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Chapter Law Content

Title: Legal Aid Act CH
Category: Judicial Yuan(司法院)
Chapter 5 The Organization and Supervision of the Foundation
Article 37
The Foundation shall set up the Board of Directors with 13 directors whose term of office is three years. The directors shall receive no pay for his or her services as a director.
The directors shall be appointed by the President of the Judicial Yuan from the following persons:
1. two representatives from the Judicial Yuan, one representative from the Ministry of Justice, one representative from the Ministry of Health and Welfare. The representative set forth in this subparagraph shall resign being the director of the Foundation when he or her leaves the original position he or she worked.
2. three lawyers recommended by the national and regional bar associations, who have extensive experience in issues concerning human rights, public welfare or protecting the disadvantaged.
3. two scholars or experts recommended by social groups with an expertise in law, social science, management or other specialties, who have extensive experience in issues concerning human rights, public welfare or protecting the disadvantaged.
4. two representatives from the underprivileged group, as recommended by social groups.
5. one representative from the labor organization, as recommended by the general public.
6. one representative from the aboriginal tribes, as recommended by the general public.
The term of office for the director set forth in subparagraph 1 of the preceding paragraph may renew after the term of office expires and there is no restriction to the numbers of renewal.
The term of office for the director set forth in the subparagraphs 2 to 5 of the preceding paragraph 2 may renew one time after the term of office expires. However the number of renewed directors shall not exceed two-thirds of the total number of directors set forth in the subparagraphs 1 to 5.
The Board of Directors shall convene a meeting one month before the end of each term to nominate directors candidates in an amount that is double that of the elected directors for the next term in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 2 subparagraphs 2 to 6, and submit the list of directors-elect, who are elected in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 2 subparagraphs 2, to the president of the Judicial Yuan for appointment.
If any one of the following conditions applies to a director during the office term, the Foundation shall request that the president of the Judicial Yuan discharge the director in question:
1. the director as described in paragraph 2 subparagraph 1 leaves the original position.
2. the director as described in paragraph 2 subparagraphs 2 to 6 has resigned, receives no employment renewal, or is incompetent.
Under the conditions as described in the preceding paragraph, a new director shall be elected, and the process as prescribed in the provisions of paragraph 5 shall apply. The office term of the successive director lasts until the end of the original term of the previous director.
The directors as described in paragraph 2 shall include both genders with each gender occupying at least one third of the director seats.
When the Board of Directors convenes a meeting, staff representatives from the Foundation or the Chapter, and representatives from labor organizations should be notified and invited to attend.
Article 38
Being the Foundation’s supreme organ in making policies, the Board of Directors handles the following matters:
1. the appointment and discharge of the Chief Executive Officer, the Deputy Chief Executive Officer, the president of each Chapter, the executive secretary of each Chapter, the commissioners of each Reviewing Committee, the commissioners of the Reconsideration Committee, the commissioners of each specialized committee and other important positions.
2. the establishment of the guidelines and plans of the Foundation.
3. the compilation of budgets.
4. the safekeeping and utilization of the funding.
5. fund-raising.
6. the formulation, amendment and abolishment of the rules enacted by the Foundation under the authorization of this Act.
7. the amendment to the Articles of the Foundation.
8. the disposition of the Foundation’s assets.
the decisions of other important matters.
Article 39
The chairman of the Board of Directors shall call the Board of Directors meetings and shall preside as the chairman at the meetings. In case the chairman fails to call the meetings or preside as the chairman at the meetings for any reason, the chairman shall designate a director as his or her representative. In case the chairman fails to designate a director as his or her representative or fails to call the meetings, the directors shall elect one person among themselves to call the meetings or to preside as the chairman at the meetings. In case the chairman fails to call the meetings, the directors shall elect one person among themselves to call the meetings or to preside as the chairman at the meetings.
Unless otherwise prescribed in this Act, the resolutions of the Board of Directors shall be reached by the majority of the quorum composed by the majority of the Board of Directors present.
