon, has two children.

Neither of them became lawyers.

Both failed the bar exam and then entered law school, but they continued to fail the bar exam, which has a limited number of attempts.

In short, Lee Han-woong had no child with the “qualification” to inherit the firm.

And in the previous life, Go Jong-tak became the managing partner thanks to Lee Han-woong, who stepped down due to health reasons.

‘I have to create that qualification in law school.’

Currently, South Korea has not yet introduced law schools.

More importantly, I shouldn’t walk into a law school of my own accord.

‘Because I must become a lawyer through Lee & Yeon’s ‘Talent Support Program’.’

The top five law firms started talent support programs after the introduction of law schools, at the government’s recommendation.

I need to be chosen for this.

Only then can I return to Lee & Yeon.

This is because those selected for that program are guaranteed employment if they pass the bar exam.

The selection process is equally strict.

It was only natural, as expensive tuition would be wasted if someone who applied diligently failed the exam.

That’s why the program remained a mere show.

This is why the support program, which selected only a very small number of people, was abolished just three years after its implementation.

What would I, a provincial university student, need to receive that?

‘I have no choice but to show it through my ability.’

Besides my laptop, I have 22 years of time spent at Lee & Yeon.

That means no one knows the workings of our law firm better than I do.

There’s also plenty of time.

There are still five years until law schools are established, and considering the support program, that will increase a bit more.

During that time, in addition to proving my abilities, I need to lay the groundwork behind the scenes.

The beginning of that will be Yeon Ji-gun, the other founding partner of Lee & Yeon.

‘Managing Partner Yeon Ji-gun doesn’t reveal much on the surface.’

But I have data that I painstakingly collected to make Go Jong-tak the managing partner.

And in there is the reason why Go Jong-tak had no choice but to abandon Yeon Ji-gun’s line.

[Do not accumulate fame and wealth through dishonest means.]

This was absolutely impossible for Go Jong-tak.

Because of this management philosophy, even with the same shares as Lee Han-woong, he had to be pushed out of the managing partner position five years from now.

Initially, the lawyers who fit his philosophy were not the majority, and they were bound to fall behind in terms of profit as well.

Ultimately, he lost the numbers game, that is, the share battle.

‘But this time, we will be the majority.’

Because I will fill it with those kinds of people.

By creating a team that will become the core of the future Lee & Yeon.

Currently, the total number of investment units, which correspond to shares in a general company, is 550,000.

Founders Yeon Ji-gun and Lee Han-woong each hold 130,000 units.

Together, they have 260,000, nearly half.

Next, three senior lawyers, along with seniors, team leaders, and general member lawyers, own 2,000 to 3,000 units according to their rank.

The meeting they hold is the Partner Meeting.

The managing partner is elected here.

This is why there was never a change in the managing partner position until five years later, when Lee Han-woong’s sole leadership system was solidified and he handed the position over to Go Jong-tak.

‘To protect Managing Partner Yeon Ji-gun’s position, I need to quickly grow the team within five years.’

I watched Attorney Ahn’s and Attorney Yoon’s reactions to my proposal, “Let’s create one more task,” and organized my thoughts.

“What kind of task are you talking about? Yoo Hee, you’re busy enough as it is. Whatever it is, can you handle it?”

“Exactly. We’re not just saying this because you’re our secretary, but you’re busier than most associates.”

It’s nice that you acknowledge that.

Even with a secretary’s bold proposal to do a task together, instead of scolding me, they worry first.

I thought I had only lost in my previous life.

Perhaps I had gained people.

The reason I could become the general director in my previous life was 80% due to Go Jong-tak becoming the managing partner.

But the help of Yoon Yi-hoon, the litigation senior who was part of Yeon Ji-gun’s line but also on the opposite side, was significant in empowering me.

Even though I only worked with him as a secretary for just three years.

Attorney Yoon is someone whose loyalty is absolutely second to none compared to Attorney Ahn Gyeong-hun.

“Actually, it’s nothing grand. I just meant that we should secure time to take on about two or three more cases since we don’t know when we’ll get another case like this.”

“You’re right. Thanks to Yoo Hee, our time has been dramatically shortened, but cases like food sanitation law violations require a considerable amount of time just for research.”

“Yes, that’s right, Attorney Ahn. If someone like CEO Ahn Eum, who needed help, requested a case, we currently lack the capacity to take on more.”

“Are we really at that point?”

Attorney Yoon, who heard our conversation, had a slightly doubtful expression.

He had more capacity than the two of us because I had taken on some of the burden.

“Yes. Right now, if I get any more overloaded, it’s really…”

“Ah, I understand. This is partly because of me, so I’m reflecting.”

“Hmm hmm.”

When I glared slightly, Attorney Yoon Yi-hoon laughed it off.

