According to Article 44 of the Criminal Procedure Law of People's Republic of China (PRC), the victims of public prosecution cases and their legal representatives or close relatives, as well as the parties involved in incidental civil litigation and their legal representatives, have the right to entrust agents from the date when the case is transferred for examination and prosecution.
That is to say, before this, the victims of public prosecution cases and the parties involved in incidental civil litigation can only ask lawyers to write complaint materials and conduct legal consultation, and cannot formally entrust lawyers to intervene in the litigation.
Usually, lawyers will have enough time to familiarize themselves with the case in the early stage, make full preparations and provide a strong defense. The later they intervene, the more passive they become. If the parties to a criminal case and their families want to hire lawyers to intervene in the proceedings, they must correctly grasp the time according to the provisions of the law.