Perfecting the law on judicial expertise to improve the effectiveness of litigation

Continuing the program of the 10th Session of the 15th National Assembly , on November 5, the National Assembly discussed in groups on draft laws, including the Law on Judicial Expertise (amended).

According to the Ministry of Justice - the drafting agency, the draft Law on Judicial Expertise (amended) has institutionalized the Party and State's policies and guidelines on judicial reform, fighting, preventing and combating corruption, waste and negativity; improving the quality of the team of judicial experts; enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of state management and the responsibility of the prosecution agency; creating a breakthrough legal basis for sustainable development of the organization and activities of judicial expertise.

Compared with the current Law on Judicial Expertise, the draft Law has many notable new provisions to improve the quality of the team of judicial experts and judicial expertise organizations; more strict and specific regulations on requesting, receiving, and performing expertise; responsibilities of state management agencies and prosecution agencies for judicial expertise work...

Photo caption — Forensic appraisal work. Illustration photo: VNA

Commenting on the draft Law on Judicial Expertise (amended), Deputy Head of the National Assembly Delegation of Lam Dong province, Mr. Duong Khac Mai, basically agreed with the Government's Submission and the Inspection Report of the Committee on Law and Justice on the necessity of amending the Law on Judicial Expertise 2012.

Regarding the scope of regulation and scope of amendment of the draft Law, delegate Duong Khac Mai agreed with the direction of expanding the scope of regulation, covering all appraisal activities serving criminal, civil and administrative proceedings. However, according to the delegate, the draft Law currently still overlaps between judicial appraisal and extrajudicial appraisal. Therefore, it is necessary to clearly separate these two types to ensure consistency in the legal system, while preventing conflicts of interest and the risk of commercialization of appraisal activities.

Delegate Duong Khac Mai said that the positive point is that the draft has added the principle of “independence in the process of appraisal and drawing conclusions”. However, there is still a lack of a mechanism to ensure that independence. Therefore, it is recommended to add specific provisions that “judicial appraisers and judicial appraisal organizations operate independently in terms of expertise, and are not subject to interference or direction on the content of conclusions from any agency, organization or individual”. At the same time, there should be strict sanctions for acts of interference, pressure or bribery of appraisers.

Regarding the socialization of appraisal activities, the draft allows for the expansion of socialization through the Office of Judicial Appraisal and case-by-case appraisal organizations. Delegates commented that this is the right direction, but also poses risks to quality and professional ethics if there is a lack of control mechanisms. Therefore, it is recommended to set clear standards on practice conditions, licensing, recognition, suspension, and revocation mechanisms for non-public judicial appraisal organizations.

Delegate Duong Khac Mai proposed to supplement regulations on independent appraisal and quality control of appraisal conclusions, possibly through the Professional Council or specialized agencies under the Ministry of Justice. Develop a mechanism to periodically assess the capacity of non-public judicial appraisers to ensure the prestige and quality of appraisals.

Commenting on the draft Law, Deputy Head of the National Assembly Delegation of Nghe An province, Ms. Thai Thi An Chung, said that in some provisions of the draft (such as Article 7, Article 16, Article 21 and Article 40), there are currently additional provisions on extrajudicial appraisal activities of public judicial appraisal organizations and judicial appraisal offices. According to delegate Thai Thi An Chung, it is necessary to supplement regulations and clearly distinguish between judicial appraisal activities and extrajudicial appraisal activities; add a chapter related to regulations on extrajudicial appraisal activities to ensure consistency...

Regarding the expansion of the task of forensic injury examination (Clause 4, Article 17) stipulates the expansion and addition of the task of forensic injury examination for public judicial examination organizations under the Provincial and Municipal Police. Delegate Thai Thi An Chung commented that although the expansion of the scope of selection of examination organizations may be more favorable. However, because both types of units are public service units of the State, it is recommended that consideration be given to ensure harmonious operations and balanced development between Forensic Examination Centers under the health sector and criminal technical examination agencies under the Public Security sector.

In response to the opinions of National Assembly Deputies, the Ministry of Justice is reviewing and finalizing the draft Law on Judicial Expertise (amended) to submit to the National Assembly for approval in the 10th session. The Ministry of Justice hopes that the new contents stated in the draft Law on Judicial Expertise (amended) will contribute to improving the quality and effectiveness of this work, thereby supporting and contributing to improving the quality of litigation activities in the coming time.

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/thoi-su/hoan-thien-phap-luat-ve-giam-dinh-tu-phap-de-nang-cao-hieu-qua-to-tung-20251105124327707.htm