6.2 Fu
Xin Fu. (2016). On the Fairness and Communications in the Trial of Criminal Cases in China An Empirical Analysis from the Perspective of Criminal Defence. International Journal of Law, Language & Discourse 6(2), 35-49.
Abstract: It is generally accepted that the rights of suspects and defendants shall be properly protected in a criminal trial. The principle of “equality of arms” demands the accused to get access to legal counsel in a timely and adequate manner irrespective of their economic status. In China, the 1996 and 2012 versions of Criminal Procedure Law made some reforms from the perspective of human rights protection. People may wonder, how do the lawyers communicate and cooperate with their clients and witnesses and collect evidence? In this paper, the author will discuss these issues based on his legal sociological observations in the courtrooms, interview with lawyers, judges and prosecutors, and analysis of dead case files kept in the justice institutions in three locations, apart from the most update literatures. According to his findings, lawyers play a relative passive role in the criminal defence. They have routine but few communications with their clients and witnesses, and what they can argue in the debate is mostly routine strategies for leniency argument. At the end of the paper, the author will also discuss the possibility of improving the effectiveness of criminal defence in China, especially the communications.
Keywords: right to the fair trial, communications, courtroom, criminal defence, empirical study, China
Category: Volume 6
