City sets up lawyers system

Shanghai is to set up a system of public office and company lawyers at city and district level Party and government offices and state-owned enterprises while promoting the work in local towns and villages before June next year, the city's justice bureau announced on Thursday.

By the end of next year, there will be a comprehensive policy and system on the two types of lawyers to meet the city's growth of economic society development and legal service demands.

Liu Weiping, Party secretary of the city's lawyering Party committee said the two kinds of lawyers can do more than legal advisers. It's easier for them to participate in investigations, evidence gathering and hearings on behalf of the Party or government offices and the companies they work for.

Liu said if the lawyers leave the Party or government offices and companies, they can apply to be social lawyers. Likewise, if social lawyers meet the standards, they can become public office or company lawyers after approval from the Party or government offices and their companies.

By the end of October, Shanghai had 1,063 public office lawyers and 479 company lawyers.

Meanwhile, the justice bureau will release a bilingual book on Sunday about lawyers' interpretation of the city's policies, laws and regulations on improving the commercial environment in the Lingang Special Area of the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone.

It's part of the celebration of the 6th National Constitution Day on December 4, the nation's second and the city's 31th Constitution Week next week.

There will be more than 100 relevant events across the city and each day of the week has its own theme, which will bring constitution promotion to enterprises, villages, government offices, schools, communities, military camps and the Internet.