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Chapter 2739 A Just Trial (Second Update, Please Subscribe)
What will SEA do?

If the world was captivated by the Tehran hostage crisis in November, then as the new year dawned and the world entered a new year, all eyes were drawn to the SEA.

What will they do?
Countries all over the world have asked the same question.

Time continued to pass day by day, as if they had done nothing at all.

The morning sun in Chang'an was bright and clear, casting its light on the marble pillars of the Chang'an District Court. As usual, Song Yaozu, dressed in a suit, ascended the steps and entered the courthouse.

Inside the courthouse lobby, a number of people were already waiting, as always. Defense lawyers, prosecutors, employers, and of course, suspects gathered there, some for justice, others for money.

Upholding justice is paramount, even if the sky falls.

After glancing up at the inscription on the courthouse lobby, Song Yaozu looked away, walked straight through the crowd without stopping, and headed directly to the designated courtroom.

At this moment, the courtroom was packed. The court clerk was busy organizing the trial minutes, while bailiffs stood at attention on one side. Representatives from the National Iranian Oil Company were also present, their faces solemn as they spoke in hushed tones, their brows furrowed.

As soon as they entered the courtroom, before Song Yaozu could even sit down, Thompson, the lawyer representing Iran and a Royal Counsel from the UK, approached them and said:

"Attorney Song Yaozu, could I have a few minutes of your time before the court hearing?"

Song Yaozu nodded slightly without speaking. He knew the other party's intentions, but he just wanted to seize the last opportunity to reach an out-of-court settlement.

Thompson looked at Song Yaozu and his tone became increasingly earnest:
"Attorney Song, you and I are both very clear that my client, the National Iranian Oil Company, does not lack the money to repay the loan, but rather lacks the means to do so."

Therefore, they are willing to repay all outstanding loans and interest in full in cash, without any delay. If you agree, they will pay the full amount in cash within two days.

He paused, then added meaningfully:
“If Attorney Song can help make this happen, my client will have other appropriate ways to express his gratitude to you.”

This is what is meant by enticing them with benefits.

Seeing that Song Yaozu's expression remained unchanged, Thompson then offered his bait:
"The National Iranian Oil Company plans to hire a lawyer in Chang'an soon to handle various legal matters."

The temptation in these words is obvious: cash repayment satisfies the bank's interests.

And what about Song Yaozu?

They could also receive corresponding rewards—the oil company would become a client of the law firm, earning hundreds of thousands of yuan annually.

Large clients like these are the most sought-after by all law firms; they have few problems and a lot of money.

In particular, the lawyers hired by the National Iranian Oil Company in Chang'an are basically getting paid for nothing, since the two sides have no business dealings at all.

So, the other party was just finding a different way to send him money.

Of course, this is in accordance with the law.

Moreover, he was not asked to betray the interests of the parties involved.

This was indeed a very tempting proposal, but Song Yaozu simply shook his head, his tone firm and indifferent:
“I’m sorry, Attorney Thompson, as a lawyer, my duty is to protect the legitimate interests of my clients.”

Thompson's smile froze for a moment, then returned to normal, his tone carrying a hint of persuasion:

"Attorney Song, why be so stubborn? Think about it carefully, this is the best choice that best serves the interests of the bank."

Even if you ultimately win the lawsuit, all you'll get back is a bunch of old ships, which will be incredibly troublesome to dispose of, and you might not even be able to recoup all your losses. This isn't in the banking sector's interest, since what they need is to recover their loans.

Song Yaozu looked up at him and said:
"so what?"

His answer was simply four words.

Thompson knew that further persuasion was useless, so he could only sigh helplessly and turn around to communicate with the person involved. After learning that the other party refused, the Iranian representative cursed in Persian. Although it was unclear what he was saying, it was easy to guess that he was very angry.

But what's the point?
"Your Honor has arrived."

At the call of the bailiff, the judge, dressed in a black robe, walked solemnly into the courtroom and slowly took his seat.

"Court is now in session,"

The judge's calm and powerful voice broke the silence in the courtroom.

"This case involves fifteen banks as joint plaintiffs suing the National Iranian Oil Company for overdue loans. The plaintiffs' lawyers will first state their claims and submit relevant evidence."

Song Yaozu stood up, bowed slightly, and glanced across the courtroom. There were quite a few people attending the hearing today, many of whom were reporters.

"Your Honor, our plaintiffs, consisting of thirteen Borneo banks, three Thai banks, and two Malaysian banks, have provided special financing loans for tankers ordered by the defendant, the National Iranian Oil Company, over the past decade. However, as of today, the defendant has been in arrears on these loans for more than six months, with the total amount owed exceeding US$7 million."

As soon as Song Yaozu finished speaking, his assistant handed over a stack of neatly arranged evidence, including loan contracts, bank transfer records, demand notices, and receipts from the defendant.

“This evidence is clearly visible,” he said, pointing to the exhibits, his tone leaving no room for argument.
"The loan agreement clearly stipulates that if the defendant defaults on the loan for more than six months, the plaintiff has the right to demand the return of the pledged property. Now that the other party's breach of contract has exceeded the contractual agreement, we have formally filed a claim with the court, requesting a judgment that the plaintiff has the right to recover the oil tanker used as collateral by the defendant in order to compensate for our economic losses."

