Part Two: Chivalrous Lawyer: Legal Rescue of the "Sea Palace"

8. The Second Courtroom Clash

Thanks to lawyer Wang Tengfeng's outstanding performance, the outcome of the first court session far exceeded expectations, delighting Guo and reigniting his artistic spontaneity and entrepreneurial acumen. He then decided to file a massive 50 million yuan compensation claim against the government! After consulting lawyer Wang Tengfeng and having him draft a "Supplementary Administrative Complaint," Guo arranged for Sea Elite Entertainment Co., Ltd. to submit the supplementary litigation request in writing to the Longgang District People's Court on June 23:

Supplementary Administrative Complaint

Plaintiff: Shenzhen Maritime Elite Entertainment Co., Ltd.

Domicile: Room 201, No. 51, Dongshan Village, Nan'ao Street, Longgang District, Shenzhen

Legal Representative: Guo Jingli

Defendant: Shenzhen Longgang District Economic Promotion Bureau

Domicile: 10th Floor, East Wing, Customs Building, Longgang District, Shenzhen

Person in Charge: Jia Changsheng, Director

　　电话：28948833

Litigation Claims:

1. Request the court to order the defendant to compensate the plaintiff for economic losses of RMB 50 million due to illegal forced demolition.

Factual Basis:

Starting from March 1 this year, the defendant, under the pressure of erroneous public resentment against the wealthy and public opinion, issued a wrongful administrative decision to demolish the plaintiff's marine fish raft (commonly known as the "Marine Palace"). Subsequently, on April 8, the defendant began implementing the wrongful demolition, which has now destroyed most of the upper structure of the plaintiff's luxury marine raft platform. By June 21, the plaintiff learned from two other administrative lawsuits against the defendant that the illegal forced demolition was temporarily halted due to technical, environmental, and safety constraints. At this point, after an urgent and careful review and calculation, the plaintiff determined total economic property losses of RMB 50 million. Therefore, in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China and relevant judicial interpretations, the plaintiff hereby supplements the above claims and requests a joint judgment in accordance with the law.

　　此致

Longgang District People's Court

Plaintiff: Shenzhen Marine Elite Entertainment Co., Ltd.

June 23, 2011

Below, we mainly rely on the report by Wu Tao, a journalist from the Shenzhen Press Group, to briefly review the circumstances of the second court session.

At 2:30 p.m. on June 24, the presiding judge struck the gavel on time, and the "Sea Palace" case continued its trial. Since both sides had already fully presented their views and trump cards during the first session, and most of the evidence presentation, cross-examination, and debate on the key disputes had been completed, the journalists attending the hearing again, though expectant, assumed the case would proceed smoothly through the procedures. Unexpectedly, a "bombshell" broke out at the start: the presiding judge stated that the day before this session, the plaintiff had filed an additional claim with the court, demanding 50 million yuan in economic compensation from the defendant. Instantly, all the attending journalists perked up their ears!

This "sky-high" compensation claim clearly caught the defendant somewhat off guard. The defendant's attorney immediately argued to the court: the plaintiff's last-minute addition of a claim not only violated relevant provisions of the Administrative Procedure Law but also left no time for the defendant to collect and prepare evidence, which was obviously inappropriate. If the plaintiff wished to seek compensation, they should file a separate lawsuit. The plaintiff's representative, lawyer Wang Tengfeng, explained that because they had been unable to grasp the specific progress and content of the demolition by the demolishing party, they could not calculate the amount of compensation sought. "During the first trial on the 21st, we learned that the relevant authorities had basically halted the demolition actions, which allowed us to calculate the corresponding compensation amount and submit the claim."

As the defendant raised clear objections to the plaintiff's new claim, the presiding judge announced a court recess, and the collegial panel withdrew to deliberate on whether to accept and hear the plaintiff's new claim. A few minutes later, the three judges returned to the courtroom, and the presiding judge announced the collegial panel's decision: "After deliberation, we believe that there is an inherent logical relationship between whether the forced demolition involved in this case is illegal and the compensation, with administrative illegality being the premise and foundation for compensation. At the same time, the plaintiff naturally bears the burden of proof in presenting the compensation claim, so the new claim will not increase the defendant's burden of proof."

Building on the confidence established during the first session, the true owner of the "Sea Palace," Guo Moumou, as the authorized representative of the plaintiff, Sea Elite Entertainment Co., Ltd., sat prominently in the plaintiff's seat alongside lawyer Wang Tengfeng during the second session. Moreover, he broke free from the awkward "gagged" situation of the first session and, led by Wang Tengfeng, frequently questioned the defendant.

"The sea area where the 'Sea Palace' is located also has many floating restaurant and fishing spots. They obtained aquaculture and fishing permits at the same time as the 'Sea Palace' and still hold them. Why did the defendant revoke only the 'Sea Palace's aquaculture and fishing permits?" Guo clearly expressed dissatisfaction with the defendant's "selective enforcement," claiming this is the key point of the case.

The agent lawyer of Longgang District Economic Promotion Bureau responded that the "Sea Palace" is completely different from the surrounding floating platforms. It is not a simple dining and fishing venue but an extremely luxurious high-end club. The club has a very high threshold for membership: only vice presidents or above of Fortune Global 500 companies in China, or royal family members—the wealthy and powerful—are eligible, which constitutes illegal use of public sea areas.

"Is 'simplicity' legal and 'luxury' illegal?" Guo expressed difficulty accepting the reasoning given by the defendant.

Of course, the main force in the courtroom confrontation was still lawyer Wang Tengfeng, and his performance was as outstanding as ever, handling everything with ease. At one point, Guo, slightly agitated, pointed at the opposing lawyer and said, "You're at a loss for words and still stubbornly resisting—what's the point?"

Realizing they were powerless to turn the situation around, the defendant's agent lawyer directly abandoned the focus of the dispute over whether the forced demolition was illegal, instead shifting to the specific amount of 30 million yuan in compensation, seizing the opportunity to argue vigorously. Since the 30 million yuan compensation claim was a rough estimate made hastily by Guo after the first court session, without time to properly organize all the evidence of costs invested in building the floating island over the years, the presiding judge agreed with lawyer Wang Tengfeng's suggestion and decided to adjourn again, allowing the plaintiff to submit supporting evidence for the 50 million yuan claim within a specified period after the session. The court would then schedule another session for both parties to cross-examine the evidence and finally complete the case.

Seeing that the situation in the two court sessions was highly favorable to him, Guo deeply admired Wang Tengfeng's superb skills displayed during the trial and felt fortunate to have chosen the right lawyer. At the same time, he regained confidence in the future of the "Sea Palace." In his mind, even if the government could not meet his compensation demands, his floating island could at least survive without being completely demolished, and he would still have the chance to legitimately restore his sea home.

However, Wang Tengfeng, the lawyer accompanying them, was not so optimistic. It was not that he lacked confidence in his courtroom performance, but based on his professional sensitivity and years of experience handling administrative litigation against government departments, nothing was settled until the administrative case was adjudicated. Given the widespread impact of the "Sea Palace" case, the government would not easily concede. Nevertheless, he actively guided Guo and others in collecting and organizing evidence of the costs of the floating island structure, laying a solid evidentiary foundation for Guo's compensation claims and striving for a final victory in the case. He believed in the fairness of the law and, even more, in its seriousness. As long as their legal reasoning was sound and their arguments rigorous, they had no fear of any abnormal factors that might interfere with the case's outcome.

　　(待续)