More defendants to get legal counsel

Shanghai's courts are going to provide more defendants with court-appointed lawyers following the changes to the country's criminal procedure law that took effect at the beginning of this year, Shanghai Higher People's Court said Friday.
Shanghai's highest court urged the lower courts to work with local justice bureaus to expand free legal representation to a greater number of defendants to better ensure equal representation under the law, according to a press release from the court.

Under the recently amended Criminal Procedure Law of China, local courts must provide lawyers for defendants facing the possibility of life imprisonment and for those with mental disorders who are still considered competent to stand trial. Before the law's amendments took effect, the courts only had to provide defense lawyers for minors, the disabled and defendants facing a possible death sentence.

Pudong New Area People's Court has been exploring ways to make court-appointed lawyers available to more defendants since 2011, the press release said. The district court provided lawyers for all defendants facing prison sentences of more than three years.

As of October 2012, the court appointed lawyers for 14.6 percent of its defendants, up from 1.75 percent before 2011, according to Shanghai Higher People's Court.

The criminal courts have also begun formally asking defendants whether they want a court-appointed lawyer to defend them when they receive a copy of the indictment, said Wang Zhiguo, a press officer from Pudong New Area People's Court.

The goal is to keep defendants better informed about their rights and to improve communication before trial, Wang told the Global Times.

For defendants who agree, the courts will immediately send their case information to legal aid centers in the city so they can obtain criminal lawyers, Wang said.

The court will also facilitate other legal procedures so that appointed lawyers can meet with defendants and examine case documents as soon as possible before the trial.