Decree No. 78/2008/ND-CP on management of cooperation with foreign countries regarding laws

DECREE

On management of cooperation with foreign countries on legal matters

 ____________________

THE GOVERNMENT

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

Upon the proposal of the Minister of Justice.

DECREE:

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation and Applicability

1. This Decree applies to legal cooperation activities of Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, agencies under the Government, central agencies of political-social organizations, social organizations, socio-professional organizations, People's Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities (hereinafter referred to as "the managing agency") with foreign government agencies, international intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental organizations (hereinafter referred to as "foreign agencies and organizations").

2. Units subordinate to the managing agency mentioned in Clause 1 of this Article must conduct legal cooperation activities with foreign countries through their respective managing agencies.

Article 2. Principles of Cooperation with Foreign Countries on Legal Matters

1. Cooperation with foreign countries on legal matters must be conducted based on ensuring independence, sovereignty, national security, social order and safety, compliance with the Constitution, laws, customs, and traditions of the nation, ensuring effectiveness, practicality, and avoiding duplication.

2. Cooperation with foreign countries on legal matters must be conducted based on programs, plans, projects (hereinafter referred to as programs or projects) signed in writing between the managing agency and foreign agencies and organizations after being permitted by the competent authority of Vietnam as stipulated in Article 14 of this Decree.

3. The content of cooperation programs and projects must be based on the Party and State’s policies and strategies for economic and social development, strategies for building and perfecting the legal system; judicial reform strategies, legislative agendas of the National Assembly, the priority level of the cooperation issue, and the cooperation capacity of the managing agency as well as foreign agencies and organizations.

4. The formation, permission to sign, and implementation of cooperation programs and projects must comply with the provisions of this Decree, current regulations on the management and utilization of official development assistance (ODA), the management and utilization of non-governmental foreign aid, and other relevant legal normative documents.

Article 3. Content of Cooperation

Legal cooperation with foreign countries as prescribed in this Decree includes technical support activities in the following areas:

1. Drafting, reviewing, and inspecting regulatory legal documents.

2. Implementing regulatory legal documents and international treaties to which Vietnam is a party; monitoring the enforcement of laws.

3. Enhancing the capacity of law-making agencies, investigation, prosecution, adjudication, enforcement, administrative judiciary, and judicial auxiliary functions.

4. Legal education at university and postgraduate levels, vocational training, and improving the qualifications of drafters of regulatory legal documents, judges, court examiners, court clerks, prosecutors, investigators, enforcement officers, court enforcement examiners, legal aid assistants, criminal enforcement officials, arbitrators, notaries, registration officers, lawyers, and other judicial positions.

5. Legal information dissemination, legal education and awareness, and legal aid.

6. Other cooperative activities as prescribed by law.

Article 4. Forms of cooperation

1. Signing and implementing international treaties, programs, and cooperation projects with foreign countries on laws.

2. Organizing conferences, seminars, scientific forums, and specialized training sessions on laws with the participation or sponsorship of foreign agencies and organizations.

3. Organizing survey delegations and exchanges of experience in the field of laws.

4. Exchanging legal documents, including textbooks, teaching materials, lectures, legal texts, and specialized books on laws.

5. Providing consulting experts for the contents stipulated in Article 3 of this Decree.

6. Other forms of cooperation as prescribed by law.

Chapter II

PROMOTION AND COORDINATION OF COOPERATION PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS

Article 5. Promotion of cooperation programs and projects

1. Promoting cooperation programs and projects on laws shall be carried out based on the following: economic and social development strategy; orientation for attracting and utilizing ODA; legal system construction strategy; judicial reform strategy; legislative program of the National Assembly; legal provisions on managing and using ODA and managing and using non-governmental foreign aid.

2. The managing agency that has a need to cooperate with foreign countries on laws and already has cooperative partners must closely coordinate with the Ministry of Justice and relevant agencies to form the content of cooperation in the form of cooperation programs and projects with foreign countries on laws.

3. In cases where the managing agency has a need to cooperate on laws but does not yet have foreign partners, it may request the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Planning and Investment, or the Committee for Non-Governmental Foreign Organizations to assist in finding partners.

Article 6. Coordination of cooperation activities

1. The Ministry of Justice shall take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment to prepare and organize the International Legal Support Coordination Conference.

2. Based on ODA programs and projects on laws included in the list of funding requirements approved by the Prime Minister and the list of programs and projects proposed for non-governmental foreign aid, commitments from foreign partners, the Ministry of Justice shall coordinate international cooperation activities according to the following criteria:

a) The priority level of the cooperation issue;

b) Management experience, capacity to receive and utilize support resources;

c) No overlap in cooperation content.

