LAF = Legal Aid Farce

  After the exit of another lawyer, as expected the Legal Aid Foundation requested I meet with some staff to discuss why he and the previous attorney quit my case. I expected their attitude to be defensive about the lawyers and biased toward me...and I wasn't disappointed. 

  Despite my very clear and documented examples of how one of the earlier lawyers made a serious error by calling a witness for the nursing university who, of course, perjured in court and said she saw me touch the accuser on her waist, and how the most recent attorney attempted to crash my case by insisting that I agree with the judge's proposal I "settle" with the nursing university by dropping the lawsuit or else he would rule against me, the LAF attorney who I spoke was clearly there to protect the interests of her fellow attorneys and not to protect the interests of me, the client.

  So, it was no surprise (but still disappointing) when I got an email from the LAF on Thursday, March 11, telling me that they were dropping my legal aid, despite the fact I still meet all the criteria for legal aid. Apparently, there's an unwritten condition that recipients of legal aid from the legal foundation must not ask their attorneys too many questions or question anything their attorneys do/don't do - even if the attorney damages their case through negligence, ineptitude or other ways. Like judges in Taiwan, attorneys are all-knowing, omnipotent, infallible and beyond reproach.

  Here's the email and you can see the absolutely flimsy and juvenile reason they gave for not helping me anymore as well as their rejection of my request for reimbursement of the additional court costs the Taipei District Court in January suddenly insisted I must pay or else my lawsuit would be dropped. 

Dear Mr. :

Because you doubt lawyer's attitude, and considered the lawyer wasn't positive in the case. The Review Committee thought you didn't respect to the lawyer. They thought we should terminate legal aid.

And you have paid the court costs, and the judge repealed the  litigation in forma pauperis ,so the Review Committee thought we won't pay the legal costs of litigation.

If you can not accept these decisions made by the Review Committee may file a petition for appeal with reasons to the Appeal Committee of the Foundation within 30 days after receiving the written decision from the Review Committee.

I will send you the written decision in these days.

Regards

Miss Tung