Are representatives in civil procedures required to be representatives at law in Vietnam?

1. Are representatives in civil procedures required to be representatives at law in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Clause 1, Article 85 of the 2015 Civil Procedure Code:

1. The representatives in civil procedures comprise the representatives at law and the proxy representatives. The representatives can be individuals or legal entities as defined in Civil Code

2. The representatives at law as defined in the Civil Code shall be the representatives at law in the civil procedures, except where the representative right is restricted under law provisions.

Agencies, organizations and individuals that initiate lawsuit to protect the legitimate rights and interests of others shall also be the representatives at law of the protected persons in the civil procedures.

3. Employee collective’s representative organizations shall be lawful representatives of collective of employees initiating lawsuits over labor cases, participate in procedures at Courts when legitimate rights and interests of the collective of employees are infringed upon; employee collective’s representative organizations are in charge of representing employees in initiating lawsuits over labor cases and participate in procedures when being authorized by employees.

If multiple employees filing the same claim towards the employer of the same enterprise/unit, such employees may authorize a representative from the employee collective’s representative organization to represent them in initiating lawsuits over labor cases and participate in procedures at the Court.

4. The proxy representatives as defined in the Civil Code shall be the proxy representatives in the civil procedures.

For the divorce, the involved parties must not designate any other persons to participate in the procedure on their behalf. If parents or other relatives of the involved parties petition the Courts to resolve the divorce cases as prescribed in clause 2 Article 51 of the Law on marriage and family, they such be the representatives.

2. What are cases of disallowance to act as representatives in Vietnam? 

Pursuant to Article 87 of the 2015 Civil Procedure Code stipulates:

1. Persons must not act as representatives at law in the following cases:

a) They are also the involved parties in the same case with the represented persons where their legitimate rights and interests are contrary to those of the represented persons;

b) They are acting as representatives at law in civil procedures for other involved parties whose legitimate rights and interests are contrary to those of the represented persons in the same case.

2. The provisions in Clause 1 of this Article shall also apply to the case of proxy representatives in civil procedures.

3. Officials or employees in the court, procuracy or police sectors must not act as representatives in civil procedures, except for cases where they participate in civil procedures in the capacity as representatives of their agencies or as representatives at law.

3. What is appointing representatives in civil procedures in Vietnam? 

Pursuant to Article 88 of the 2015 Civil Procedure Code stipulates the above content as follows:

1. While civil procedures are conducted, if any involved party is the minor persons, legally incapacitated persons, persons with limited capacity of exercise, persons with limited cognition or behavior control but has no representative or his/her representative at law falls into one of the cases specified in Clause 1, Article 87 of this Code, the Court must appoint the representative to participate in the proceedings at courts.

2. In labor cases where involved parties are those specified in clause 1 of this Article or where the employees are minor persons and they have no representatives and the Courts fail to appoint the employee collective’s representative organization as prescribed in clause 1 of this Article, the Courts shall appoint organization representing collective labor to represent such employees.

Best Regards!