Legal Document Formatting Example Analysis

Author: Shi Hongwei (Compiler)
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2002-01-01
Features:
1. The basic information of the defendant or the defendant unit shall be written in the order of the elements listed in the format.
2. If the defendant has aliases, nicknames, or other names related to the case, they shall be noted in parentheses after the name; if the defendant is a foreigner, their foreign name shall be noted in parentheses after their Chinese name.
3. The date of birth of the defendant shall be based on the Gregorian calendar. Except for minors, if the date of birth cannot be determined, the age may be noted.
4. If the defendant has not yet obtained an ID card, it shall be indicated.
5. The address of the defendant shall be the defendant’s usual residence. However, if it differs from the "registered permanent residence," the registered permanent residence must be noted in parentheses.
6. If the defendant is a foreigner, their nationality, passport number, and foreign residence shall be indicated.
7. If the defendant has previously received administrative or criminal penalties, the indictment shall state this. Administrative penalties shall be limited to those related to the conviction. Generally, administrative penalties should be stated first, followed by criminal penalties. When describing administrative penalties, the time, type, and penalizing authority shall be noted; when describing criminal penalties, the time, reason, type, deciding authority, and release time shall be noted.
8. When describing the imposition of coercive measures, the reason, type, approving or deciding authority and time, and executing authority and time must be indicated. If multiple coercive measures have been imposed, they shall be described in the order of their execution.
9. If there are multiple defendants in the same case, they shall be listed in the order of their principal and subordinate relationships.
(III) Case Cause and Review Process
According to the different circumstances of the case, the description shall be made in accordance with the requirements of the format. When describing the return for further investigation or the extension of the review period for indictment, the date and reason shall be noted.
(IV) Case Facts
The case facts section is the key part of the indictment. When describing case facts, the following points should be noted:
1. All criminal facts charged in the indictment, whether involving one person and one crime, multiple persons and one crime, one person and multiple crimes, or multiple persons and multiple crimes, must be listed one by one.
2. The case facts should be narrated in a reasonable order. Generally, they can be arranged in chronological order. For one person with multiple crimes, the crimes should be narrated in order of severity, with the most serious crime first, followed by the less serious or minor crimes. For multiple persons with multiple crimes, the order should be based on the principal and subordinate roles or the severity of the crimes, highlighting the principal and the most serious crimes.
3. When describing case facts, appropriate expressions should be adopted based on the different circumstances of the case. The following principles should be followed:
- For major cases, cases with significant impact, or cases directly accepted for investigation by the procuratorial organ, the specific time, location, process, means, purpose, motivation, harmful consequences, and the defendant’s behavior after the incident and their attitude toward pleading guilty must be detailed. Special attention should be given to facts that constitute the essential elements of the crime or are related to the conviction and sentencing. It is necessary to avoid omissions and to avoid including matters without evidence or insufficient evidence, as well as irrelevant matters, ensuring clarity and emphasis on key points.
- For general criminal cases, the case facts should generally be detailed. However, for cases where multiple crimes have been committed but the means and harmful consequences are similar, the same circumstances can be summarized first, followed by the specific time, results, and other details of each crime, without needing to describe the process of each crime in detail.
4. For joint criminal cases where co-defendants are at large, the phrase "to be handled in another case" shall be added.
(V) Evidence
The indictment shall indicate the name and type of the main evidence but need not conduct a specific analysis or argument regarding the relationship between evidence and facts or between evidence and evidence. The "main evidence" refers to the evidence stipulated in Article 283 of the "Procuratorial Rules of Criminal Procedure." When describing evidence, the "one fact, one evidence" method is generally adopted, that is, after each case fact, the main evidence used to determine it shall be stated. For general criminal cases involving multiple crimes, if the case facts are summarized, the "one crime, one evidence" method can also be adopted, that is, after the crime, the types of main evidence shall be summarized, without specifying the evidence for each case fact.
(VI) Requirements and Basis for Indictment