Legal basis: Article 48 of the Criminal Procedure Law stipulates: "Defense lawyers have the right to keep confidential the relevant information and information of their clients that they know in their practice activities. However, if a defense lawyer knows that the client or other person is preparing or committing a crime that endangers national security, public safety and seriously endangers the personal safety of others in his practice activities, he shall promptly inform the judicial organ. "
Article 38 of the Lawyers Law stipulates: "Lawyers shall keep state secrets and business secrets they know in their practice activities and shall not disclose the privacy of their clients. Lawyers should keep confidential the information and materials that their clients and others are unwilling to disclose in their practice activities. However, criminal facts and information that endanger national security, public safety and other serious hazards to the personal and property safety of others are excluded. "
Comparing the provisions of the above two laws, we can see that the so-called "right" to keep secrets means that defense lawyers "have the right" to refuse to disclose the relevant information and information of criminal suspects and defendants they know in their practice activities, and no organ, organization or individual may require defense lawyers to provide such information and information; This in no way means that defense lawyers "have the right not to keep secrets." On the contrary, based on the specific relationship between defense lawyers and criminal suspects and defendants, defense lawyers have the obligation to keep confidential the relevant information and information of criminal suspects and defendants they know in their practice activities. Not only the defense lawyers entrusted by criminal suspects, defendants or their close relatives have the obligation of confidentiality, but also the defense lawyers appointed by legal aid institutions for criminal suspects and defendants according to law have the obligation of confidentiality.