3. If the partner's commitment to fund an area already has many other partners supporting or is not consistent with the priority level of cooperation, the Ministry of Justice shall coordinate with the managing agency to negotiate with the foreign partner to transfer the funding commitment to a more suitable area.

Chapter III

REVIEW OF COOPERATION PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS

Article 7. Review Authority

1. Cooperation programs and projects with foreign countries on laws within the approval authority of the Prime Minister must be reviewed by the Ministry of Justice before being submitted to the Prime Minister for consideration and approval.

2. During the review process of programs and projects, the Ministry of Justice has the authority:

a) To request the managing agency to present the cooperation program and project on laws, and to ask the managing agency to provide information and related documents on the cooperation program and project when the draft document of the cooperation program and project still contains unclear content or many issues remain controversial;

b) To convene meetings with the participation of the managing agency and representatives of relevant agencies and organizations, consulting organizations, and independent consulting experts to discuss and exchange opinions on the review content when necessary.

Article 8. Responsibilities of the Managing Authority in the Appraisal Process

During the appraisal process, the managing authority shall be responsible for:

1. Closely coordinating with the Ministry of Justice in negotiating the program and project cooperation agreements, ensuring the quality of draft documents for the program and project and the quality of the appraisal report.

2. Submitting all necessary files as stipulated in Article 11 of this Decree to the Ministry of Justice for appraisal.

3. Providing information and materials relevant to the draft documents of the program and project cooperation as requested by the Ministry of Justice; presenting the draft documents of the program and project cooperation when requested by the Ministry of Justice.

4. Studying and revising the draft documents of the program and project cooperation based on the appraisal documents of the Ministry of Justice before submitting to the Prime Minister for approval of the program and project.

Article 9. Principles of Appraisal

The appraisal of programs and projects for legal cooperation must ensure the following principles:

1. Ensuring objectivity and scientific rigor.

2. Adhering to the procedures, formalities, and deadlines for appraisal as prescribed in this Decree and other related legal documents.

Article 10. Content of Appraisal

Programs and projects for legal cooperation with foreign countries are appraised on the following contents:

1. The necessity of the program and project.

2. The compatibility of the objectives, content, form of cooperation, and expected results of the program and project with the provisions set out in Clause 2 of Article 2 of this Decree and with the level of priority for cooperation, functions, and tasks of the managing authority.

3. The constitutionality, legality, and degree of compatibility of the program and project with Vietnamese laws; the compatibility of the program and project with international treaties to which Vietnam is a party.

4. Non-redundancy with other programs and projects.

5. The feasibility of the program and project; the qualifications, expertise, and cooperation experience of foreign agencies and organizations.

6. The economic and social effectiveness of implementing the program and project; potential adverse factors of the program and project.

7. Language and technical drafting of documents.

Article 11. Appraisal Files

The managing authority submits five sets of files to the Ministry of Justice for appraisal, including the following documents:

1. A letter requesting appraisal.

2. A draft proposal for the competent authority to approve the program and project.

3. Draft documents of the program and project.

4. Explanatory documents and proof of commitment from foreign agencies and organizations.

5. A summary of opinions from relevant ministries and sectors regarding the legal cooperation program and project, along with copies of each ministry's and sector's opinions.

Article 12. Receiving Appraisal Files

1. The Ministry of Justice is responsible for receiving and checking the appraisal files.

2. Within three working days from the date of receipt of the files, if the Ministry of Justice finds that the appraisal files are incomplete as required under Article 11 of this Decree, it has the right to request the managing authority to supplement the files.

3. Within five working days from the date of receipt of the request to supplement the files from the Ministry of Justice, the main drafting and negotiating agency is responsible for supplementing the appraisal files.

4. The appraisal period is ten working days, starting from the date the Ministry of Justice receives valid files.

Article 13. Appraisal Board

1. The Appraisal Board for programs and projects collaborating with foreign countries on laws within the approval authority of the Prime Minister shall be established by the Ministry of Justice in the following cases:

a) Projects involving multiple Ministries and sectors;

b) Ministries and sectors have differing opinions on the contents stipulated in Article 10 of this Decree;

c) Programs and projects where the Ministry of Justice is the main managing agency.

2. Members of the Appraisal Board include the Chairman of the Appraisal Board, the Secretary of the Board, and members representing the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, the Government Office, the Committee for Foreign Non-Governmental Organizations, and other relevant agencies and organizations. The Chairman and Secretary of the Appraisal Board shall be designated by the Minister of Justice.

