Decree No. 14/2013/ND-CP amends and supplements some articles of Decree No. 07/2007/ND-CP dated January 12, 2007, of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Legal Aid Law.

DECREE

Amending and supplementing some articles of Decree No. 07/2007/ND-CP dated January 12, 2007 of the Government guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Legal Aid.

detailing certain provisions of the Legal Aid Law and guiding documents in legal aid activities and guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Legal Aid.

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Pursuant to the Law on the Organization of the Government dated December 25, 2001;

Pursuant to the Law on Legal Aid dated June 29, 2006;

At the proposal of the Minister of Justice;

The Government promulgates this Decree amending and supplementing some articles of Decree No. 07/2007/ND-CP dated January 12, 2007 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Legal Aid.

Article 1. Amending and supplementing some articles of Decree No. 07/2007/ND-CP dated January 12, 2007 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Legal Aid as follows:

1. Point k Clause 2, Clause 3, Clause 4, Clause 7 Article 2 shall be amended and supplemented with Clause 8 to Article 2 as follows:

“2. Persons who have rendered meritorious service to the revolution as defined in Clause 2 Article 10 of the Law on Legal Aid include:

k) Father, mother, wife, husband of martyrs; children of martyrs; persons who have raised martyrs.

3. Elderly persons as defined in Clause 3 Article 10 of the Law on Legal Aid are those aged 60 years or older, living alone without support.

4. Persons with disabilities as defined in the Law on Persons with Disabilities are those who lack or have reduced functions of one or more body parts or organs, resulting in difficulties in labor, daily life, and study; persons affected by toxic chemicals or HIV/AIDS without support.

7. Other subjects eligible for legal aid under international treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a party.

The Minister of Justice shall provide guidance on persons eligible for legal aid under international treaties stipulated in this clause.

8. Victims as defined by laws on preventing and combating trafficking in persons.”

2. Clause 5 Article 8 shall be amended and supplemented as follows:

“5. Shall bear responsibility for compensating losses caused by the fault of legal aid officers and legal aid volunteers during the provision of legal aid services.”

3. Clause 1 Article 9 shall be amended and supplemented as follows:

“1. The Center shall have a Director, Deputy Directors, Legal Aid Officers, and other staff members. The Director and Deputy Directors of the Center must be Legal Aid Officers.”

4. The title of Article 10, Clause 1, and Point c Clause 4 Article 10 shall be amended and supplemented as follows:

“Article 10. Criteria for appointment, removal, and dismissal of the Center Director

1. A person meeting the following criteria may be proposed for appointment as the Center Director:

a) Is a Legal Aid Officer;

b) Management capability;

c) Has at least five consecutive years of legal work experience.

4. The Center Director shall be dismissed if they fall into any of the following cases:

c) Is subject to disciplinary action involving dismissal from their managerial position according to the law on civil servants.”

5. Clause 1 Article 13 shall be amended and supplemented as follows:

“1. Branches shall have a Branch Head, Legal Aid Officers, and other staff members. The Branch Head must be a Legal Aid Officer.”

6. The title of Article 14, Clause 1, and Clause 2 Article 14 shall be amended and supplemented as follows:

“Article 14. Civil Servants, Staff Members, and Physical Facilities of the Center and Branches

1. Based on workload, nature, characteristics of specialized activities, and requirements of legal aid work, the People's Committee of the province shall determine the number of staff members for the Center and Branches; ensure funding, physical facilities, equipment, and working tools from local budgets and other legitimate sources for the Center and Branches.

2. Recruitment, employment, and management of civil servants and staff members of the Center shall be carried out in accordance with the law on recruitment, employment, and management of civil servants in state-run units.”

7. Article 19 shall be amended and supplemented as follows:

“1. Persons holding a bachelor’s degree in law, having completed a legal training program for lawyers, currently working in state legal aid centers, and participating in legal aid vocational training courses; if they meet the requirements of the legal aid vocational training course, the Legal Aid Department of the Ministry of Justice shall issue a Legal Aid Vocational Training Certificate in accordance with the law.

