Chapter 6 – You Should Receive It First Before Marriage

The next afternoon.

Geum Nae-yeong accessed a job search site to hire an office staff. He entered his desired conditions one by one and posted the job opening.

Application Conditions

• Gender: No restriction

• Academic Background: No restriction

• Age: No restriction

• Preferred Condition: Human-friendly person

Preferences

• Law majors

• Those with marketing experience

• Counseling Psychology major or Emergency Medical Technician

Salary: To be decided after consultation

Not long after he posted the article, the email notification rang.

A resume has arrived.

A resume has arrived.

A resume has arrived.

Click.

Kim Jeong-woo: TOEIC 990, JPT Level 2, graduated from K University, desired salary 5.0 million won

Kim Ha-na: Worked at Kim & Jeong Law Firm for 3 years, available to work afternoons only

Park In-seong: Class 2 Ordinary Driver’s License, internship at Soyul Law Firm.

Geum Nae-yeong shook his head after checking the emails. Since he had already hired a veteran office manager, this time he wanted to hire an applicant who was outgoing, had good interpersonal relationships, and had a sense for marketing.

Geum Nae-yeong knew well. His weakness was something that could not be covered by a smile or a notebook.

It was the problem of interpersonal relationships, the lack of empathy.

Lawyers who mainly deal with family cases say in unison. The most difficult part in family cases is the process of accepting and empathizing with the client’s story. Husband’s indifference, wife’s affair, conflict with the mother-in-law, and so on.

The process of genuinely empathizing with the client’s story while making them trust the lawyer’s expertise to entrust the lawsuit.

To Geum Nae-yeong, this process felt fatally difficult, as if a marathon runner were born with uneven feet.

‘Let’s receive a few more resumes for now.’

While closing his laptop, he heard a knock on the office door.

“Attorney, the client has arrived.”

Office Manager Ju Yong-hae poked his head in.

“Ah, the person who made a reservation for 3 o’clock today, right? Please bring him inside.”

Geum Nae-yeong moved from his desk to the consultation table.

“Hello, Attorney. I am Yun Chan-woo, the prospective groom who posted the article.”

“I am Geum Nae-yeong.”

“Wow, you are very young, Attorney. Well, I thought you would be young since you do Threads. Hahaha.”

The man spoke in a friendly manner, but Geum Nae-yeong smiled once, cut to the chase, and went straight into the consultation.

“···First, you’ve drafted a written pledge, right? Let’s take a look.”

“Ah, yes.”

The man pulled out the draft pledge he and his bride-to-be had written from his pocket and handed it over.

Written Pledge

I, Lee A-rin, will change the ownership of Tower Castle Apartment, Unit 2002, Building 101, at 123 Dogok-dong, Gangnam-gu, to a joint ownership in a few years, provided that Yun Chan-woo only looks at Lee A-rin after marriage.

Lee A-rin (Signature) / Yun Chan-woo (Signature)

“Hmm···”

Geum Nae-yeong, having read the pledge, nodded.

“You must modify a few parts without fail.”

“Is that so? Can’t we write it like this?”

“Yes. May I modify the document?”

“Yes. Of course.”

“There is no set format, but if you really want to own the apartment, you must supplement the missing details here.”

Geum Nae-yeong took out a red color pencil from the writing utensil tray and began to mark the pledge as if grading an exam paper.

“A condition precedent is when a legal act occurs upon the achievement of a condition, and a condition subsequent is when the effect is extinguished upon the achievement of a condition. The current content is ‘if you don’t cheat, she will give you the apartment ownership,’ so it is in the form of a gift subject to a condition precedent.

However, under such a condition, the condition itself may be indefinite and unclear, which could make it void, but I will put that aside for now.”

“Yes, yes.”

The man nodded diligently.

“The biggest problem with this document is that ‘there is no period.’”

“Ah!”

“Yes. With phrases like ‘after marriage’ or ‘a few years later,’ it is impossible to know when the effect will occur. Therefore, it is better to specify concretely, such as ‘after 3, 5, or 10 years have passed since marriage.’”

Slash.

