Joint Circular No. 108/2002/TTLT-BTC-BTP guiding remuneration and expenses for lawyers when participating in litigation at the request of the prosecution agency.

JOINT CIRCULAR

Guidelines on remuneration and expenses for lawyers when participating in litigation at the request of the prosecution agency

pursuant to the requirements of the prosecution agency

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Based on the current Code of Civil Procedure;

Based on Article 31 of the Lawyer Ordinance adopted by the Standing Committee of the National Assembly on July 25, 2001;

Based on Article 26 of Decree No. 94/2001/NĐ-CP dated December 12, 2001 of the Government detailing the implementation of the Lawyer Ordinance;

The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Justice jointly issue guidelines on remuneration and payment of expenses for lawyers when participating in litigation at the request of the prosecution agency as follows:

I. SCOPE OF APPLICATION:

When a lawyer is requested by the prosecution agency to participate in litigation in a case, they shall be paid remuneration and expenses according to the provisions of the Lawyer Ordinance, Decree No. 94/2001/NĐ-CP dated December 12, 2001 of the Government, and the provisions of this Circular.

II. LEVELS OF REMUNERATION AND EXPENSES:

1. The level of remuneration paid to a lawyer in a case requested by the prosecution agency is 70,000 VND per day of work of the lawyer. A day of work of the lawyer is calculated as two sessions. The remuneration for each session of work of the lawyer is 35,000 VND per session.

2. The working time of lawyers includes:

a. Time spent meeting with the suspect or defendant;

b. Time spent studying the file and preparing materials at the prosecution agency;

c. Time spent participating in court sessions;

In cases where the court session is postponed without the request of the lawyer and the lawyer was not informed in advance, the prosecution agency must bear the responsibility to pay remuneration to the lawyer equivalent to one session of work of the lawyer.

The time worked by the lawyer must be confirmed by the prosecution agency as the basis for paying remuneration to the lawyer.

3. In addition to the remuneration amount, during the course of participating in the case, if the lawyer travels for the needs of the case, then the travel expenses for transportation and accommodation will be reimbursed according to the current regulations on travel expenses for state officials traveling within the country.

The travel time of the lawyer must be confirmed by the prosecution agency.

III. SOURCES OF FUNDS AND METHODS OF PAYMENT:

1. The funds for paying remuneration and expenses for lawyers participating in litigation at the request of the prosecution agency are allocated from the annual budget of the prosecution agency.

The prosecution agency that requests the Bar Association to assign a defense lawyer shall prepare the budget and directly pay the lawyer, specifically:

If the investigation agency requests the assignment of a lawyer to participate in the case during the investigation stage, the investigation agency is responsible for paying the lawyer for their activities during the investigation stage; the Prosecutor's Office is responsible for paying the lawyer for their activities during the prosecution stage; the Court is responsible for paying the lawyer for their activities during the trial stage.

2. Payment of remuneration and other related expenses to the lawyer shall be carried out through a legal service contract between the prosecution agency and the law firm according to the provisions of Article 25 of the Lawyer Ordinance.

3. Management, distribution, and settlement of funds shall be conducted in accordance with the current financial management regulations.

IV. IMPLEMENTATION ORGANIZATION:

This Circular shall take effect from January 1, 2002. The remuneration and expense payments for lawyers in 2002 shall be included in the 2002 budget already allocated to the prosecution agencies. From 2003 onwards, the remuneration and expense payments for lawyers shall be allocated in the annual budget of the prosecution agencies.

During the implementation process, if there are difficulties or obstacles, please promptly report them to the Joint Ministries for study and resolution.