Name: Lee Sang-ho
Occupation: Lawyer
Major: Department of Korean Literature and Language
The ninth term of Konkuk Law School

1. What does a lawyer do?
Lawyers act to resolve the dispute on behalf of the person involved in the “legal dispute”. It is difficult for ordinary people to properly respond to legal disputes because they do not know the law in detail. That is why lawyers, who are legal experts will respond appropriately to the dispute on behalf of the person to the legal dispute. While a cook provides cooking to people and a doctor provides medical services to people, a lawyer likewise provides legal services to people. Then, it would be easy to understand what a lawyer does.

2. Why did you decide to become a lawyer?
My original dream was to be a reporter. I did not want to go to work at the same time, everyday do the same thing, and then go home at the same time. The reporters cover and report new cases every day, so I thought it would be fun.
Then, by chance, I knew about the LEET. I thought that a job as a lawyer would fit me well because I have to take charge of new cases every day, so I took the test. I received good grades in the LEET and became a lawyer.

3. When was the hardest time preparing to be a lawyer?
I think I felt that the three years of law school is difficult every day. I am sure everyone does not like studying, but I do not either. However, I had to study really hard for three years to prepare for the LEET at law school. Imagine living in your third year of high school for three years. How terrible it is that?

4. What do you think is the most important thing a lawyer should have?
Above all, I think “the ability to speak and write well” is the most important thing for a lawyer. Since legal arguments are made up of words and writings, it is really important to be more logical and more persuasive than the other person can be. When I work, I sometimes get overwhelmed by the other lawyerʼs writing. At that time, I realized how important words and writing are to a lawyer.

5. What was the most rewarding time in your career as a lawyer?
There was a client who bought a shopping center for his old age with all the assets he had saved for 60 years. However, when the client went to the shopping center on the day of moving in, there was a very large pillar in the middle of it. The client wanted to cancel the contract because he thought no one would rent the center under this condition. However, the developer and the distribution agency continued to ignore the client's demands, and the client was in danger of losing his lifetime savings. On behalf of the above client, I filed a lawsuit against them to cancel the contract and return the sale price and interest. As a result, the case was won and all the property of the client was returned safely.

6. What is your future goal as a lawyer?
Changing the case of the Supreme Court is what I want to do most as a lawyer. The court not only refers to the “law” in judging legal disputes, but also to the “judgment”, a decision handed down by existing courts. Among them, the Supreme Court’s decision is an important criterion for lower court to make decisions. As it is the decision of the highest institution, the law principles judged by Supreme Court rarely changes. Sometimes, however, the Supreme Court itself overturns the previous decision by calling it an “en banc court”. This occurs when the Supreme Court’s previous decision is not reasonable. There are sometimes cases in the Supreme Court that need to be changed or are not logically understandable because they are too old to be applied to current situations. Therefore, my dream is to make these cases change in a more reasonable direction.

7. Please say something to the students who dream of becoming lawyers.
It is very rare for a person to be involved in legal disputes that are big enough to be resolved through a lawyer throughout his or her life. If a person is in such a state of conflict, it must be the most desperate moment of his or her life for an individual. For example, my client mentioned in question five was on the verge of losing all of his life’s savings, or in other case, someone was going to jail for committing a crime.
A lawyer is a person who can help the person who needs help most desperately in his or her life. Therefore, I think the biggest advantage of a lawyer is that I can earn my living by “helping others”. Although the process of becoming a lawyer may be a little tough, I hope you gain a little more strength by imagining yourself who can help those in need in the future!