Lawyers want impartial rulings on discipline

CAN THO — It is necessary to adopt common disciplinary regulations for the legal fraternity around the country and ensure they are enforced impartially, the Viet Nam Lawyers Confederation has said. Speaking at an international conference held late last week in Can Tho, VNLC chairman Le Thuc Anh said the country had 3,075 lawyers and more than 1,200 trainees, “it is necessary for localities to have common regulations for lawyers and properly penalise lawyers violating [them].” Delegates admitted that some advocates flout laws and professional regulations. But due to a lack of common disciplinary rules around the country, the penalties had not been severe enough in some cases, and the offenders continued with their violations, they said. They stressed the need for the Government and VNLC to improve training quality to boost the quality of lawyers, enabling them to meet the requirements thrown up by justice sector reforms and global integration. Gavin Alexander MackenZie of the Law Society of Upper Canada underlined the importance of disciplining violations by lawyers. The conference on August 18 and 19 was organised by the VNLC with support from the governments of Denmark and Switzerland and the European Union through the Justice Partnership Programme. It was attended by 120 lawyers, including several from Canada and Japan. — VNS