From Yahoo news: “A motion to recover the Chungs’ tens of thousands of dollars in attorney fees will be considered later.”
So hopefully they’ll get legal fees too.
Brilliant!
Or, it would be if Pearson were not a person of color.
What about the guy’s job as a judge? I presume that’s still in jeopardy, given that he brought a 67 million dollar lawsuit over a pair of pants?
Yes, things are not looking good for the guy. (Who never was a real judge, BTW, but an administrative law judge, which is a different thing. Shit, I’ve been an ALJ, i’ts not that hard.) The job is in jeopardy, the defendants have said they will move for their attorneys’ fees AND they have also said they intend to file for Rule 11 sactions against him, for filing a suit that was frivolous or in bad faith.
Here’s the judge’s written decision, for anyone who might want to read it.
Smell ya later?
Haw! Haw?
What does an administrative judge handle? How is his job different from a "regular"judge?
I wonder if this guy is stupid enough to appeal.
Everyone who’s in the DC area…I suggest you patronize the Chung’s drycleaning business.
Quite frankly, if they see a dime out of this guy I’ll eat my shoes. Without salt.
An “administrative law judge” deals with matters arising under the Administrative Code. There is the Federal Administrative Procedures Act (APA) and most states have similar state APAs. The relevant APA (state or federal) will say what matters are subject to administrative review. Such matters involve a government agency as the defendant. The subject matter will often be something like licensing (I apply for a cosmetology license and it is denied and I want to appeal); appraisal (I want to appeal an increase in my property tax); or employment (my government employer fired me and I want to appeal) – basically, any government agency action that adversely affects the plaintiff. But unlike a judge, an ALJ has NO authority over any criminal matters.
The APA proceedings are intended to get rid of a lot of low-level agency complaints (like licensing or the fairness of tickets) without clogging up the judicial system with them. APA proceedings are often required (you must exhaust the administrative process before you can sue in court) but they are not the sole remedy. If you don’t like the outcome of the APA hearing, you can file suit, but there often is a presumption that the APA determination was correct.
APA proceedings generally are subject to the Rules of Evidence, including the swearing in of witnesses, and a record of proceedings must be made. Frequently the record is just an audio recording as opposed to a court reporter. Generally APA proceedings are less formal than court proceedings and do not take place in a court room. The ALJ doesn’t wear judicial robes and the entire hearing may take place sitting around a conference table.
By page five, all I could see was “pants pants pants pants” and I was giggling like an idiot. 
I swear, has any previous decision come even close to the “pants per page” of that one? If I were the one writing that up, I’d go a little nuts, typing “pants” over and over and over.
Does anyone know if the Chungs had insurance? If so, odds are the insurance company picked up the attorneys’ fees tab and not the Chungs, but they will sue in the Chungs’ name. Either way, they’ll do an assests search on Mr. Pantless and come back with zilch. He’ll live under the radar and avoid paying any judgment, unless of course DC allows garnishing wages for this type of thing.
I doubt it, since there were online collections going on for their legal fees.
The Chungs should sue the pants off him.
What an absolutely lovely decision! I only wish I was closer to Custom Cleaners so I could patronize them. i hope the Chungs realize that there’s probably not a single person in the U.S. who has anything but sympathy for the way this asshole jerked them around. I really hope they don’t give up and go back to Korea; that would be a symbolic victory for the asshole, and frankly, I’d hate to see him win so much as a coin toss.
I just want to add that Ki Y is a really cool name. Sounds like the arch villain in a movie.
ButtMaster V, perhaps.
Jodi did a very thorough job, but I just wanted to highlight what I consider the major difference between an administrative law judge (which used to be known as a “hearing examiner”) and a real judge judge.
Real judge judges have constitutional status under the U.S. Constitution (Article III) and the state constitutions. There are strict rules for creating judgeships, for who can become a judge and how they are chosen. In the federal system, judges are appointed by the president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. In state systems, there are similar procedures – additionally, many state judges are elected by the public. There are also strict rules for removing judges.
Administrative law judges are not constitutional officers in the same way a real judge judge is. ALJs are essentially civil servants who have been designated to adjudicate certain very limited matters. Their appointment and removal is according to civil service and administrative rules, not constitutional ones.
Nah, I hear they lose stuff.
It has been speculated that he brought this lawsuit in the first place because his recent divorce has left him penniless and already stuck with a bill for his ex-wife’s legal expenses.
So, there’s nothing there, really.
This is what happens when a trial judge drinks the bong water.
Too bad the Chung’s don’t have connections with one of the Triads.
Maybe they were really, really really nice pants?