Geum Nae-yeong drew a red line on the pledge and continued.

“Another thing, it is safer to write the apartment address exactly as it is recorded in the register. Writing the road name address is not bad, but legally, the registration notation is the standard.”

“Aha···”

“Lastly, the date of preparation, name, resident registration number, signature, and seal must be filled in without omission. A stamp is good, and a signature is also possible.”

At the rapid explanation, the man nodded repeatedly in satisfaction.

But Geum Nae-yeong suddenly grabbed the pledge he was modifying well and tore it to shreds on the spot.

Rip, rip!

“Huh? Why··· why did you tear it?”

“As I said, this is an unfavorable pledge for Yun Chan-woo. There is no need to write it like this in the first place. I only modified it first because I had to explain.”

“···?”

Geum Nae-yeong’s eyes looked straight at the man.

“Now then,

do you plan to cheat after marriage?”

At the direct question, the man’s gaze suddenly began to wander here and there.

“Pardon···?? Well··· that is, b-because one never knows what might happen in life··· I was also just curious if I could write a pledge like this or not···”

As the man hesitated to answer accurately and trailed off, Geum Nae-yeong cut him off.

“Then, assuming you have a plan to cheat, I will write it again in a way that is advantageous to Yun Chan-woo. First, you should receive the apartment and start.”

“Pardon? Receive the apartment?”

The content Geum Nae-yeong wrote for him was as follows.

Written Pledge

I, Lee A-rin (hereinafter referred to as ‘Party A’), in marriage with spouse Yun Chan-woo (hereinafter referred to as ‘Party B’),

covenant to transfer and register the ownership name of Tower Castle Apartment, Unit 2002, Building 101, at 123 Dogok-dong, Gangnam-gu, to the joint names of ‘Party A’ and ‘Party B’ simultaneously with the marriage.

However, in the event that ‘Party B’ commits infidelity with a third party during the marriage and the marriage relationship is broken,

the joint name covenant under this pledge shall immediately lose its effect, and both parties confirm that this real estate shall be returned to the sole name of ‘Party A’, the original owner.

This pledge is···

“If you write it like this, Yun Chan-woo can receive the apartment name immediately. If a problem arises later, you can just return it.”

“Ah··· but it doesn’t seem to make much difference? Isn’t it just receiving the name now versus receiving it later?”

The man tilted his head. Geum Nae-yeong replied with a cold expression.

“No. If you live together in this apartment, help with living expenses, contribute to housework and child-rearing, and contribute a certain part to maintaining and forming assets, even if you return it later, you can claim contribution in the property division during divorce.”

“Oh-oh????”

“If you start without receiving it, you never know when you will get the apartment name transferred.

But if you receive the name and start, the worst is returning it, and you might take a portion of it through property division.

Even if you cheat, it can result in a profit for Yun Chan-woo in the end.

Once the name is changed, it is very difficult to reverse and the procedure is not simple.

Not without Yun Chan-woo’s consent.”

The man could not hide his joy and grinned broadly.

“Wow, this is so amazing. Thank you, lawyer brother. Hahaha.”

Geum Nae-yeong paused for a moment at the unexpected title of ‘brother’, but he mimicked the man’s smile and laughed back.

“Ah, yes. Hahaha.”

“I will pay the consultation fee. I should pay for this level of advice. Telling me this kind of secret. Thank you.”

As the man tried to pull out his wallet, Geum Nae-yeong replied seriously.

“This is not a secret. My legal opinion, my opinion as a lawyer, cannot be a secret. If I have to specify, Yun Chan-woo’s plan to cheat would be the secret.”

“Pardon? My plan to cheat···?”

The man avoided Geum Nae-yeong’s eyes as if feeling guilty. But Geum Nae-yeong was calm.

“And as I told you in advance, I do not receive a consultation fee separately.”

Geum Nae-yeong paused for a moment, then added with his characteristic cool smile.

“Instead, please leave a review on social media later, without fail.”

The man seemed lost in thought, then bowed to Geum Nae-yeong.

“Yes···. Y-yes.. Thank you, brother! I will definitely write a review.”

