If a defense lawyer holds a lawyer's practice certificate, a law firm's certificate, a power of attorney or a letter of legal aid to ask for a meeting with the criminal suspect or defendant in custody, the detention center shall arrange the meeting in time, which shall not exceed 48 hours at the latest. Article 41 of the Criminal Procedure Law: With the consent of witnesses or other relevant units and individuals, defense lawyers may collect materials related to this case from them, or apply to the people's procuratorate or people's court to collect and obtain evidence, or apply to the people's court to notify witnesses to testify in court.
With the permission of the people's procuratorate or the people's court, and with the consent of the victim or his close relatives or witnesses provided by the victim, the defense lawyer may collect materials related to the case from them. Article 38 expands the scope of confidentiality obligation and adds "A lawyer shall keep confidential the information and materials that his clients and others are unwilling to disclose in their practice activities, except the original state secrets and business secrets." At the same time, it is also stipulated that the exception is that lawyers are not obligated to keep confidential "criminal facts and materials that endanger national security, public safety and other serious personal and property safety of others", which implies that other situations, such as criminal facts that the client has not yet been mastered by the judicial organs, should be obligated to keep confidential. These provisions basically have the content of the privilege of testifying.
It is true that these amendments to the lawyer law are a summary of past experience and a reflection of legislative theory and practice, and some progress has been made. However, this is only a piecemeal progress, which cannot fundamentally make up for the structural defects of China's defense system. Of course, this is not the main task of the Lawyers Law, but it shows the concern and signal of trying to solve the problem of "difficult criminal defense" at the legislative level, which makes people look forward to the revision of the Criminal Procedure Law.
Regarding the resolution of the conflict between the Lawyers Law and the current Criminal Procedure Law, the Reply of the NPC Standing Committee Law Committee on the ProposalNo. 1524 (Political and Legal Category 137) of the First Session of the Eleventh Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference stated: "According to the Constitution, the the National People's Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC) law enacted by the National People's Congress does not conflict with its basic principles, and the newly revised Lawyers Law, Some specific issues about lawyers' right to practice in criminal proceedings in the Criminal Procedure Law have been supplemented and improved, and in fact, the relevant provisions of the Criminal Procedure Law have been revised with new legal provisions. In this regard, it should be implemented in accordance with the provisions of the revised Lawyers Law. "