Chương V Luật luật sư 2006: Tổ chức xã hội - nghề nghiệp của luật sư

Chapter V

SOCIO-PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS OF LAWYERS

Section 1. SOCIO-PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS OF LAWYERS IN PROVINCES AND CENTRALLY RUN CITIES

Article 60.- Bar association

1. A bar association is a socio-professional organization of lawyers in a province or centrally run city, having the legal person status, its own seal and bank account and operating on the principle of self-financing with revenues from membership fees, contributions of members and other lawful revenue sources.

2. A bar association may be set up in a province or centrally run city where exist three or more law practice certificate holders. The provincial/municipal People's Committee shall permit the setting up of a bar association after reaching agreement with the Justice Minister.

3. A bar association has its own charter to govern its internal relations.

4. Members of a bar association are lawyers.

The rights and obligations of members of a bar association are provided in its charter.

Article 61.- Tasks and powers of a bar association

1. To represent lawyers in professional practice and protect their legitimate rights and interests.

2. To supervise and coordinate with bar associations in other localities in supervising the observance of law, rules of professional ethics and conducts of member lawyers, lawyers practicing law in law-practicing organizations and locally based branches of law-practicing organizations; to discipline lawyers.

3. To supervise and coordinate with bar associations in other localities in supervising the operations of law-practicing organizations and their branches and transaction offices; to request law-practicing organizations to stop law-breaking acts and request competent state agencies to handle those acts.

4. To organize the registration of probationary lawyers and supervise them.

5. To receive dossiers of application for law practice certificates and request the Justice Ministry to grant those certificates.

6. To organize the registration of participation in the bar association; to organize the transfer and reception of lawyers; to request the national lawyers' organization to grant lawyer's cards.

7. To assign law-practicing organizations to nominate lawyers or directly nominate lawyers who practice law individually to participate in legal proceedings at the request of legal proceeding-conducting agencies.

8. To conciliate disputes between probationary lawyers, lawyers and law-practicing organizations; between clients and law-practicing organizations or lawyers.

9. To settle complaints and denunciations according to its competence.

10. To sum up and exchange experience, provide professional training and fostering and take other measures to raise professional skills of lawyers.

11. To gather and report lawyers' thoughts, aspirations, opinions and proposals.

12. To make arrangement for lawyers to participate in law dissemination and education.

13. To report to the national lawyers' organization on its organization and operation.

14. To send to the Justice Ministry and the provincial/municipal People's Committee its resolutions and decisions in accordance with law and upon request.

Article 62.- Bodies of a bar association

1. The plenary congress or lawyer deputies' congress of a bar association is its highest leading body.

2. The managing board of a bar association is the executive body of its plenary congress or lawyer deputies' congress, which is elected by the plenary congress or lawyer deputies' congress.

3. The commendation and disciplinary council of a bar association is elected by its plenary congress or lawyer deputies' congress according to the term of office of its managing board.

Article 63.- Charter of a bar association

1. Based on the provisions of this Law, the law on associations and the charter of the national lawyers' organization, the plenary congress or the lawyer deputies' congress of a bar association shall approve the charter of the bar association.

2. The charter of a bar association has the following principal contents:

a/ Tasks and powers of the bar association;

b/ Rights and obligations of members of the bar association;

c/ Procedures for registration of lawyers' probation, participation in the bar association, deletion of the name of a lawyer from the list of probationary lawyers or the list of members of the bar association and transfer of a lawyer from the bar association to another;

d/ The organizational structure, mode of election, relief from office or dismissal, tasks and powers of bodies of the bar association;

e/ The finance of the bar association;

f/ The commendation and discipline of lawyers;

g/ The fee for participation in the bar association and membership fee;

h/ Procedures for amendment and/or supplementation of the charter;

i/ The settlement of complaints and denunciations within the bar association;

j/ The relationship with other agencies and organizations.

3. Within 7 working days after a bar association's charter is approved, its managing board shall send the charter to the provincial/municipal People's Committee. Within 30 days after receiving that charter, the provincial/municipal People's Committee shall approve it. The bar association's charter takes effect after it is approved.

