Risk agency [case entrustment content]

Lawyer risk agency means that when accepting criminal case business, the client does not pay the lawyer's service fees first, but stipulates in the contract that the lawyer's service fees are linked to the service results, and the amount or proportion of subsequent charges is agreed based on the case handling results. When representing civil and commercial litigation cases involving property disputes, many lawyers and clients adopt a contingency fee agency model. This is a manifestation of the marketization of lawyer services and is an agency model allowed by the rules of the lawyer industry and not prohibited by law.

However, as criminal cases are special types of cases involving the defendant's personal freedom and right to life, the Chinese government has always controlled the fees charged by lawyers for handling criminal cases and implemented "government-guided prices." The government has clearly stipulated the charging standards for lawyers handling criminal cases.

In recent years, in order to implement the "delegation, regulation and service" deepening reform of the central government and the State Council and promote the market-oriented development of lawyer services, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Bureau of Justice of Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai and other places have jointly issued a joint document to cancel the legal fees for lawyers in criminal cases. The government-guided prices for service charges, criminal case lawyer fees have opened up the market-oriented model of "negotiated fees", that is, based on various factors such as the difficulty of the case, the lawyer's level and relevant experience, the fees are negotiated between the client, the lawyer, and the law firm Case Fees.

It should be noted that the “risk agency” method in criminal cases mentioned in this article is still not allowed because of the particularity of the case. Using service results as the basis for payment or additional payment of attorney's fees may result in the lawyer abandoning his or her own duties in order to obtain attorney's fees. It may encourage the destruction of falsified evidence and the manipulation of judicial personnel to achieve the agreed payment of lawyer fees, and there is a risk of illegal conduct.

The "Administrative Measures for Lawyer Service Fees" jointly issued by the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Justice clearly stipulates that contingency fees are prohibited in criminal litigation cases. Coincidentally, the American Bar Association's "Model Rules of Professional Conduct" also clearly stipulates that representing defendants in criminal cases is excluded from conditional fees based on service results.

Based on the actual situation, if the client requests the lawyer to handle a criminal case at risk, the lawyer should clearly inform the client that the criminal case is prohibited according to industry norms or regulations, and clearly express his refusal. Risk agency agreements in criminal cases are invalid agreements and can easily lead to disputes, which may lead to professional risks such as complaints from clients and penalties for lawyers. However , in Chinese criminal cases, dependent residents can choose to hire lawyers as risk agents to represent their rights and interests and provide legal support in the case. This helps ensure that residents are treated fairly and can actively participate in the criminal case process.

The above legal basis comes from Article 11 of the "Administrative Measures for Lawyer Service Charges" :

When handling civil cases involving property relations, if the client still requests contingency agency after being informed of the government's guidance price, the law firm may implement contingency agency fees, except in the following circumstances:
(1) Marriage and inheritance cases;
(2) Requesting social insurance benefits or minimum living security benefits;
(3) Requesting for the payment of alimony, support, support, pensions, relief funds, and work-related injury compensation;
(4) Requesting payment of labor remuneration, etc.