“Ah, and since you are writing it anyway, go to a nearby notary public office and get it notarized.

That way, it will be better even if a legal problem arises later.”

“Yes, yes.”

The man packed the pledge well into his bag and left the office, bowing repeatedly.

After a short while.

‘Yes··· there is a way to definitely earn more money.’

Thinking about something after the consultation, Geum Nae-yeong nodded. And he came out of the office to look for Office Manager Ju Yong-hae.

“Office Manager Ju?”

“Yes, Attorney.”

“By any chance, is Representative Attorney Seong here right now? I have something I’m curious about.”

At Geum Nae-yeong’s words, the office manager gestured to Assistant Manager Park, and Assistant Manager Park, the employee in charge, checked the office and sent an okay sign.

Attorney Geum Nae-yeong knocked on the door of Representative Attorney Seong Seok-yeon’s office and entered.

At Geum Nae-yeong’s sudden visit, Attorney Seong, who was drinking tea, gestured him to a seat.

‘Coming to see me already. He is active. He probably came for a consultation because a lawsuit is difficult. Hoho, since a young friend is asking, I should guide him well.’

However, the words that came out of Geum Nae-yeong’s mouth completely defied Attorney Seong’s expectations.

“What is the matter, Attorney Geum Nae-yeong?”

“Yes, Representative Attorney. I hope our joint office can also handle notary public work.”

“What? Notarization? Are you saying we should establish a notary public office?”

“Yes, Attorney.

If we have a notary public office, we can immediately link clients to notarization after consultation. It will also create competitiveness for our joint law office.”

“Ah··· in a small office like ours, what notary work? Notary public offices are scattered all around anyway. If we get authorized for no reason, we’ll only pay employee salaries, and the income will be poor.

I heard other law firms around here also say it doesn’t make money.”

Representative Attorney Seong Seok-yeon knit his brow for a moment.

‘Is this friend trying to do this recklessly without knowing the ways of the world? By any chance, to reduce his share of office expenses?’

“I will take responsibility for the cost of the personnel in charge of notarization first.

However, when the notarization income reaches a level that leaves a surplus after paying the rent, from then on, you can cover the employee salaries and operation expenses from that income.”

“What? You’ll pay it? Your ambition is good, but to get authorized, there is a Ministry of Justice review, and the procedure is not easy. It’s not something done overnight.”

“I know it takes time to get authorized, but I will also take charge of the preparation process.”

At Geum Nae-yeong’s bold attitude, Attorney Seong Seok-yeon felt somewhat uneasy.

But he also thought it wouldn’t be bad for him to take responsibility, suffer some losses, and learn the ways of this world.

He will soon find out how difficult it is to increase income in this fierce Seocho-dong.

“Hmm. I see. I will discuss it with the other attorneys and give you an answer.”

“Yes, thank you.”

As Geum Nae-yeong left the office, Attorney Seong watched his back for a moment.

‘He has courage, probably because he is young. The sight of him trying to create his own place somehow is decent. Yes, he is quite admirable.’

At that time.

Attorney Shin Chang-ryul of Teum Joint Law Office met his training institute classmate after a long time on his way home from work.

“Long time no see. You look the same, Attorney Jo, hahaha.”

“Let’s drink a lot of alcohol for old times’ sake!”

“Good, good.”

The two attorneys, who were transitioning from middle age to old age, sat facing each other and shared their current status while tilting their glasses.

“Are cases coming in these days?”

“It’s not that there are no cases, but lawyers are overflowing, while competent ones are even rarer··· it’s not like the old days.”

“Right. These days, they all just whine and cling to documents. They don’t move an inch from their seats.”

“Is it like that over there too? Still, isn’t your firm a law firm where guys who studied quite well from the bar exam enter? It’s still one of the top ones.”

“Where is such a thing these days. Everyone is just struggling not to starve.”

“Ah, right.”

Attorney Shin Chang-ryul remembered that the new lawyer who joined recently was from Law Firm Nine.

“By any chance, do you know a lawyer named Geum Nae-yeong?”

“Geum··· what?”