3. The Ministry of Justice shall guide the operational regulations of the Appraisal Board for programs and projects collaborating with foreign countries on laws.

Chapter IV

PROCEDURES FOR SUBMITTING AND IMPLEMENTING PROJECTS AND PROGRAMS OF COOPERATION

Article 14. Procedures for submitting programs and projects

1. The submission to the competent authority for approval of programs and projects must comply with the procedures and sequence prescribed by the law on management and use of official development assistance and non-governmental foreign aid.

2. For programs and projects under the approval authority of the Prime Minister, the main managing agency must obtain the appraisal opinion of the Ministry of Justice before submitting to the Prime Minister for consideration and approval.

3. For programs and projects under the approval authority of the main managing agency, the main managing agency must gather comments from the Ministry of Justice and related agencies before considering and approving them.

Article 15. Implementation of programs and projects

1. The main managing agency may only implement or permit the implementation of programs and projects after the signed document becomes legally effective.

2. The execution of cooperation content and specific activities of programs and projects must be thoroughly prepared in terms of content, ensuring expected results, practicality, alignment with objectives, and protection of state secrets.

3. Procedures for deciding on outbound and inbound delegations and providing information according to cooperative programs and projects must comply with current legal provisions.

4. During the implementation process, the main managing agency must closely coordinate with the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Finance, and the Committee for Foreign Non-Governmental Organizations on issues within the specialized management authority of each agency.

Article 16. Amendment, supplementation, and adjustment of cooperative programs and projects

1. Amendments, supplements, and adjustments to cooperative programs and projects on laws must comply with the provisions of the law on management and use of official development assistance and management and use of non-governmental foreign aid.

2. During the implementation process, if there is a need to amend, supplement, or adjust cooperative programs and projects on laws leading to changes in the objectives of these programs and projects or altering the content of international treaties already signed, then the main managing agency must go through the appraisal procedure and submit to the competent authority for consideration and approval in accordance with Article 14 of this Decree.

Article 17. Suspension, temporary suspension, cancellation of cooperation programs and projects

The suspension, temporary suspension, and cancellation of cooperation programs, plans, and projects with foreign countries under the law shall be decided by competent state agencies according to the provisions of the law on concluding and implementing international treaties, the law on managing and using official development assistance and non-governmental foreign aid.

Chapter V

MONITORING AND EVALUATION OF COOPERATION PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS

Article 18. Responsibilities for monitoring and evaluating cooperation programs and projects

1. The Program Management Board has the responsibility to regularly monitor and evaluate programs and projects.

2. The program/project sponsor has the responsibility to direct, urge, and support the Program Management Board in monitoring and evaluating programs and projects.

3. The managing agency takes the lead in developing plans, coordinating with relevant agencies to conduct or hire consultants to conduct impact assessments of programs and projects.

4. The Ministry of Justice takes the lead, coordinating with relevant ministries and sectors to supervise and assess the management capacity of implementing cooperation programs and projects with foreign countries on legal matters.

5. The Ministry of Justice takes the lead in establishing periodic statistical indicators regarding the situation of receiving and implementing cooperation programs and projects with foreign countries on legal matters; coordinating with related agencies to establish and operate a tracking and evaluation information system for programs and projects, facilitating information sharing and utilization of this system.

Article 19. Reporting System on the Implementation of Programs and Projects

1. The managing agency has the responsibility to periodically submit reports every six months and annually to the Ministry of Justice on the implementation of legal cooperation activities with foreign countries and the anticipated implementation of cooperation programs and projects for the subsequent period according to a unified form issued by the Ministry of Justice.

2. The Ministry of Justice has the responsibility to compile the situation, analyze, and evaluate legal cooperation activities with foreign countries and report annually to the Prime Minister.

Article 20. Inspection and Supervision of Program and Project Implementation

1. The Ministry of Justice is responsible before the Government for supervising the implementation of legal cooperation programs and projects by the managing agency; the managing agency has the responsibility to facilitate such supervision.

2. The managing agency conducts specialized inspections according to the law.

3. When necessary, the Ministry of Justice establishes a multi-sector inspection team to inspect the implementation of programs and projects.

4. During inspections, the Ministry of Justice and the multi-sector inspection team have the right to request the managing agency implementing programs and projects to rectify cooperation activities; if violations of the law are found in the implementation of cooperation programs, plans, and projects, they shall recommend the Prime Minister to consider and handle them according to the law.