Persons who were previously lawyers as defined by the Lawyers Law or exempted from the legal training program for lawyers as defined by the Lawyers Law, currently working in state legal aid centers, and participating in legal aid vocational training examinations; if they meet the requirements of the legal aid vocational training course, the Legal Aid Department of the Ministry of Justice shall issue a Legal Aid Vocational Training Certificate in accordance with the law.

2. The Minister of Justice shall establish the curriculum and duration of legal aid vocational training courses for various positions of Legal Aid Officers; issue regulations on organizing, examining, and issuing certificates for legal aid vocational training courses.”

8. Article 25 shall be amended and supplemented as follows:

“Article 25. Positions of Legal Aid Officers

1. Legal Aid Officers shall hold positions as civil servants as prescribed by law.

2. The Minister of Home Affairs shall issue codes for the positions of Legal Aid Officers.

3. The Minister of Justice shall establish professional standards for the positions of Legal Aid Officers.”

9. Clause 1 and Clause 3 Article 26 shall be amended and supplemented as follows:

“1. Legal Aid Officers shall be classified and paid salaries according to the salary scale for civil servant positions as prescribed by law.

3. Legal Aid Officers shall receive a duty allowance equal to 25% of their current salary plus leadership position allowances and any over-quota allowances (if applicable). When participating in litigation, representing outside litigation, or mediating, Legal Aid Officers shall receive case handling allowances equivalent to 20% of the allowances provided to volunteers.”

10. Supplementing Article 26a as follows:

“Article 26a. Uniforms for Legal Aid Officers

1. Legal Aid Officers shall be provided with specific uniforms.

2. The Minister of Finance shall coordinate with the Minister of Justice to specify the uniform allowance system for Legal Aid Officers.

3. The Minister of Justice shall establish uniform models, management, and usage rules for Legal Aid Officers.”

11. Article 32 shall be restructured as follows:

"When participating in legal aid, the volunteer has the rights and obligations stipulated in Article 25 of the Legal Aid Law, and enjoys the following benefits and responsibilities:

1. Receiving allowances and reasonable administrative expenses according to the specific case as prescribed by law;

2. Proposing and recommending measures to expand and enhance the effectiveness of the Center's operations;

3. Being commended and rewarded for achievements in legal aid work;

4. Using the volunteer card in accordance with Clause 29 of this Decree; returning the volunteer card when it is revoked in accordance with Clause 30 of this Decree;

5. Being responsible before the Director of the Center and before the law for the implementation of legal aid cases. In the event of working at a Branch, they must also be responsible before the Head of the Branch;

6. In the event that a volunteer causes damage while providing legal aid, the Center where they collaborate shall bear the responsibility for compensation. The volunteer who caused the damage shall have the responsibility to reimburse the Center according to the provisions of civil law;

7. Reporting periodically and urgently upon request from the Center; promptly reporting emerging issues during the implementation of legal aid and proposing solutions to the Center leadership."

12. Clause 2 of Article 33 is amended and supplemented as follows:

"2. Volunteers are entitled to receive allowances based on the number of hours of legal counseling and other forms of legal aid provided. Allowances based on days worked are applied to legal aid cases implemented through participation in litigation or representation outside of litigation.

The level of allowance for legal aid cases for volunteers is established based on the quality of the content of legal aid, the time spent on legal aid, the complexity of the legal aid case, the form of presenting the results of legal aid, and the form of legal aid.

When implementing legal aid through participation in litigation, the allowance paid to the volunteer is 0.2 times the minimum wage per day of work of the volunteer.

The time spent on legal aid includes the time spent reviewing case files and preparing materials for the implementation of legal aid, the time spent meeting and interacting with the person receiving legal aid or their relatives, the time spent investigating the legal aid case, and the time spent working at agencies, organizations, or individuals related to the legal aid case. The basis for determining the working time of the volunteer is the working time confirmed by the relevant agency, organization, or individual."

