Amended Law on Legal Aid - Strengthening access to the law for all citizens
Ninh Gia
Friday, Nov/14/2025 - 16:08
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(L&D) - The Ministry of Justice is taking the lead in developing the draft Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Legal Aid (Law on Legal Aid) – an important step to enhance access to justice for all citizens, especially vulnerable groups in society.
Improving the legal framework, leaving no one behind
The draft Law is being implemented under the 2026 legislative program, concretizing the major directives of the Party such as Resolution No. 27-NQ/TW on building a rule-of-law State, Resolution No. 66-NQ/TW on innovating the work of lawmaking and law enforcement, Resolution No. 68-NQ/TW on developing the private economy, and Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW on national digital transformation.
A trial of a public order disturbance case, involving many juveniles, in which legal aid providers participated in the defense.
According to the Ministry of Justice, after nearly eight years of implementing the 2017 Law on Legal Aid (Law on Legal Aid), legal aid activities have achieved many positive results, contributing to the protection of human rights, promoting social equality, and reducing “legal poverty”. Nationwide, more than 258,000 legal aid cases have been carried out, including over 160,000 cases involving participation in proceedings, and tens of thousands of cases in which the legitimate rights and interests of individuals were successfully protected.
However, in response to the need for innovation, some provisions of the current Law have revealed limitations: the scope of persons eligible for legal aid remains narrow, the organizational network is not yet suitable for the two-tier local government model, it has not kept pace with the trend of digital transformation, and resources for legal aid work are still insufficient.
The new draft Law prioritizes the rights and interests of citizens, significantly expanding the groups entitled to legal aid. Accordingly, persons with disabilities, whether or not experiencing financial difficulties, have access to legal aid; persons subjected to domestic violence, victims of human trafficking, juveniles in violation of the law, and foreign nationals in Viet Nam are also included among those entitled to protection.
This not only domesticates international treaties such as the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities but also reflects the spirit of “Leaving No One Behind”, which the Party and the State consistently uphold.
A prominent new feature is the promotion of digital technology in legal aid, aiming to provide online legal services that are fast and transparent. The draft Law supplements provisions assigning the Government the responsibility to ensure unified state management of legal aid while also promoting digital transformation and the digitization of administrative procedures to enable citizens to access legal services anytime and anywhere.
In addition, the organizational model of legal aid has been restructured: each province and city will have at least one State Legal Aid Center, and branches may be established flexibly according to local needs, no longer limited to particularly disadvantaged areas. This helps shorten the legal gap between urban and rural, mountainous, and island regions.
A step forward in judicial and social welfare reform
To address the shortage of human resources and improve the quality of legal aid services, the draft Law expands the scope of persons eligible to become legal aid collaborators – including all Vietnamese citizens holding a bachelor’s degree in law, possessing good moral character, and having sufficient professional competence.
Mr. Nguyen Van Vu, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Justice, visited to listen to legal consultation and legal aid services provided to citizens.
Notably, legal aid collaborators will participate both in proceedings and in representation outside proceedings, instead of only providing legal advice as before. This is a significant step, helping to expand the nationwide legal aid network and enhancing the timeliness and proactiveness of citizen support.
The draft also clearly defines the responsibilities of the commune-level People’s Committees in disseminating information, compiling statistics, and referring citizens to Legal Aid Centers; it grants provincial-level People’s Committees the authority to organize appraisal and evaluate the quality of legal aid cases.
Regarding finances, the State ensures the budget for legal aid work based on the principle that “legal aid is the responsibility of the State”, not only focusing on “complex and typical cases” but ensuring comprehensive and equitable coverage.
The draft Law amending and supplementing the Law on Legal Aid is a practical step in the process of perfecting the rule-of-law State, institutionalizing the Party’s major directives on social welfare, judicial reform, and digital transformation.
Once enacted and implemented, the new Law will make an important contribution to bringing the law closer to the people, ensuring that all citizens have equal opportunities to access justice, and affirming Viet Nam’s commitment to human rights and sustainable development.
Legal aid is not only a tool for protecting rights and interests – it is also a symbol of fairness, humanity, and trust in the law under the rule-of-law State of Viet Nam.
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