What are hidden messages? Well, it is my view that hidden messages are different from subliminal messages. Hidden messages are implied messages you are conscious of while subliminal messages are encoded and designed to stimulate your emotional reaction. Sometimes a person is not able to convey to you the message directly but would leave enough hint in his or her words for you to pick up the actual message. To better illustrate this, I would like to share with you some stories:-
Story No. 1 - “The Mousetrap”
Many years ago, my family and I visited London. One evening, we took a stroll and came across St Martin’s Theatre which is located in the West End of London. We were not planning to watch a play but we thought it would be a good idea if we catch the “world’s longest running play” called “The Mousetrap”. We enquired about the tickets and were offered 4 tickets at a very reasonable price. We informed the ticket seller that we wanted good seats but all the ticket seller said was, “Sir, the best I can do for you are these seats”. Thinking that the cost was an issue, we reiterated that we do not mind paying more for better tickets but the ticket seller once again said, “the best I can do for you....”. We were puzzled so we asked him, “Do you have any other seats beside these seats?”. The ticket seller replied, “Yes, but the best I can do for you......” Suddenly, my brother caught a glimpse of the ticket pricing and noted that the rest of the tickets were for “dress circle”. In other words, one needed to be “formally dressed” to sit in that section. Since we did not plan to watch a play and were casually dressed, we were offered “non-dressed circle” seats. I assumed the ticket seller being a Londoner and a polish English gentleman, that was a polite way of him saying “since you are not dressed for the occasion, these are the only available seats for you”. We took the hint and thanked him for the “non-dressed circle tickets”.
In the above particular scenario, the ticket seller assumed that we would be offended if the truth was told, therefore, he decided to convey his hidden message by dropping hints. It would be effective if the hints were obvious but when it created even more confusion, the effect was no longer desirable. In such circumstances, it would be better if the ticket seller be straightforward about it. This interaction also tells me something about the ticket seller’s character. There is an inclination for me to believe that the ticket seller was a conflict avoider. In order to avoid getting someone upset, the ticket seller preferred to drop subtle hints rather than be forthright about it with the risk of getting blasted as the consequence of it.
Story No. 2- “Lawyers’ hidden message to each other”
One of the worst things that can ever happened to a lawyer is when the lawyer forgets or mistakenly entered the wrong hearing date into his or her diary. Due to this mistake, the case will sometimes be struck off or in the worst case scenario, default judgment was entered for failure of appearance in Court. When faced with such scenario, the lawyer has to file an application to either reinstate the case or to set aside the judgment. The lawyer has also got to face the opposing lawyer who most likely will object to the application as the duty of the lawyer is first and foremost to the Court and then to his or her client. Most opposing lawyers will be able to empathise the predicament that the other lawyer has to go through. Some of the opposing lawyers may have even gone through the scenario themselves and understand that apart from having to face shelling from his or her client, the lawyer may have to bear the cost of the application as well as the possibility of getting reported to the Bar for alleged negligence. However, we are all humans and sometimes mistakes do happened but as opposing lawyers, how do you be loyal to your client on one hand while trying to help a learned friend or a fellow lawyer on the other? Your client would expect you to object to any application to reinstate or to set aside a judgment while your conscience tells you that you too may face the same predicament one day and encounter such harsh consequences. So, again, how do you balance such scenario?
Well, the answer is the “hidden messages” in the submissions in Court. I have observed a number of occasions where lawyers were going at each other during the hearing of the application for reinstatement or setting aside of judgment. Both Counsels would be submitting back and forth while the Judge listened carefully to the submissions. The final submission from the Opposing Counsel is always interesting to observe. Whenever the Opposing Counsel ends his or her submissions along these words, “Be that as it may, I will leave it to the discretion to the Court as to whether to grant the application or not” and then stopped there. On more than one occasion, I have noticed the the Judge will then give a small smile with a nod of his or her head. A decision would then be made and it would be likely that the application be granted. The case will then proceed to a full hearing or a trial based on the merits and strength of each party’s position. Even though no one ever says this but from my observation, I believe when an Opposing Counsel says, “I will leave it to the discretion of the Court “, it conveys a hidden message that says “Listen, I have a duty to my client and I need to go all out to protect my client’s interest but personally, I don’t mind if the application is granted”. Why did I come to such an opinion? The reason is because as lawyers, we know that the Judge has the full power and discretion to decide on the case so why does the Opposing lawyer need to remind the Judge about the discretion? In my opinion, the reason is because lawyers as Officers of the Court have the duty to guide the Judge by submitting the law relating to the facts of the case but ultimately, the decision would lie with the Judge. That is why after a lengthy and vigorous submission, the Opposing Counsel would like to convey a “hidden message” to the Court, “I may have strong merits in my case but ultimately the decision is yours as to whether you want to grant it or otherwise notwithstanding my submission”. Well before I end my story on this, I would like to put a caveat to this story and say that this is just my opinion and as to whether there is a “hidden message” between lawyers and the Court, I will leave it to you to decide.