The resolution of the Board of Directors concerning the amendment to the Articles of the Foundation or the material disposition of the Foundation’s assets shall be reached by two-thirds of the quorum composed by two-thirds of the Board of Directors present. The resolutions reached by the Board of Directors shall also be submitted to the Judicial Yuan for approval.
When the Board of Directors convenes a meeting via video conference, any director who participates in the video conference shall be deemed as present.
Article 40
The Foundation shall have a chairman of the Board of Directors to represent the Foundation.
The chairman of the Board of Directors shall be selected by consensus from the entire the Board of Directors and then appointed by the Foundation after obtaining approval from the president of the Judicial Yuan. The term of office for the chairman of the Board of Directors is the same as directors'. Prior to obtaining the appointment, the elected chairman shall act as an interim chairman, and the duration of such interim shall not exceed one month.
In case the chairman of the Board of Directors quits the position, deprives from being the chairman or shall be discharged for failing to perform his or her duties during the term of office, the Foundation shall obtain a prior approval from the President of the Judicial Yuan before discharging the chairman of the Board of Directors.
Under the condition as described in the preceding paragraph, the competent authority shall order the Foundation to re-elect a chairman of the Board of Directors, whose term of office lasts until the end of the original term of the previous chairman of the Board of Directors. Prior to re-election, an acting chairman shall be selected by consensus from the entire board of directors.
Article 41
The Foundation shall have a Chief Executive Officer, and a Deputy Chief Executive Officer. Both are full-time positions to be filled by persons with legal expertise, and appointed by the Foundation. The Chief Executive Officer shall serve a term of three years, and is eligible for re-appointment when the term of service expires. The Chief Executive Officer shall manage general affairs of the Foundation under the supervision and direction of the Board of Directors; while the deputy Chief Executive Officer shall assist the Chief Executive Officer in managing general affairs.
Candidates for the Chief Executive Officer and deputy Chief Executive Officer shall be nominated by the chairman of the Board of Directors, accepted by the Board of Directors, and approved by the president of the Judicial Yuan.
In the event that the Chief Executive Officer or the Deputy Chief Executive Officer resigns or is found incompetent, the Chief Executive Officer or the Deputy Chief Executive Officer should be discharged from the position, the procedure of which is the same as the appointment procedure.
Article 42
Depending on the business requirements; the Foundation may establish various specialized Committees to handle matters relating to legal aid.
Each specialized committee shall have a number of committee members, one of whom shall be the committee director. All positions are non-compensated, and shall be filled with experts specializing in law, social science, psychology or other professional fields. In the event of a resignation or an incompetency is found, the Foundation shall discharge the person from the duty.
The members of the various specialized committees as prescribed in the preceding paragraph shall include both genders with each gender occupying at least one-third of the Committee seats.
Article 43
A Chapter shall have one president position without compensation to be filled by an expert in law, or law related fields, of the Foundation's choosing, administering general affairs of the Chapter for a term of three years with the opportunity to be re-appointed upon the expiration of the term.
The Foundation shall discharge the president of a Chapter in the event of his resignation or incompetency. The competent authority may also request the Foundation to discharge the person from this position.
After the positions are appointed or discharged as described in the preceding two paragraphs, the Foundation shall submit reports to the competent authority for future reference.
Article 44
The Chapter shall have a full-time executive secretary who specializes in law or in other relevant professions. The executive secretary shall handle the Chapter’s business under the direction of the president.
The appointment and discharge of the executive secretary shall be reported by the Chief Executive Officer or the president of the Chapter to the Foundation and shall be decided by the Foundation.
Article 45
The Chapter shall establish the Review Committee composed by a number of committee members. The term of office for the Review Committee member is three years. The members for the Review Committee shall receive no pay for their services as a member.
The members of the Review Committee shall be appointed among judges, prosecutors, public defender, military judges, lawyers, scholars or specialists in law by the Foundation with a recommendation from the president of the Chapter. In case the committee member quits the position or shall be discharged for failing to perform his or her duties, the president of the Chapter shall report the matter to the Foundation and request the Foundation to discharge the committee member.