Along with a gesture to have dinner together next time.

“We are a team now.”

A team.

That phrase resonated with me.

That was precisely the mindset I wanted from them.

Of course, Attorney Yoon probably meant it as a “fighting!” rather than a “we’re a team” at that moment.

“Yes, that’s right. We are a team.”

“Attorney Yoon is saying something I really like for the first time in a while.”

Attorney Ahn Gyeong-hun nodded with a satisfied expression.

Actually, as a secretary, if I handle tasks that I don’t necessarily have to, I’ll have more capacity.

To do that, resolving Attorney Hyun Ah-jin is the priority.

For now, I just tested whether these two had the potential to join the team I would create.

‘At least they’ll listen to me.’

I’m not crazy enough to suggest forming a team right now.

Because even Attorney Ahn and Attorney Yoon wouldn’t join a team created by a secretary.

At a law firm, which is a lawyer’s company, for an employee to form a team – is that even plausible?

For now, securing these two is my primary goal.

Attorney Yoon, who has both the potential and connections to become a future litigation senior, and Attorney Ahn, whose skills are second to none.

These two will be the cornerstone of my team.

And they will be a strong pillar for Yeon Ji-gun.

So that he can remain the managing partner even five years from now.

Because Managing Partner Yeon Ji-gun is the person who will support me so that I can successfully complete law school through the ‘Talent Support Program’ and return.

The partners’ meeting of the members who own shares in the law firm is approaching.

As the first half of the year hasn’t even passed, the report will mainly focus on the first-quarter performance rather than management direction.

In short, a performance evaluation.

Of course, performance is not transparently disclosed.

It’s no different from having a report card laid bare.

However, it’s a bit different when performance is at rock bottom.

After the members’ meeting, you get called in by the senior managing lawyer, who is like the CFO (Chief Financial Officer) of a general company’s finance department.

The very person Attorney Ahn Gyeong-hun faced every quarter, to the point where he now feels familiar with them.

‘Fortunately, there were new cases right after I returned.’

However, more important than the number of new cases is the size of the retainer.

If we only take on many cases like the Jean Valjean grandmother incident, performance wouldn’t go up; it would actually go down.

I opened the internal work program and reviewed the contracts of cases taken on within the last three months.

“Hmm, with this much, that person probably won’t be looking for us this time.”

It’s about time to settle the meetings with the senior managing lawyer.

I individually punched the retainer amount written on each contract into a calculator.

We earned a total of 12 million won.

The Ahn Eum case brought in 18 million won, so combined, it’s about 30 million won.

Adding the success fees received from winning the existing cases one after another, the first-quarter performance is around 40 million won level.

This much over three months means we’ll avoid hitting rock bottom this time.

Conversely, if it weren’t for Ahn Eum, it would mean I would have met that person again this time, just like in my previous life.

If we kept repeating rock bottom, like Attorney Ahn in the previous life, we’d be packing our bags in about a year from now.

That’s how much the Ahn Eum case is like rain in a drought for us.

‘Hmm, anyway, I guess I should thank Attorney Seo Il-hwa.’

If the retainer was 20 million and we got 18 million, it means he gave us almost all of it.

‘But we’re doing all the work, aren’t we?’

To be precise, my proportion is significant.

Because I’m drafting everything, from the opinion on the Food Sanitation Act violation to the questions for the expert witness, and even the preliminary drafts of factual statements from industry insiders.

After that, Attorney Ahn and Attorney Yoon review my drafts and go through the process of adding or modifying them.

Since I prepare thoroughly based on the information on my laptop, there aren’t many major changes.

That also means that the two lawyers acknowledged the core legal principles I was presenting.

‘Hmm, but the success fee received if the verdict comes out well isn’t given in the same proportion as the retainer.’

If he gave away all the success fees, wouldn’t Attorney Seo Il-hwa be left with nothing?

Moreover, the success fee is 3% of the economic benefit.

So, isn’t that a small amount?

‘The total fine is 13 billion won, right?’

If we simply calculate assuming we win all of it, it’s 390 million won, and even if we win only half, it’s almost 200 million won.

This means that if the trial results are good, we won’t have to worry about performance for a while.

Attorney Seo Il-hwa has made a kind of bet on this case.

Because he received a small retainer compared to the scale of the trial and went all-in on the success fee.

Of course, even so, 3% of the profit is not a lot.

It varies depending on the case’s scale and severity, but it’s at least 5%, often jumping to double digits.

Then why 3%?

Assuming a complete acquittal, the maximum amount that company could afford would have been around that much.

Attorney Seo Il-hwa considered the opposing party while also securing his own profit.

This was the part where I instantly understood why Attorney Seo was Attorney Ahn’s long-time friend.

‘This is why Attorney Seo Il-hwa is the next target for our team.’