Criminal

Who is this service for?

This service is for persons charged with an offence (người bị buộc tội) and their families, victims, other parties to the case, and persons connected with a denunciation or crime report.

• People who have received a summons relating to a denunciation or crime report but are unsure in what capacity they are being called.
• People who have been denounced or are subject to a petition for prosecution and need a lawyer to protect their interests when dealing with the competent authorities.
• Families whose relative has been arrested, held in custody or temporarily detained and who need to engage a lawyer for the defence.
• Accused persons and defendants at the investigation, prosecution, first-instance or appellate trial stage.
• Individuals and businesses whose money or property has been misappropriated and who need to make a denunciation and claim compensation for damage.
• Persons with related rights and obligations whose accounts have been frozen or whose property has been seized in a case.

What types of matters do we handle?

We work with you from the stage of denunciations and crime reports through to the appellate trial. Common types of matters in which we provide advice, defence and protection of interests:

• Being invited to meet the competent authority while it is dealing with a denunciation, crime report or petition for prosecution.
• A relative has been arrested, held in custody or temporarily detained; the family needs to prepare a written request for a lawyer so that the lawyer can register the defence.
• Defending accused persons and defendants at the investigation, prosecution, first-instance and appellate trial stages.
• Money or property misappropriated through a transaction; making a denunciation, following up on how it is handled and proposing the amount of compensation for damage.
• Accounts frozen or property seized in a case even though you are not the person charged.
• A first-instance judgment that you consider incorrect as to the offence, the penalty or compensation, while the appeal period has not yet expired.

The descriptions above are general types of matters intended to give you a sense of the scope of our support; they are not specific matters we have handled.

What stages does our work follow?

The work is divided into five stages; you can start with us at any stage: when you have just received a summons, when a relative has been arrested or held in custody, or when a first-instance judgment has been issued and the appeal period has not yet expired.

1. Intake and assessmentChecking for conflicts of interest; hearing your account; identifying your procedural status, the stage of the matter and the authority handling it; reviewing the procedural documents received; assessing procedural time limits from the outset; giving an initial opinion on rights, obligations and immediate steps, and sending a written quotation.
2. Handling of denunciations and crime reportsFor persons making a denunciation and victims: drafting the denunciation together with documents proving the damage, following up on how it is handled, and submitting petitions and complaints where there are grounds. For persons denounced or subject to a petition for prosecution: explaining rights and obligations before the meeting; when engaged, the lawyer presents evidence and documents and attends when the competent authority takes statements.
3. Investigation and prosecutionExplaining how to prepare the written request for a lawyer; registering the defence or completing the procedures to take part in the proceedings as the person protecting your interests; meeting the defended person in custody or temporary detention; attending statement-taking, interrogations and confrontations; collecting and presenting evidence, requesting expert examination and asset valuation; requesting the change or cancellation of preventive measures where there are grounds; reading, taking notes on and copying documents in the case file from the end of the investigation.
4. First-instance and appellate trialsStudying the case file and preparing written defence arguments or written arguments protecting your interests; taking part in the hearing: questioning, making submissions and presenting arguments; for victims and other parties: proposing the amount of compensation, measures to secure compensation and how property should be dealt with.
5. After the judgmentAnalysing the parts of the judgment or decision concerning the offence, the penalty, compensation and the handling of property; advising on the right to appeal and drafting the appeal if you decide to appeal; explaining how to request enforcement of the civil part once the judgment takes legal effect; noting any remaining deadlines and returning original documents.

What documents should you prepare?

When you first contact us, a brief summary of your request is all we need; please do not send details of your matter or documents by email or through the form at this stage. After checking for conflicts of interest, the Firm will let you know which documents to provide; at the first meeting, copies are sufficient for a preliminary assessment. Documents commonly used to assess a matter include:

• Procedural documents received: summonses, decisions to institute criminal proceedings, arrest warrants, custody decisions, temporary detention orders, investigation conclusions, indictments, judgments and decisions.
• The name of the authority handling the matter and of the officer assigned to it, if known.
• The identity card of the person requesting the lawyer; documents proving the family relationship, where the family engages a lawyer for a person in custody or temporary detention.
• Denunciations or reports already submitted and the receipts, if you are the person making the denunciation or the victim.
• Documents on the transactions, money transfers and the damage suffered.
• Documents proving the lawful origin of the frozen accounts or seized property.
• For businesses that are victims or other parties: the Enterprise Registration Certificate and the letter of authorisation.
• Your own chronological notes of events, to be given directly to the lawyer only.

Who does the work?

• Lawyer in charge of this service group: Lawyer Nguyễn Duy Linh, Director. Criminal, civil and commercial litigation; debt recovery. Personally conducts the defence and protects the interests of victims and other parties in criminal cases; approves important documents before they are issued.
• Also involved: Nguyễn Đức Kiên, Deputy Director.

Related

• Criminal
• Civil
• Civil, commercial and labour litigation