Article 46
The Review Committee is in charge of reviewing the following matters:
1. the approval, denial, modification, revocation, and termination of legal aid.
2. the payment, increase, reduction or cancellation of the lawyer’s remuneration and necessary fees.
3. the remuneration or necessary fees which the legal aid recipient shall return, share or be obligated to pay.
4. the disputes occurring between the legal aid recipients and the legal aid lawyers.
5. the matters required by the provisions of other statutes.
If any one of the following conditions applies, the Chapter may decide to provide legal aid, and determine the amount of remuneration to the lawyers, but the provisions of subparagraphs 1 and 2 of the preceding paragraph do not apply:
1. The presiding judge or the prosecutor refers a criminal case to the Foundation to assign a lawyer in compliance with the provisions of Article 31 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
2. In a case which the prosecutor is seeking the death penalty, and the court has pronounced the death penalty as the punishment, or the defendant is in danger of receiving a death penalty as the punishment.
3. Other cases as decided by the Foundation.
The regulations relating to the provisions of the preceding paragraph shall be prescribed by the Foundation.
Article 47
The review decisions of the Review Committee shall be jointly made by three members of the Review Committee.
The reviewed decision made in compliance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph shall be supported with reasons in writing.
The Foundation shall establish the rules governing the review of matters prescribed in the preceding Article.
Article 48
The Foundation shall establish the Reconsideration Committee composed by a number of committee members. The term of office for the Reconsideration Committee member is three years. The members for the Reconsideration Committee shall receive no pay for their services as a member.
The member of the Review Committee cannot also serve as the member of the Reconsideration Committee.
The members of the Reconsideration Committee shall be appointed among senior judges, prosecutors, public defender, military judges, lawyers, scholars or specialists in law by the Foundation with a recommendation from the Chief Executive Officer or the president of the Chapter; in case the member quits the position or shall be discharged for failing to perform his or her duties, the Chief Executive Officer or the president of the Chapter shall report the matter to the Foundation and request the Foundation to discharge the member.
Article 49
The Reconsideration Committee shall review cases that were decided by the Review Committee but were objected to by the applicants.
The reviewed decisions of the Reconsideration Committee shall be jointly made by three members of the Reconsideration Committee.
The reviewed decision made in compliance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph shall be supported with reasons in writing.
The Foundation shall establish the rules governing the petitions for reconsideration.
Article 50
The acceptance or rejection of the following legal aid instances shall be performed by the legal aid lawyers, and the provisions of Article 46, Article 47 and the preceding article do not apply:
1. conduct the first questioning (interrogation) in an investigation under the conditions as described in the provisions of article 5 paragraph 4 subparagraphs 1 to 4;
2. provide verbal legal consultation.
Article 51
The Foundation shall have five supervisors. The term of office for the supervisor is three years. The supervisors shall receive no pay for their services as a supervisor.
The first term of the supervisors shall be retained among the following persons by the President of the Judicial Yuan:
1. a representative from the Executive Yuan.
2. a representative from the Judicial Yuan.
3. a lawyer recommended by the national bar association and regional bar associations.
4. a person who specializes in accounting.
5. a public figure who is considered fair and just by the society.
The term of office for supervisor set forth in the subparagraphs 1and 2 of the preceding paragraph may renew after the term of office expires. There is no restriction to the numbers of renewal.
The term of office for supervisors set forth in the subparagraphs 3 to 5 of the preceding paragraph 2 may renew one time after the term of office expires, but the number of the renewed supervisors shall not exceed two-third of the total number of supervisors set forth in these three subparagraphs.
Supervisors should convene a meeting one month before the end of each term to nominate supervisor candidates in an amount that is double that of the elected supervisors for the next term in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 2 subparagraphs 3 to 5, and submit the list of supervisors-elect, who are elected in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 2 subparagraphs 1 and 2, to the president of the Judicial Yuan for appointment.
If any one of the following conditions applies to a supervisor during the office term, the Foundation shall request that the president of the Judicial Yuan discharge the supervisor in question:
1. the supervisor, elected as described in paragraph 2 subparagraphs 1 and 2, leaves the original position.