After receiving the evidence, the judge carefully reviewed it, his brow slightly furrowed, occasionally jotting down notes in his notebook. Seeing this, the lawyer hired by the Iranian oil company immediately stood up and argued:
"Your Honor, my client denies the plaintiff's allegations. He did not intentionally default on the loan, but was genuinely unable to make timely repayments."

He then handed over a copy of the relevant SEA legal provisions, his voice suddenly rising several decibels:
"As is well known, the law recently promulgated by the Prime Minister's Office prohibits all SEA companies from engaging in any form of trade with Iran, including financial transactions."

"It was precisely because of this injunction that the plaintiff bank unilaterally closed our repayment account, causing us to lose our only means of repayment. Even though we had sufficient funds, we were unable to complete the repayment process. This was not our fault."

The defense lawyer's tone was full of helplessness. He gestured to his assistant behind him and handed over another proof of funds:
"Your Honor, my client can provide evidence that he/she has sufficient funds to repay the loan and interest, and that my/her client is not in defaulting maliciously. Therefore, I implore the court to authorize the relevant bank to unfreeze my repayment account. Once the account is unfrozen, my/her client will repay all outstanding debts and accrued interest in full within 24 hours without delay."

The courtroom was silent; all eyes were on the judge, awaiting his verdict. Song Yaozu frowned slightly and rose to retort:

"Your Honor, the defendant's defense is untenable. First, when the loan agreement was signed, the official residence had not yet issued any relevant sanctions or injunctions, and the defendant should have foreseen the possible policy changes;

Secondly, even if the account is closed, the defendant can communicate and negotiate with us through other legal channels, instead of simply delaying and causing the amount owed to continue to increase.

Therefore, our client believes that the defendant's default constitutes a breach of contract, and our client's request to recover the pledged property is reasonable and lawful.

The judge, setting aside the evidence in his hand and with a serious expression, turned his gaze to the defendant's dock:

"I understand the difficulties raised by the defendant, but there is nothing I can do to help them."

His gaze swept over the Iranian representative, and he said, word by word:

"The bank's closure of the Iranian official account was not a unilateral action, but rather an execution based on the sanctions order issued by the Prime Minister's Office and relevant legal provisions. As a local court judge, I must abide by national laws and government orders and cannot authorize the unfreezing of accounts without authorization; otherwise, it would be an illegal performance of my duties."

The Iranian representative turned pale instantly, and the defense lawyer tried to say something more, but the judge raised his hand to stop him.

"Based on the evidence in this case and the statements of both parties,"

The judge's voice rang out again:
"The evidence submitted by the plaintiff is authentic and valid, and can prove that the defendant, the National Iranian Oil Company, has defaulted on its loans, and that the default period has far exceeded the contractual agreement. The plaintiff's claims are in accordance with the law and the contractual agreement."

He picked up the gavel and announced the verdict directly:

"The court rules that the plaintiff bank has the right to recover all the oil tankers pledged by the defendant, the National Iranian Oil Company, to offset its outstanding loan of US$9.5735 million and corresponding interest; the defendant's application to unfreeze the accounts is rejected, and the defendant shall bear the litigation costs of this case."

The gavel fell with a "bang," signaling the end of the trial.

The Iranian representative, his face grim, sat there dejectedly, his eyes filled with despair and resentment, muttering to himself:

"This is unfair... This is political sanction, this is unfair..."

Then, he roared in an indignant tone:
"This is a trampling on Iran's dignity, and we will not condone this unfair trial."

Song Yaozu breathed a slight sigh of relief, a faint look of satisfaction on his face. He looked at the judge, bowed slightly, and expressed his gratitude.

"Congratulations, Attorney Song, on winning another high-profile case."

When congratulated, Song Yaozu simply smiled. The reason this case has attracted so much attention is because it involves the ownership of a 372 million-ton Iranian oil tanker.

Once the banks reclaim these oil tankers, Iran will lose more than 80% of its oil tankers. In other words, they will lose 80% of their oil export capacity.

During the Iranian hostage crisis, such a trial alone was enough to attract global attention, and it was widely regarded as the first major blow the SEA had dealt to Iran!
Therefore, this trial, seemingly a simple loan dispute, was in fact an inevitable consequence of political sanctions. The National Iranian Oil Company lost its oil tankers, and the bank repossessed the pledged collateral.

Most importantly—Iran will completely lose its oil export channels. Even if it can produce large quantities of oil, so what?

Without oil tankers, the oil produced is nothing more than a pile of worthless ruins that wouldn't even produce enough smoke to fuel a stove.

"Without a doubt, this was a fair trial..."

Standing at the courthouse entrance, Song Yaozu answered reporters' questions while gazing at the distant street where numerous news broadcast vans were parked. His answers were being broadcast on television.

He knew in his heart that this was just the beginning, and the most important thing next was how to reclaim the tanker.

However, what happened next was no longer his concern; the rest was a matter for the authorities to handle, and he had already completed his work.

In fact, from the moment he took on this case, he was very clear about its purpose—to seize all Iranian oil tankers under a legal pretext.

At least the vast majority of them were detained.

Is this what the banking industry means?

Of course not, but the wishes of the banking sector must also be obeyed, which is another kind of will.

(End of this chapter)