Handing a case of a lady accused of physical assault, Yu-ri reflects on her actions towards Jung-ho in The Law Cafe.
Because of a broken system, Yu-ri realizes her shortcoming in blaming everything on a worker for the children’s welfare. For the cafe’s new case, Yu-ri encourages a lady charged with physical assault to file an appeal to revoke her suspended indictment for a reasonable cause.
Marcie Line watches The Law Cafe on Viu
The Law Cafe Episode 5 Highlights
“The lack of expertise is to blame. It’s not about individual staffers neglecting their duties.”
Yu-ri and Jung-ho’s kiss gets interrupted because of a muscle cramp. After being treated by a doctor, Jung-ho makes it clear to Yu-ri that he has no feelings.
While Jung-ho whines behind the nonchalant attitude of Yu-ri confessing, she becomes furious at Jung-ho’s rejective reaction and concern passed through Joon.
Charging at the borough office for the worker who failed to separate Soo A and Ji A from their mother, Yu-ri causes a scene while expressing her anger. A persistent reporter tries to interview her, but she refuses to do so.
Although she warned the reporter not to cover the kids on the news, Yu-ri sees the issue on the news. The worker Yu-ri attacked gets bashed online, and Joon feels bad for the lady.
Jung-ho then explains how the system is broken, so essentially the workers shouldn’t be easily blamed for the full capacitated shelters.
Wailing in the cafe while explaining her side, Yu-ri comforts the worker she attacked and apologizes for thoughtlessly acting out the other day.
“Wouldn’t it be more important to talk about what we could do to better protect children?”
Accepting the interview invite, Yu-ri points out her renewed view on the issue with the worker for the children’s welfare. Challenging the assemblyman with her, Yu-ri stresses how money could solve the problem, and that allotting budgets for training and shelters would be a solution.
A lady in the law cafe comes forward to Yu-ri, consulting about her case where she received leniency after being charged with physical assault. Explaining her situation when she was a maid and her employer forced a kiss on her, the lady expresses how she feels wronged being pardoned for a crime she believes she wasn’t at fault.
Working on the case for an appeal, Yu-ri asks Jung-ho to retrieve copies from the courthouse, but he accidentally leaves them in the restaurant after having a meal with an old colleague. Jung-ho only comes home with the document on the prosecutors who handled cases on Dohan.
Having memorized the content of the papers, Jung-ho stays up with Yu-ri who warns him of her indecent desires.
“It doesn’t matter how much you like her. If she doesn’t consent, that’s not expressing your feelings. That’s a crime.”
Arriving at the constitutional court, Yu-ri and her client take pictures together. Together with Jung-ho, Yu-ri meets the lady’s employer after. Jung-ho teaches the man a lesson about kissing without consent just because one-sidedly likes the person.
Aware that the man sued for physical assault after sexually harassing the lady, Yu-ri threaten of suing the lady’s employer back given he has a past record.
Visiting Se-yeon for advice, Yu-ri anonymously consults her kiss with Jung-ho. Unaware it was Yu-ri’s situation, Se-yeon strongly berates the kiss before the person’s confession, even labeling it as sexual harassment and delusion.
Guilty of her actions, Yu-ri gets drunk and acknowledges her wrongs to Jung-ho. Waking up in Jung-ho’s bed in the morning, Yu-ri realizes the mess she caused while Jung-ho was taking care of her.
“Yes, what it means is unless the other party says yes, everything else is no.”
Ashamed of what happened the night before, Yu-ri apologizes to Jung-ho. Seeking advice from Woo-jin, Yu-ri learns about the essence of consent, and the use of words to confirm the other person’s feelings.
In a lighter conversation, Yu-ri tries to propose a business partnership with Woo-jin since he sees an increase in clients in his clinic.
Secretly meeting together, Mr. Hwang asks about Yu-ri’s purpose in attacking Dohan Construction, and hands her the novel The Punisher of Evil Corporations.
Jung-ho meets with his editor where he gets briefed on the men President Lee hired. Pretending to be a seller of drugs, Jung-ho beats up one of the connected men to President Lee.
He barges at President Lee’s place, and threatens his uncle not to mess with the people around him, including Yu-ri. Back at home, Jung-ho welcomes Yu-ri, and yearns for her warm embrace.
The Law Cafe Episode 5 Musings
The cases handled in this episode weigh a lot, and the morals presented are on point and relevant as it shines a light on issues that society should take seriously.
It must have been frustrating to see workers who are incompetent in an office that fights for children’s welfare. However, just as Jung-ho pointed out, there’s a bigger picture than fuming at the bottom level of an institution.
Transitioning toward the case of the lady, the essence of clearing one’s name has been highlighted. Justice and law are not just made to avoid punishment, it also stands on the side of proving one’s innocence of the offense being charged.
What’s most notable in this episode is the part where they emphasized the meaning of consent. While there may be lighthearted parts, the reflective tone of Yu-ri shows that consent is important regardless of gender.
Jung-ho may have feelings for Yu-ri, but going by what the episode has presented, nothing is confirmed unless the other person explicitly says so. In that matter, we shall await Jung-ho to be more verbal about his feelings despite his blood relations with the people who have wronged Yu-ri and her family.
Watch new episodes of The Law Cafe every Monday and Tuesday on Viu.
Photos: KBS
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