Adopted at the 24th Session of the Standing Committee of the Fourteenth National People’s Congress on August 28, 2026
Effective: September 1, 2026
The 24th Session of the Standing Committee of the Fourteenth National People’s Congress decides to make the following amendments to the Lawyers Law of the People’s Republic of China:
I. In Article 1, “giving play to the role of lawyers in the building of the socialist legal system” is amended to read “giving play to the role of lawyers in the building of the socialist rule of law”, and “this Law is enacted” is amended to read “this Law is enacted in accordance with the Constitution”.
II. A new article is added as Article 3: “Lawyer work upholds the leadership of the Communist Party of China, implements the Party’s and the state’s lines, principles, policies, decisions and plans, and serves the building of Chinese modernization.
“In law firms, organizations of the Communist Party of China shall be established in accordance with the Constitution of the Communist Party of China and relevant intra-Party regulations, Party activities shall be carried out, Party building shall be strengthened, and the political guiding role of Party organizations and the exemplary and vanguard role of Party-member lawyers shall be brought into play. Law firms shall provide the necessary conditions for the activities of Party organizations.”
III. Paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of Article 3 are amended and renumbered as Article 4: “In practicing law, lawyers shall exemplarily abide by the Constitution and laws and strictly observe lawyers’ professional ethics and practice discipline.
“Lawyers shall practice law on the basis of facts and with the law as the criterion.
“Lawyers shall practice law with integrity in accordance with laws and regulations, conscientiously fulfill social responsibilities, and accept supervision by the state, society and their clients.”
IV. Paragraph 4 of Article 3 is amended and renumbered as Article 5: “Lawyers’ practice of law in accordance with the law is protected by law, and no organization or individual may infringe upon the lawful rights and interests of lawyers.
“The people’s courts, people’s procuratorates, public security organs, state security organs, judicial administrative departments and relevant entities shall establish and improve systems for safeguarding lawyers’ practice rights, and safeguard lawyers’ practice rights within the scope of their duties in accordance with the law.”
V. A new article is added as Article 7: “The state actively develops foreign-related legal services, strengthens the cultivation of foreign-related lawyer talent, supports law firms in enhancing their capacity and level of foreign-related legal services, encourages the lawyer profession to strengthen international exchanges and cooperation, safeguards the lawful rights and interests of clients, and serves high-quality development and high-level opening up.”
VI. Article 5 is renumbered as Article 8, with its paragraph 1 amended to read: “A lawyer shall meet the following conditions:
“(1) uphold the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China;
“(2) uphold the leadership of the Communist Party of China and uphold China’s socialist rule of law;
“(3) have passed the national unified legal profession qualification examination and obtained legal profession qualification;
“(4) have completed one year of internship in a law firm; and
“(5) be of good character.”
VII. Article 31 is renumbered as Article 34, with a new paragraph added as its paragraph 2: “The state promotes full coverage of defense by lawyers in criminal cases; the specific measures shall be prescribed by the judicial administrative department of the State Council in conjunction with relevant entities.”
VIII. Article 41 is renumbered as Article 44, with a new paragraph added as its paragraph 2: “Personnel of the people’s courts, people’s procuratorates, judicial administrative departments and other entities who engage in the profession of lawyer or work in a law firm after resigning from public office or retiring shall comply with the relevant provisions on the management of civil servants who have left their posts.”
IX. A new article is added as Article 46: “Law firms and lawyers are encouraged and supported to participate in public-interest legal services and provide legal aid in accordance with the law; judicial administrative departments and lawyers’ associations shall strengthen overall coordination, organization and guidance.”
X. A new article is added as Article 62: “Legal practitioners of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and practicing lawyers of the Macao Special Administrative Region who have passed the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area lawyer practice examination organized by the judicial administrative department of the State Council and obtained mainland practice qualifications may practice law within the prescribed scope in Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Foshan, Huizhou, Dongguan, Zhongshan, Jiangmen and Zhaoqing in Guangdong Province.
“The application conditions, procedures for applying for practice, scope of practice and other matters of the examination prescribed in the preceding paragraph shall be prescribed by the judicial administrative department of the State Council.”
This Decision shall come into force on September 1, 2026.
The Lawyers Law of the People’s Republic of China shall be amended accordingly in accordance with this Decision, the order of its articles shall be adjusted accordingly, and it shall be repromulgated.
Disclaimer: This is an unofficial English translation of the Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress on Amending the Lawyers Law of the People’s Republic of China, prepared for general informational purposes only. The Chinese text is the sole official and authoritative version. While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, this translation is not a substitute for professional legal advice. For legal matters, please consult a qualified professional.
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