Section 2. NATIONAL SOCIO-PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATION OF LAWYERS

Article 64.- National lawyers' organization

1. The national lawyers' organization is a socio-professional organization of lawyers nationwide, which represents lawyers and bar associations; has the legal person status, its own seal and bank account; and operates on the principle of self-financing with membership fee revenues, contributions of members and other lawful revenue sources.

Members of the national lawyers' organization are bar associations and lawyers. Lawyers participate in the national lawyers' organization through bar associations which they have joined.

2. The national lawyers' organization has its own charter.

The rights and obligations of members of the national lawyers' organization are provided for in its charter.

Article 65.- Tasks and powers of the national lawyers' organization

1. To represent and protect the legitimate rights and interests of lawyers and bar associations nationwide.

2. To issue and oversee the observance of the rules of professional ethics and conducts by lawyers.

3. To coordinate with the Justice Ministry in issuing the Regulation on lawyers' probation and in training lawyers and examining lawyers' probation results.

4. To organize regular refresher courses on legal knowledge and professional skills for lawyers.

5. To organize reviews and exchange of professional experience among lawyers throughout the country.

6. To provide the uniform model for lawyers participating in court sessions and the form of lawyer's card; to grant, renew and withdraw lawyer's cards.

7. To provide for exemption from and reduction of remunerations for, and pro bono legal aid provided by, lawyers, the resolution of disputes over remunerations and expenses for lawyers.

8. To set lawyer's probation charges and bar associations' participation and membership fees.

9. To settle complaints and denunciations according to its competence.

10. To gather, report lawyers' thoughts, aspirations, opinions and proposals.

11. To join in law-making and jurisprudent research activities as well as in law dissemination and education.

12. To enter in international cooperation in relation to lawyers.

13. To send its resolutions and decisions to the Justice Ministry in accordance with law and upon request.

14. Other tasks and powers as provided for by its charter.

Article 66.- Bodies of the national lawyers' organization

1. Bodies of the national lawyers' organization include:

a/ The national lawyer deputies' congress, which is its highest leading body;

b/ The national lawyers' council, which is the leading body of the national lawyers' organization during the interval between two national lawyer deputies' congresses;

c/ The executive board of the national lawyers' organization, which is the body administering all tasks of the national lawyers' organization during the interval between two national lawyer-deputies' congresses;

d/ Other bodies specified by the charter of the national lawyers' organization.

2. Tasks and powers of bodies of the national lawyers' organization are provided for in its charter.

Article 67.- Charter of the national lawyers' organization

1. Based on the provisions of this Law and the law on associations, the national lawyer-deputies' congress shall approve the charter of the national lawyers' organization.

2. The charter of the national lawyers' organization has the following principal contents:

a/ The guiding principles, purposes and logo of the national lawyers' organization;

b/ The rights and obligations of members of the national lawyers' organization;

c/ The procedures for participation in a bar association, withdrawal from the list of members of a bar association, transfer from a bar association to another by lawyers;

d/ The lawyers' obligation of providing legal aid;

e/ The uniform model for lawyers participating in court sessions and the form of lawyer's card; the procedures for grant, renewal and withdrawal of lawyer's cards;

f/ The term of office, organizational structure, mode of election, relief from office, dismissal, tasks and powers of bodies of the national lawyers' organization and bar associations; the coordinative relationship between bar associations in the management of lawyers and law-practicing organizations;

g/ The structure and number of deputies; tasks and powers of the national lawyer deputies' congress; procedures and order for organizing a congress;

h/ The lawyer's probation charges; the fee for participation in bar associations and membership fee;

i/ The finance of the national lawyers' organization;

j/ The commendation and procedures for consideration of the disciplining of lawyers; procedures for settlement of complaints and denunciations;

k/ The relationship with other agencies and organizations.

3. Within 7 working days after the charter of the national lawyers' organization is approved, the national lawyers' council shall send it to the Justice Ministry. Within 30 days after receiving that charter, the Justice Minister shall approve it after reaching agreement with the Minister of Home Affairs. The charter of the national lawyers' organization takes effect after its approval.