New procedures in place are already helping to protect lawyers
Lawyers associations at the national and local levels have accepted 377 complaints from lawyers about their rights being infringed upon since March, a senior officer from the association said. Of those, 142 cases were resolved, with lawyers’ legal rights being upheld.
The other 235 cases remain under verification and investigation, Lyu Hongbing, vicechairman of the association, told China Daily.
Among the complaints, 164 concerned about lawyers’ claims of being barred from meeting their clients, reading case files, collecting evidence or being kept from protesting to higher judicial authorities about possible torture of their clients or other injustices they found while handling cases.
Another 100 are lawyers’ complaints about being threatened, being retaliated against or suffering personal injury, as well as being expelled from courts or illegally detained. The rest involve other scenarios that lawyers cited, such as being barred from conducting their professional duties, the association said.
In recent years, an increasing number of cases about lawyers’ rights being infringed upon have been reported nationwide due to the lack of a proper channel for complaints or insufficient legislation, which has attracted attention from the public and media organizations, the association said.
In March, the association set up a center to receive complaints from lawyers to better protect their legitimate rights.
“We’ve set up a cooperative mechanism with judicial authorities nationwide. Once we receive a formal complaint from a lawyer, we’ll activate a quick-response procedure to handle the case in a timely manner,” Lyu said.
A typical case occurred in early October, when the Xiamen Lawyers Association in Fujian province received a complaint from Peng Haitang, a lawyer from the Xiamen Wenrong Law Firm, who claimed he had been assaulted by the opposing side during a break when attending a court hearing in Zhenjiang Intermediate People’s Court, Jiangsu province.
After receiving the report, the Xiamen Lawyers Association immediately informed the Zhenjiang Lawyers Association and asked for a joint investigation. The Zhenjiang Lawyers Association reported the case to the Jiangsu Provincial Lawyers Association, which soon reported the case to the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Justice.
Under a joint working mechanism, the lawyers association and relevant judicial departments in Jiangsu then held a conference to deal with the case together. Now, the accused has been criminally detained for disturbing court order, according to the All China Lawyers Association.
“The joint working mechanism has indeed played an essential role in safeguarding my rights, and I’ve been informed in a timely manner about the progress of the case,” Peng said.
Peng Xinlin, a law professor from Beijing Normal University, said the establishment of such a center is effective in protecting lawyers rights and will help improve lawyers’ professional capabilities in the long run.
Lyu said the association also will push for amending the Lawyers Law to include more stipulations on better protection for lawyers. In addition, the association plans to hold regular meetings with judicial departments to discuss major concerns and seek for solutions, he said.