Research on Major Theoretical Issues in the Amendment of the Lawyers Act

Author: Ma Hongjun, Editor-in-Chief
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-12-01
Features: The legal profession is a product of democracy and the rule of law, and an important component of the national judicial system. The Law of the People's Republic of China on the Legal Profession was promulgated in 1996, marking the alignment of China's legal profession with the international community. Over the past decade, Chinese lawyers have experienced both the joys and sorrows of their profession, feeling the support provided by the Law of the Legal Profession and the expectations of all sectors of society. They have heard numerous criticisms and laments, and have also endured various hardships, such as the severe infringement on their rights, particularly their personal rights, and the fear and helplessness of practicing lawyers when handling criminal defense cases. The emergence of government lawyers and corporate lawyers, the legalization process of military lawyers, the establishment of a unified judicial examination system, the improvement of the legal aid system, the demand for Chinese lawyers by the World Trade Organization, the organizational forms of law firms, the development of rules of professional conduct for lawyers, and the construction of a harmonious society—all of these have deeply convinced us that the Law of the Legal Profession is no longer fully adaptable to the rapidly evolving society and urgently needs comprehensive revision.
The Ministry of Justice initiated the revision process of the Law of the Legal Profession in 2004. They vigorously prepared for the revision of the law, establishing a special expert consultation group for the revision of the Law of the Legal Profession. I was fortunate to be appointed as a member of this consultation group. In 2004, I applied for this research project under the Ministry of Justice's research program for legal system construction and theoretical research at the senior level, and with the support of Beijing Hanlong Law Firm, I began the research for this specialized task. The research team consisted not only of law professors from universities but also officials from legal management departments, practicing lawyers, and individuals with overseas work experience who were familiar with the Chinese legal profession. Several graduate students from the Law School of China University of Political Science and Law, who had interned at the Ministry of Justice and assisted in the revision of the Law of the Legal Profession, also participated in the specific research work of the team.
After several discussion meetings, the host of the team listed nine major theoretical issues in the revision of the Law of the Legal Profession. The authors then drafted outlines for each thematic study, determined the basic framework of the research, and, by analyzing various materials from the revision workshops of the Law of the Legal Profession, drawing on legal provisions from other countries (territories), and combining China's actual conditions, we finally completed this work after two years. After the project was evaluated and approved by five experts organized by the Research Office of China University of Political Science and Law, the team made necessary revisions to the work, and today it is finally presented to the readers.
These nine issues are not all the theoretical problems in the revision of the Law of the Legal Profession, but rather those we believe are ready for revision and have a certain theoretical foundation. There are also some issues that should theoretically be revised but for which the current national conditions do not yet provide the necessary conditions, which have not been included. The research of this project is closely linked to the training of six master's students in the Judicial Organization Law program of the Law School of China University of Political Science and Law in 2003. During their three years of study, two years were spent under the guidance of their supervisors conducting thematic research, collecting and organizing a large amount of materials, participating in many seminars, and listening to opinions from various sectors. Based on their individual research, the team organized several academic seminars, continuously broadening everyone's perspectives and forming a synergy between theory and practical departments, making it a crystallization of collective wisdom.
Dr. Dong Chunjiang, Director of the Legal Profession Management Department of Beijing Bureau of Justice, was invited to participate in the team and directly engaged in the research and writing, significantly enhancing the quality of our work and helping the team break out of the mindset of working in isolation, making it more practical in value.