Cao Rulin (1877~ 1966), born in Shanghai, graduated from Tokyo Law School and was the first lawyer with formal practice qualification in the Republic of China. He has successively held important positions such as Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Director of Communications, Director of Foreign Affairs and Director of Finance.
He was the first person to apply for a lawyer's practice license in the history of the Republic of China. According to statistics, in the four months from September of the first year of the Republic of China to February of 65438, Cao Rulin represented as many as 28 lawsuits, and undertook more than half of the defense work in criminal cases on appeal. From Cao Shi's practice experience, people can also get a glimpse of "the practice of lawyers as a modern profession in the embryonic stage of modernization of rule of law in China, and the meaningful social picture reflected from it". ? In China at that time, ordinary people did not have the concept of lawyer.
Cao once went to Baoding to appear in court, and the hotel where he stayed was decorated with lanterns and colorful books, and Cao Shi was quite surprised after hearing it, only to know that the local people regarded it as an old patrol press. ?
Even Yuan Shikai, who admired Cao Rulin, once asked him, "Why do you want to be a lawyer? Isn't a lawyer equal to a former litigation lawyer? " Cao Zhengse replied: "Lawyers and litigators are absolutely different. Lawyers protect human rights according to law, while litigation lawyers distort facts and profit from them. " Cao's law firm is located at home. At this time, "the atmosphere is not open" and there are not many people consulting.
Later, Cao accepted a complaint from a condemned man. Under his defense, the condemned man was acquitted, and Cao Rulin became famous. In Cao Shi's memoirs in his later years, when he mentioned this past, there was also a feeling of high spirits between the lines: "From then on, everyone knows that a lawsuit can't be done without a lawyer ... a place name spread like wildfire, making the market crowded ... Later, more and more law and politics students were listed as lawyers." ?
Although famous for a while, the fees charged by Mr. Cao are not expensive. "In addition to publicly charging according to regulations, I don't care about rewards and listen to the parties." Once the lawsuit was won, the whole family of the parties went to Cao's house to kowtow and thank them, but the family was poor and could only send some local products to express their gratitude. Cao Shi not only does not receive remuneration, but even the work fee is exempted.