Chapter VI

IMPLEMENTATION

Article 21. State Administration of Legal Cooperation Activities with Foreign Countries

1. The Government uniformly manages legal cooperation activities with foreign countries, including:

a) Issuing legal normative documents on legal cooperation with foreign countries;

b) Deciding on cooperation policies and directions;

c) Directing negotiations, signing, and implementing cooperation programs and projects;

d) Inspecting and supervising the implementation of cooperation programs and projects;

đ) Submitting to the President for consideration and decision on legal cooperation programs and projects signed in the name of the State according to the law on concluding and implementing international treaties;

e) Deciding on negotiations, signing, amending, supplementing, extending, suspending, or canceling legal cooperation programs and projects with foreign countries signed in the name of the State or the Government according to the law on concluding and implementing international treaties.

2. The Prime Minister approves the policy of negotiating, signing, amending, supplementing, extending, or suspending, canceling programs and projects within their jurisdiction.

Article 22. Responsibilities of the Ministry of Justice

The Ministry of Justice is responsible before the Government for uniformly managing legal cooperation activities with foreign countries, having the following tasks and authorities:

1. Drafting and submitting to competent state agencies for promulgation, and promulgating according to its authority, legal normative documents on legal cooperation with foreign countries.

2. Developing and submitting to the Government policies and directions for legal cooperation with foreign countries.

3. Compiling and coordinating the content of legal cooperation programs, plans, and projects with foreign countries.

4. Reviewing the content of legal cooperation programs, plans, and projects, including amendments, supplements, or extensions of these programs, plans, and projects.

5. Issuing reporting forms on the implementation of legal cooperation activities with foreign countries.

6. Coordinating with the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Public Security, the Committee for Foreign Non-Governmental Organizations, and other relevant ministries and sectors to monitor, inspect, and evaluate the implementation of the content of legal cooperation programs, plans, and projects with foreign countries.

7. Guiding, urging, and inspecting the managing agencies specified in Article 1 of this Decree to implement cooperation activities in accordance with the provisions of this Decree; in case of discovering violations, recommending appropriate handling measures to the Prime Minister.

8. Summarizing, concluding, statistically analyzing, evaluating, and reporting to the Prime Minister the situation of implementing legal cooperation programs, plans, and projects with foreign countries.

Article 23. Responsibilities of Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, and government agencies

1. The Ministry of Planning and Investment shall be responsible for managing programs, plans, and projects on cooperation with foreign countries concerning laws using ODA funds in accordance with the provisions of the law on the management and use of ODA funds; it shall have the responsibility to coordinate with the Ministry of Justice in performing this task.

2. The Committee for Foreign Non-Governmental Organizations shall be responsible for managing programs, plans, and projects on cooperation with foreign countries concerning laws using funds from foreign non-governmental organizations in accordance with the provisions of the law on the management and use of non-governmental organization aid; it shall have the responsibility to coordinate with the Ministry of Justice in performing this task.

3. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Finance, and other ministries, ministerial-level agencies, and government agencies shall be responsible for state management over programs, plans, and projects on cooperation in accordance with the law, and they shall have the responsibility to coordinate with the Ministry of Justice in managing cooperation with foreign countries concerning laws as stipulated in this Decree.

Article 24. Responsibilities of the supervisory agency

The supervisory agency shall be responsible for selecting partners and cooperation contents; approving programs and projects within its authorized scope; effectively implementing cooperation programs, plans, and projects with foreign countries concerning laws that have been signed; and ensuring strict compliance with the cooperation principles set forth in Article 2 of this Decree.

Article 25. Handling Violations

1. Programs and projects on cooperation with foreign countries concerning laws of the supervisory agency which have not been reviewed and approved by the competent authority as prescribed in this Decree shall be canceled.

2. Organizations and individuals who violate the provisions of this Decree and related laws shall be subject to legal sanctions according to the severity of their violations; in cases where such violations result in property damage, compensation must be provided in accordance with the law.

Article 26. Application to programs and projects on cooperation with foreign countries concerning laws of agencies under the National Assembly, Supreme People's Court, and Supreme People's Procuracy

The provisions of this Decree shall also apply generally to agencies under the National Assembly, Supreme People's Court, and Supreme People's Procuracy when conducting activities involving cooperation with foreign countries in the field of laws.

Article 27. Effective Date

This Decree shall take effect fifteen days after its publication in the Official Gazette and shall replace Government Decree No. 103/1998/NĐ-CP dated December 26, 1998, on the management of cooperation with foreign countries concerning laws./.