The Korean legal drama Pro Bono concluded its first season with a finale that was both a courtroom victory and a profound personal transformation for its main character. The story, which follows a disgraced former judge forced into a lowly pro bono legal team, ended with the powerful dismantling of a judicial conspiracy. This result was not just about winning a case but about the main character, Kang Da-Wit, redefining what success and justice mean to him. By turning down the ultimate offer of power, he chose a different path that sets up a new beginning for his entire team.
The Final Showdown in Court
The final episodes centered on a high-stakes trial where Kang Da-Wit directly accused a powerful network of corruption. This network included the billionaire fixer Dr. Oh Gyu-jang, Chief Justice Shin Jung-seok, and the chaebol chairman Jang Hyeon-bae. Da-Wit’s strategy was risky from the start, as he played a secret recording of a phone call between Dr. Oh and the Chief Justice discussing the case.
The system immediately fought back. The presiding judge was abruptly replaced by a senior judge known to be a close friend of Chief Justice Shin. This new judge was openly dismissive and tried to shut down Da-Wit’s case quickly. Under pressure, Da-Wit requested and was granted just one week to prove his explosive claims.
During that week, he employed psychological tactics to break the alliance of the conspirators. He sent AI-manipulated videos to Shin and Hyeon-bae, making each man believe the other was betraying their secret deal to save himself. This sowed deep paranoia and mistrust, successfully fracturing their partnership.
The Ultimate Temptation and a Secret Plan
With his allies turning on each other, Dr. Oh requested a private meeting with Da-Wit. Here, Dr. Oh explained his worldview, justifying his corrupt dealings as necessary for national interest and profitable business. He then made Da-Wit an offer that struck at the character’s lifelong ambition: if Da-Wit would ensure Dr. Oh walked free, he would be given Chief Justice Shin’s seat on the Supreme Court.
This offer was the core temptation Da-Wit had to face. His entire career and his promise to his late mother had been built around the goal of reaching the highest position in the judiciary. The offer visibly shook him, leading him to visit his mother’s grave to contemplate his decision.
In the final court hearing, Da-Wit’s plan was revealed. Dr. Oh surprisingly appeared in court, but Da-Wit then withdrew his request to call him as a witness. This move made his own team, especially Park Gi-ppeum, believe he had accepted the corrupt bargain and sold out. He then pressured the other two conspirators, Hyeon-bae and Shin, giving them a last chance to confess. Hyeon-bae cracked and blamed everything on Shin.
Just when Dr. Oh thought he was safe, Da-Wit played his final card: a secret recording of their private meeting. In the recording, Dr. Oh detailed the corruption and explicitly offered Da-Wit the Chief Justice position in exchange for throwing the case. Da-Wit used Dr. Oh’s own arrogance against him. As was later revealed, it had been over 20 years since anyone refused Dr. Oh’s offer, so he never imagined Da-Wit would record it and use it as evidence.
Da-wit told the court, “I have lived my whole life aiming to become a Chief Justice. However, if that position is to be an object of such a dirty deal, then I must decline. I am worth more than that.”
With this, the conspiracy unraveled. Chief Justice Shin and Chairman Jang faced legal consequences, while Dr. Oh was forced to resign from his company in disgrace.
A Personal Betrayal and a New Understanding of Justice
The victory in court was not the end of Da-Wit’s journey. He discovered a painful personal truth: Oh Jung-in, the woman he had trusted and who had helped him, was actually responsible for his original downfall. She was the one who had framed him for bribery years earlier. When he confronted her, she showed no remorse and instead asked him to focus on the future, offering him a position as co-CEO of her global law firm.
This moment, coupled with his courtroom choice, forced Da-Wit to completely reconsider his path. His clarity came from a visit to Gi-ppeum’s family bakery. Her parents thanked him for saving their family from debt 13 years ago, when he was still a judge. Gi-ppeum’s mother told him his name, Da-Wit (David), was fitting because he fought for the weak against Goliath. This showed him that his mother’s wish for him to be “successful” was not about a title, but about making a real difference for people like her.
Back at the law firm, now part of management, Da-Wit was immediately faced with a moral crisis. His first major case was to represent a corporation that produced toxic baby diapers linked to infant deaths. Unable to stomach defending the company, he walked out of the executive meeting and returned to his old team in the basement.
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Founding “An Eye for an Eye” Law Firm
With his original pro bono team feeling disbanded and adrift, Da-Wit presented them with a new vision. He gave them business cards for a new firm he was founding, called “An Eye for an Eye”. He was very clear: this would not be a pro bono office.
Da-wit explained his new philosophy to the team, stating that justice does not have to be poor to be pure. The new firm would focus on class-action lawsuits, holding wealthy and powerful corporations accountable while taking a commission, ensuring the lawyers could make a living while still fighting for the oppressed.
This final move was Da-Wit’s full transformation. He moved beyond the system that had both exalted and betrayed him. He rejected the tainted power offered by Dr. Oh and the corporate future offered by Jung-in. Instead, he created his own systemโone that uses the mechanisms of the law to achieve real justice and allows those fighting for it to survive and thrive. The season ends with Da-Wit and his team leaving the corporate law firm together, ready to take on their first class-action case.
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