Regulations on procedures for requesting legal aid

Reply:
Legal aid is the provision of free legal services to individuals eligible for legal aid under the Law on Legal Aid, aiming to ensure human rights and civil rights in accessing justice and equality before the law. Based on the Law on Legal Aid and Decision No. 228/QD-BTP, the procedure for requesting legal aid is carried out in the following order:

When in need of legal aid, applicants must submit their application to the State Legal Aid Center of the province or city; a branch of the center; or an organization participating in legal aid such as a law firm or legal consulting organization that has signed a contract or registered to participate in legal aid. After receiving the application, the receiving officer is responsible for reviewing it and immediately informing the applicant whether the application is complete or requires additional documents. In cases where the applicant cannot provide all the necessary documents but the case is urgent, such as when the statute of limitations for filing a lawsuit is less than 5 working days, the time for preparing for trial according to the court's decision is less than 5 working days, or to avoid causing harm to the legitimate rights and interests of the person receiving legal aid, the receiving officer must report to the head of the organization providing legal aid and proceed with immediate processing. Simultaneously, the applicant will be guided on how to supplement the necessary documents.

For cases processed immediately, within 5 working days from the date the case is accepted, the applicant is responsible for providing or supplementing documents proving their eligibility for legal aid. If the applicant resides in an area with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions or faces force majeure circumstances, this period may be extended to 10 working days.

If the applicant fails to provide the required documents within the prescribed time limit, the legal aid case will not be continued, and the legal aid organization must notify the applicant in writing, stating the reasons.

Once the application is deemed eligible, the State Legal Aid Center, its branch, or participating legal aid organization will register and monitor the case. However, the legal aid organization has the right to refuse to accept the application and must provide written notification stating the reasons if the request for legal aid is not a specific case directly related to the legitimate rights and interests of the person receiving legal aid; the content of the request is contrary to law; the person receiving legal aid has died; or the case is already being handled by another legal aid organization.

Citizens can request legal aid by submitting their application in person at the legal aid organization's office, sending it via postal service, fax, or electronically, depending on their convenience.