Comments on: Korean Dry Cleaners Win in $54 million Pants Suit

By: It Wasn’t Just Korean-Americans at ROK Drop

It Wasn’t Just Korean-Americans at ROK Drop — Thu, 28 Jun 2007 10:22:30 +0000

[...] sure by now everyone has heard that the Korean-American dry cleaner won his case against his dissatisfied customer suing him for $54 million dollars over a pair of pants. I am [...]

By: Paul H.

Paul H. — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 18:57:38 +0000

#5 someguy: “What’s going to come of the money people contributed to their ‘defense fund’?”

I’m going to guess that it’s been already drawn down and regularly paid out to the defense lawyers, any time an appreciable amount accumulates.

When I took a look at the link a while back, it (the web site) appeared to be run by somebody at (or contracted by) the Chungs’ legal firm.

Haven’t looked again to reverify, but if I remember correctly there were no details posted as to how many donations, average size of donations, amount accumulated to date, what it had gone for, etc.

I don’t expect the defense lawyers would have taken this case on “contingency”, since legal fees aren’t normally reimbursed in the US legal system.

I gathered vaguely that the Chungs already were out tens of thousands of dollars before the big late-breaking nationwide/worldwide publicity hit. I think the site listed a paypal account but that was all.

I guess you wouldn’t expect the defense to provide the plaintiff intelligence on their resources, but once the appeal process is (presumably) finally exhausted unsuccessfully, IMO they ought to post the details on accumulated donations.

I wouldn’t have a problem with the Chungs using any excess to refund themselves for their own previous legal costs (prior to the beginning of any donations), but they ought to post the details on this.

And if there ends up being any excess above and beyond the total legal costs (ie in the unlikely event they ever recover any legal fees from the plaintiff), such excess ought to go back to the donors on a pro-rate basis.

I hope the Chungs won’t “award” themselves any possible, eventual large excess of reimbursed and/or donated funds, as “compensation” for their own “pain and suffering”. The Chungs ought to make an ostentacious and public display on their web site of accounting for, and refunding to, their donors, as a further rebuke to this plaintiff.

By: snow

snow — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 15:42:53 +0000

Isn’t opening a business ‘giving back to the community’ in that a business provides a needed service for a community? Giving back to the community implies that a business only takes, but people freely give their cash for something they value offered by a company. A fair trade between willing participants. Why then should a company feel obligated to ‘give back to the community’? They shouldn’t, though it’s certainly nice and good PR to do so.

By: SomeguyinKorea

SomeguyinKorea — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 07:06:25 +0000

You know, expecting a mom and pop business to ‘give back to the community’ is a concept that’s so foreign to me…and I’m supposedly a communist since I’m from Canada (you know, our ‘evil’ universal health care, etc.).

By: cm

cm — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 16:57:01 +0000

I belive Pearson did achieve his goal. I don’t think he expected to win in court. But I think he did expect to ruin the dry cleaners (they, having to attain expensive legal counsel to defend their case).
Chung’s business has also suffered due to the bad publicity, with the area’s African American customers in solidarity with their ‘consumers’ rights advocate/champion. “Way da go, to put those rude blood sucking ill mannered Korean merchants out of business. That’ll teach em to exploit our black neighborhoods while giving nothing back to the communities.”

By: SomeguyinKorea

SomeguyinKorea — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 12:21:29 +0000

Alex,

As long as they don’t make a donation to the Unification Church in my name…

By: Alex

Alex — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 09:10:24 +0000

It’s good to know that reason and good sense triumphed this time around.

#5 I heard the Chungs were going to use the defense fund money to buy galbi for everybody that rooted for them.

By: dogbertt

dogbertt — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 06:37:21 +0000

“Court costs” refers to the literal fees you pay to file documents with the court, usually not amounting to more than several hundred dollars.

By: seoulmilk

seoulmilk — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 06:26:09 +0000

yeah, OJ sure got robbed of justice in AmeriKKKa.

By: peninsular aborigine

peninsular aborigine — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 04:11:07 +0000

#6, True. That’s why he needs to keep his own court.