2. the supervisor, elected as described in paragraph 2 subparagraphs 3 to 5, resigns or is found incompetent.
Under the conditions as described in the preceding paragraph, a new supervisor shall be elected, and the process as prescribed in the provisions of paragraph 5 shall apply. The office term of the successive supervisor lasts until the end of the original term of the previous supervisor.
Article 52
The supervisors shall be in charge of the following matters:
1. supervising on the promotion of the Foundation’s business and the personnel in charge of the business.
2. the inspection and audition of the funding, deposits and other assets.
3. the examination of the financial condition.
4. the review of the final accounting.
The supervisors shall exercise their authorities independently and shall convene a meeting when it is necessary.
The supervisor may sit in on the meeting of the Board of Directors to express his or her opinion.
Article 53
The Foundation shall have a chief supervisor elected among all of the supervisors.
The Foundation shall report the elected chief supervisor to the President of the Judicial Yuan for appointment. The term of office for the chief supervisor is the same as supervisors’.
The chief supervisor shall convene the meeting of the Board of Supervisors.
The resolutions in the meeting set forth in the preceding paragraph shall be reached by a majority of the quorum composed by the majority of the Board of Supervisors.
In case the chief supervisor quits the position or shall be discharged for failing to perform his or her duties during the term of office, the Foundation shall obtain a prior approval from the President of the Judicial Yuan before discharging the chief supervisor.
Under the condition as described in the preceding paragraph, the competent authority shall order the Foundation to re-elect a chief supervisor, whose term of office lasts until the end of the original term of the previous chief supervisor. Prior to re-election, an acting chief supervisor shall be elected from and by the supervisors.
Article 54
Persons with any one of the following conditions shall not assume the position of a director or supervisor:
1. Committing criminal offenses intentionally, and is pronounced with the punishment of a fixed-term imprisonment. However, the provision is not applicable to those with confirmed suspension of punishment.
2. been declared bankrupt, or undergoing liquidation proceedings as adjudicated by the court in accordance with the Consumer Debt Clearance Act, and whose rights have not yet been restored.
3. been declared by a court to be placed under guardianship or assistance, where such declaration has not yet been voided.
4. having been proven by a hospital that is approved by the central competent health authority, of the inability to assume job functions due to physical-mental disability or other causes.
Article 55
A director or a supervisor shall comply with the principle of avoiding conflicts of interest, and shall not scheme to profit for oneself, or the third party using the power, opportunities, or means available to the position.
There should be no current or past spousal relationship, or other relationship within three degrees by blood, or by marriage among directors or supervisors.
The spouses and the relatives within three degrees by blood or by marriage of the directors or supervisors shall not assume job positions in General Affairs, Accounting, or Personnel of the Foundation.
The provisions prescribed in the preceding three paragraphs shall apply mutatis mutandis to the Chief Executive Officer and Deputy Chief Executive Officer.
Article 56
The Foundation shall draw up the annual plans and budgets based on the purposes of establishing the Foundation, and shall submit them to the competent authority six months before the new fiscal year starts.
The Foundation shall submit the annual work reports, final financial statements, and detailed lists of assets to the competent authority for reference.
Article 57
To oversee the regular operations of the Foundation, the competent authority may order the Foundation to submit the reports regarding matters pertinent to the business, accounting and assets, and may also dispatch personnel to inspect the business.
When overseeing the operation of the Foundation, the competent authority may order the Foundation to submit proof documents, books and other relevant information.
Article 58
The Foundation shall set up the accounting system, and shall properly keep the relevant account books and certificates for inspection.
Article 59
In case a director fails to exercise his or her authorities and serve his or her duties in accordance with this Act, the competent authority may take the necessary disciplinary actions of correction or discharge depending on the seriousness of the violation.
Article 60
To oversee and maintain normal operations and sound development of the Foundation, the competent authority may formulate supervisory management regulations concerning the use of funds and budget, the quality of provided legal aid, annual critical measures and others.