13. Clause 3 of Article 35 is amended and supplemented as follows:

"3. The Center or Branch organizes mobile legal aid activities. When implementing mobile legal aid, the Center or Branch may request relevant agencies, departments, and sectors at the local level to cooperate in sending representatives to participate. Participants in mobile legal aid enjoy the treatment and policies for civil servants, public officials, and employees on business trips."

14. Article 36 is amended and supplemented as follows:

"1. A legal aid club is a form of community legal aid activity, creating conditions for people receiving legal aid, those in near-poor households, and local residents with legal issues to participate in activities. Through legal counseling, the club helps people receiving legal aid to improve their understanding of the law to comply with the law, resolve legal issues themselves, and protect their legitimate rights and interests.

2. The legal aid club is subject to state management by the People's Committee at the commune level. The operating costs of the legal aid club include costs for copying documents and other reasonable expenses borne by the Center, with the People's Committee at the commune level providing support in terms of location and drinking water.

3. The Chairman of the People's Committee at the commune level decides to establish and approve the Charter of the legal aid club based on the model Charter of the legal aid club issued by the Minister of Justice."

15. Clause 1 and Clause 2 of Article 41 are amended and supplemented as follows:

"1. When there is sufficient evidence indicating that the authorized state agency has exceeded the prescribed time limit without resolving the case or accepting the case for resolution, or the result of the case resolution does not comply with the provisions of the law, causing damage to the person receiving legal aid, the organization implementing legal aid shall propose to the authorized state agency to review and resolve the case to protect the legitimate rights and interests of the person receiving legal aid. When making a proposal, the organization implementing legal aid must clearly state the content of the case, the applicable legal basis, the direction of case resolution, and bear responsibility for the correctness of the proposal.

2. Upon receipt of the written proposal from the organization implementing legal aid, the authorized state agency responsible for resolving the case must examine and resolve the case and respond in writing within thirty days from the date of receipt of the proposal; in cases of justifiable reasons, the above period may be extended, but not exceeding forty-five days, except where otherwise provided by law.

If the authorized state agency fails to resolve the case or respond beyond the aforementioned period, the organization implementing legal aid may propose to the higher-level state agency directly overseeing the authorized state agency to resolve the case according to the law. The higher-level state agency directly overseeing must direct and handle the case with a proposal within thirty days from the date of receipt of the proposal and notify the organization implementing legal aid in writing about the outcome of the case resolution."

Article 43, Clause 1 and Clause 2 shall be amended and supplemented as follows:

“1. Evaluating the quality of legal aid cases involves applying the criteria for the quality of legal aid cases to assess the implementation process of legal aid, compliance with professional rules and the application of laws by the person providing legal aid; creating a basis for determining the responsibility of the person providing legal aid for the legal aid case.

2. The criteria for evaluating the quality of legal aid cases include the following main contents: Creating favorable conditions for the beneficiary of legal aid to access, present, and provide information about the legal aid case; the legal aid case is carried out ensuring comprehensiveness and timeliness; the content of legal aid is consistent with the law and social ethics; the procedures for implementing legal aid comply with the provisions of the law; the beneficiary of legal aid is satisfied with the spirit, attitude, method, and content of the legal aid provided; the case file of the legal aid case is established in accordance with the provisions of the law.”
legal aid is provided in accordance with the provisions of the law; the recipient of legal aid is satisfied with the spirit, attitude, manner of implementation, and content of the legal aid; the legal aid case file is established in compliance with the provisions of the law.”

Article 2. Effective Date

This Decree takes effect from March 31, 2013.

Article 3. Responsibility for Implementation

Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government-affiliated agencies, Chairpersons of provincial People's Committees directly under the Central Government shall be responsible for implementing this Decree.