Criteria and conditions to become a lawyer in Vietnam (latest)

1. Criteria to become a lawyer in Vietnam

According to Article 10 of the Law on Lawyers, Vietnamese citizens who are loyal to the Fatherland, observe the Constitution and law, have good moral qualities, possess a law bachelor diploma, have been trained in legal profession, have gone through the probation of legal profession and have good health for law practice may become lawyers.

Criteria and conditions to become a lawyer in Vietnam (latest) (Internet image)

2. Conditions to become a lawyer in Vietnam

Pursuant to Articles 10 and 11 of the Law on Lawyers, a person who meets all the criteria specified in Article 10 of the Law on Lawyers, if wishing to practice law, must possess a law practice certificate and join a bar association.

Thus, the steps for a Vietnamese citizen to become a lawyer include:

(1) Possess a bachelor's degree in law (average 04 years);

(2) Participating in a lawyer training course and being granted a lawyer training graduation certificate (the lawyer training period is 12 months, except for cases where training is exempted);

(3) Apprenticeship in law practice and be granted a Certificate of Law Practitioner Trainee (the lawyer's probationary period is 12 months, except for cases of probation exemption or reduction);

(4) Examining the results of law practice probation and being granted a certificate of examining the results of law practice;

(5) Being granted a Law Practice Certificate;

(6) Join a bar association.

3. Persons exempt from lawyer training in Vietnam

Article 13 of the Law on Lawyers stipulates persons exempt from lawyer training as follows:

- Those who have been judges, procurators or investigators.

- Professors, associate professors of law; doctors of law.

- Those who have been senior court examiners; senior procuracy inspectors; senior legal experts, researchers or lecturers.

- Those who have been principal court examiners or principal procuracy inspectors; principal legal experts, researchers or lecturers.

4. Persons entitled to law practice probation exemption or reduction in Vietnam

According to Article 16 of the Law on Lawyers, the subjects entitled to law practice probation exemption or reduction include:

- Persons who are exempt from lawyer training as specified in Clauses 1, 2 and 3, Article 13 of the Law on Lawyers are also exempt from law practice probation.

- Persons who are exempt from lawyer training as specified in Clause 4, Article 13 of the Law on Lawyers are entitled to reduction of two-thirds of the law practice- probation duration.

- Persons who have worked as legal experts, researchers or lecturers or as court examiners or procuracy inspectors for 10 years or more are entitled to reduction of half of the law practice-probation duration.

5. Grant of law practice certificates in Vietnam

- Persons who pass law practice-probation tests shall file dossiers of application for law practice certificates with the managing boards of the bar associations where they register their probation.

A dossier of application for such a certificate comprises:

+ An application for a law practice certificate;

+ A curriculum vitae;

+ A judicial record card;

+ A copy of the law bachelor or master diploma;

+ A copy of the lawyer-training certificate or paper evidencing the lawyer-training exemption according to the provisions of Clause 4, Article 13 of the Law on Lawyers;

+ A copy of the law practice-probation certificate;

+ A health certificate.

Within 7 working days after receiving a complete dossier, the managing board of the concerned bar association shall send, together with the dossier, a written proposal for the grant of a law practice certificate to the Justice Ministry.

- Persons entitled to lawyer-training and law practice probation exemption shall file dossiers of application for law practice certificates with the Justice Ministry. Such a dossier comprises:

+ An application for a law practice certificate;

+ A curriculum vitae;

+ A judicial record card;

+ A copy of the law bachelor, master or doctorate diploma;

+ Papers evidencing the lawyer-training exemption under the provisions of Clauses 1, 2 and 3, Article 13 and law practice probation exemption under the provisions of Clause 1, Article 16, of the Law on Lawyers;

+ A health certificate.

- Within 30 days after receiving complete dossiers of application for law practice certificates, the Justice Minister shall grant such certificates; in case of refusal, he/she shall notify the applicants and the managing boards of concerned bar associations thereof in writing, clearly stating the reasons therefor.

If their applications for law practice certificates are rejected, the applicants may lodge complaints in accordance with law.

- Persons falling in one of the following cases are not granted law practice certificates:

+ Working as cadres, officials or civil servants; as officers, professional personnel or defense workers in agencies or units of the people's army; as commanding or professional officers or non-commissioned officers in agencies or units of the people's security forces;

+ Not permanently residing in Vietnam;

+ Being examined for penal liability; having been sentenced for unintentional crimes or less serious intentional crimes and their criminal records have not yet been remitted; having been sentenced for serious, very serious or particularly serious intentional crimes;

+ Being confined to a medical treatment establishment or reformatory as an administrative sanctioning measure or to administrative probation;

+ Having lost their civil act capacity or having a restricted civil act capacity;

+ The persons defined at Point a of this Clause who have been dismissed for under three years, counting from the date the dismissal decision takes effect.

Nhu Mai

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