People's Republic of China (PRC) legal aid law

Chapter I General Provisions Article 1 This Law is formulated for the purpose of standardizing and promoting legal aid work, safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of citizens and relevant parties, ensuring the correct implementation of laws and safeguarding social fairness and justice. Article 2 The term "legal aid" as mentioned in this Law is a system established by the state to provide free legal advice, agency, criminal defense and other legal services for citizens with financial difficulties and other parties who meet legal conditions, and it is an integral part of the public legal service system. Article 3 Legal aid work shall adhere to the leadership of the Party, adhere to the people-oriented principle, respect and protect human rights, follow the principles of openness, fairness and justice, and combine state guarantee with social participation. Article 4 The people's governments at or above the county level shall incorporate legal aid into the national economic and social development plan and the basic public service system to ensure the coordinated development of legal aid and economy and society.

The people's governments at or above the county level shall improve the legal aid guarantee system, incorporate the relevant funds for legal aid into the government budget at the corresponding level, establish a dynamic adjustment mechanism, ensure the needs of legal aid work, and promote the balanced development of legal aid. Article 5 The judicial administrative department of the State Council shall guide and supervise the national legal aid work. The judicial administrative departments of the local people's governments at or above the county level shall guide and supervise the legal aid work within their respective administrative areas.

Other relevant departments of the people's governments at or above the county level shall, in accordance with their respective duties, provide support and guarantee for legal aid work. Article 6 The people's courts, people's procuratorates and public security organs shall, within their respective functions and duties, ensure that the parties concerned obtain legal aid according to law and provide convenience for legal aid workers to carry out their work. Article 7 Lawyers associations shall guide and support law firms and lawyers to participate in legal aid work. Article 8 The State encourages and supports social organizations, institutions and social organizations to provide legal aid according to law under the guidance of judicial administrative departments. Article 9 The State encourages and supports enterprises, institutions, social organizations, individuals and other social forces, and provides support for legal aid through donations and other means according to law. Give tax incentives to those who meet the conditions. Article 10 The judicial administrative department shall carry out regular publicity and education on legal aid and popularize legal aid knowledge.

The news media should actively carry out public welfare publicity of legal aid and strengthen supervision by public opinion. Article 11 The state shall commend and reward organizations and individuals that have made outstanding contributions in legal aid work in accordance with relevant regulations. Chapter II Institutions and Personnel Article 12 The judicial administrative department of the people's government at or above the county level shall set up legal aid institutions. Legal aid agencies are responsible for organizing the implementation of legal aid work, accepting and reviewing legal aid applications, assigning lawyers, grassroots legal service workers, legal aid volunteers and other legal aid personnel to provide legal aid and pay legal aid subsidies. Thirteenth legal aid institutions may, according to the needs of their work, arrange for personnel with lawyer qualifications or legal professional qualifications to provide legal aid; You can set up a legal aid workstation or contact point nearby to accept legal aid applications. Fourteenth legal aid institutions can be stationed in people's courts, people's procuratorates, detention centers and other places to provide legal aid to criminal suspects and defendants without defenders according to law. Fifteenth judicial administrative departments can choose law firms and other legal service institutions to provide legal aid to recipients through government procurement. Sixteenth law firms, grassroots legal services, lawyers and grassroots legal service workers have the obligation to provide legal aid according to law.

Law firms and grassroots legal service offices shall support and guarantee lawyers and grassroots legal service workers to perform their legal aid obligations. Article 17 The State encourages and regulates voluntary legal aid services; Support qualified individuals as legal aid volunteers to provide legal aid according to law.

Institutions of higher learning and scientific research institutions can organize personnel engaged in legal education and research and students majoring in law as legal aid volunteers to provide legal advice, drafting legal documents and other legal aid to the parties under the guidance of the judicial administrative department.

The specific measures for the administration of legal aid volunteers shall be formulated by the relevant departments of the State Council. Article 18 The State shall establish and improve the inter-regional flow mechanism of legal service resources according to law, and encourage and support law firms, lawyers and legal aid volunteers to provide legal aid in areas where legal service resources are relatively scarce. Nineteenth legal aid personnel shall perform their duties according to law, provide legal aid services that meet the standards for the recipients in a timely manner, and safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of the recipients. Twentieth legal aid workers should abide by professional ethics and practice discipline, and may not collect any property from the recipient. Twenty-first legal aid institutions and legal aid personnel shall keep confidential the state secrets, business secrets and personal privacy they know in the process of providing legal aid. Chapter III Forms and Scope Article 22 A legal aid institution may organize legal aid personnel to provide the following forms of legal aid services according to law:

(1) legal advice;

(2) Drafting legal documents on his behalf;

(3) criminal defense and agency;

(4) Agents ad litem and non-litigation agents in civil cases, administrative cases and state compensation cases;

(five) the legal aid of the lawyer on duty;

(six) labor dispute mediation and arbitration institutions;

(seven) other forms stipulated by laws, regulations and rules.