Chapter V

Safeguards and Supervision

Article 51 The state strengthens the informatization of legal aid, and promotes information sharing and work coordination among judicial administration departments, judicial organs and other relevant departments. 

Article 52 Legal aid institutions shall pay legal aid subsidies to legal aid workers in a timely manner in accordance with the relevant provisions. 

The standards for legal aid subsidies shall be determined by the judicial administration departments of the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government in conjunction with the finance departments at the same level in light of the local economic development level and the types of legal aid services, basic labor costs, miscellaneous expenses generated in the provision of legal aid services, etc., and shall be subject to dynamic adjustment. 

Legal aid subsidies shall be exempted from taxation for value-added tax and individual income tax. 

Article 53 The people's courts shall, according to the circumstances, postpone or waive the collection of litigation costs payable by legal aid recipients, or reduce the amount of such costs; and waive or reduce the charges for copying relevant materials by legal aid workers. 

Notary agencies and forensic service institutions shall reduce or waive the notary or forensic service charges payable by legal aid recipients. 

Article 54 The judicial administration departments of the people's governments at or above the county level shall train legal aid workers in a planned manner so as to improve their expertise and service skills. 

Article 55 Legal aid recipients shall have the right to inquire about the handling of his legal aid from legal aid institutions and workers. Where a legal aid institution or worker fails to perform its or his duties in accordance with the law, the recipient may file a complaint to the judicial administration department and may request the legal aid institution to replace the legal aid worker. 

Article 56 Judicial administration departments shall establish a system investigating and dealing with complaints concerning legal aid work. Upon receipt of a complaint, a judicial administration department shall accept, investigate and handle it in accordance with the relevant regulations, and shall inform the complainant of the results of the handling in a timely manner. 

Article 57 Judicial administration departments shall strengthen supervision of legal aid services, formulate quality standards for legal aid services and conduct regular quality assessment through third-party evaluation and other means. 

Article 58 Judicial administration departments and legal aid institutions shall establish a legal-aid information disclosure system, regularly publish information about the use of legal aid funds, the handling of cases, the results of quality assessment, etc., and accept public supervision. 

Article 59 Legal aid institutions shall take comprehensive measures such as observing court trials, examining case files, consulting judicial organs and making return visits to legal aid recipients so as to propel legal aid workers to improving service quality. 

Article 60 Lawyers' associations shall include in their annual assessments the performance of legal aid obligations by law firms and lawyers, and shall, in accordance with the relevant regulations, sanction the law firms and lawyers who refuse to perform or delay in performing legal aid obligations. 

Chapter VI

Legal Liability

Article 61 Where a legal aid institution or a staff member thereof is found in one of the following circumstances, the judicial administration department that established the legal aid institution shall order the institution or the staff member to make corrections within a prescribed time; the illegal gains, if any, shall be returned or confiscated; a sanction shall be imposed in accordance with the law on the directly responsible person in charge and other directly responsible persons: 

(1) refusing to provide legal aid for a person who meets the requirements for legal aid, or deliberately providing legal aid for a person who does not meet the requirements for legal aid; 

(2) appointing a person to provide legal aid who does not meet the qualifications prescribed in this Law; 

(3) accepting money or gifts from a legal aid recipient; 

(4) providing paid legal services; 

(5) embezzling, privately distributing, or misappropriating legal aid funds; 

(6) divulging state secrets, trade secrets or personal privacy learned in the process of legal aid; or

(7) any other circumstances provided by laws and regulations. 

Article 62 Where a law firm or a community-level legal service office is found in one of the following circumstances, the judicial administration department shall impose on it a penalty in accordance with the law: 

(1) refusing to accept an appointment made by a legal aid institution without justifiable reasons; 

(2) failing to arrange for its lawyers or community-level legal service workers to handle legal aid in a timely manner, or refusing to provide support and guarantees for its lawyers or legal service workers in handling legal aid; 

(3) conniving at or indulging its lawyers' or community-level legal service workers' delaying the performance of their legal aid obligations or terminating, without authorization, the legal aid they are providing; or

(4) any other circumstances prescribed by laws and regulations. 

Article 63 Where a lawyer or a community-level legal service worker is found in one of the following circumstances, the judicial administration department shall impose on him a penalty in accordance with the law: 

(1) refusing to perform his legal aid obligations or delaying performing the obligations without justifiable reasons; 

(2) terminating, without authorization, the legal aid he is providing; 

(3) accepting money or gifts from a legal aid recipient; 

(4) divulging state secrets, trade secrets or personal privacy learned in the process of legal aid; or

(5) any other circumstances prescribed by laws and regulations. 

Article 64 Where a legal aid recipient obtains legal aid by deception or other improper means, the judicial administration department shall order him to pay the expenses for the legal aid that has been provided for him and shall impose on him a fine of not more than RMB 3,000 yuan. 

Article 65 Where anyone, in violation of the provisions of this Law, provides legal services under the guise of legal aid and seeks benefits, the judicial administration department shall order him to make corrections, confiscate the illegal gains and impose on him a fine of not less than one time but not more than three times the amount of illegal gains. 

Article 66 Where a state organ or a staff member thereof abuses power, neglects duty or engages in malpractices for personal gain in the legal aid work, a sanction shall be imposed in accordance with the law on the directly responsible person in charge and other directly responsible persons. 

Article 67 Whoever violates the provisions of this Law, which constitutes a crime, shall be investigated for criminal liability in accordance with the law.

Chapter VII

Supplementary Provisions

Article 68 People's organizations such as trade unions, Communist Youth League organizations, women's federations, and disabled persons’ federations shall carry out legal aid work with reference to the relevant provisions of this Law. 

Article 69 With regard to providing legal aid for foreigners and persons, if there are the relevant provisions in Chinese law, these provisions shall apply; in the absence of such provisions in Chinese law, the relevant provisions of this Law may apply mutatis mutandis under the international treaties concluded or acceded to by China or the principle of reciprocity. 

Article 70 Specific measures for providing legal aid for servicepersons and their families shall be formulated by the State Council and the relevant departments of the Central Military Commission. 

Article 71 This Law shall come into force as of January 1, 2022.