PREFACE
 
The training materials for community officers on legal aid are a product within the framework of the Project "Strengthening legal aid for the poor and vulnerable" for the period 2021-2026, with the Ministry of Justice as the managing agency and the World Bank funded by the Japan Social Development Fund.
The Expert Group developed the document based on the findings and recommendations in the Research Report on Identifying Barriers to Access and Use of Legal Aid by People and other relevant documents. The views expressed in this document are from the research perspective of the Research Expert Group and do not represent any agency or organization.
The document development team would like to express our sincere thanks to the specialized project management board of the Ministry of Justice, the World Bank, the Legal Aid Department of the Ministry of Justice, the Department of Justice and the Legal Aid Centers of Dien Bien and Yen Bai provinces, and relevant agencies, organizations and individuals for their support, assistance and comments during the development of this document.
This document is the first to be developed within the framework of the Project, so there may be some shortcomings. The expert team would like to receive constructive comments to study and complete the document.
This document, after being accepted by the specialized Project Management Board of the Ministry of Justice, will be copyrighted by the Ministry of Justice according to regulations.
Thank you very much!
 
 
 
 
 
 
INDEX
General introduction …………………………………………………...Page 5
List of abbreviations ………………………………………………… ....Page 7
PART I. INTRODUCTION AND SUPPORT INFORMATION
LEGAL …………………………………………………………… ….. Page 8
1. Proactively grasp the needs and legal problems in the community.
compatriots …………………………………………………………….  Page 9
2. Identifying people eligible for legal aid ……………………. ….Page 9
3. How to introduce information about legal aid
for the people …………………………………………………………..Page 10
4. Introduction to legal aid for people ………… ....Page 10

1. Explain what is legal aid?… ………………………………...Page 10
2. Who is eligible for legal aid ?… ……………………………...Page 10
3. What forms of legal aid do people receive?...........Page 14
4. people have to pay for legal aid ?… ……Page 16

5. Instructions for legal issues …………….… .Page 16
5.1. Introduction to the rights of people receiving legal aid……………… Page 16
5.2. Introduction to the obligations of the person receiving legal aid…. Page 18
5.3. Instructions for procedures to request legal aid………………… … .Page 19
5.4. How to submit a request for legal aid………………………… ….Page 21
5.5. Location for receiving requests for legal aid…………………… … .Page 22
6. Referral to legal aid organization ………………… Page 22
6.1. Organization implementing legal aid……………………………… Page 22
6.2. Notification to legal aid organization…………………………… Page 23
PART II. REFERENCE INFORMATION ON LEGAL AID        Page 24
1. Legal aid provider………………………………… … .Page 24
2. In which cases will the case of the person receiving legal aid be handled?  Page 24
3. When is a request for legal aid refused……………………Page 25
PART III. SOME REFERENCES ABOUT INFORMATION SKILLS, INTRODUCTION TO LEGAL AID …………………… ….Page 26
1. Documentation skills……………………………………… ….. …Page 26
2. Skills rally the masses for communication work about legal aid….Page 28
3. Presentation skills………………………………………………. ….Page 28
PART IV. SOME PROVISIONS OF THE LAW ………………… ….Page 31
Section 1. Regulations on individual rights under the Civil Code
2015 …………………….……………………Page 31

1. Civil law regulations on inheritance……………………… ….. ……Page 31
2. Civil law regulations on compensation for damages outside of contract

in some cases………………………………………… ….. …Page 40

3. Some other legal provisions that need attention…………………… ....Page 43

Section 2. Some legal provisions on marriage ……………… ….. Page 51

1. What is marriage…………………………………………………… … …. Page 51
2. Marriage conditions…………………………………………… ……. Page 51
3. Marriage registration……………………………………………… .. Page 54
4. Annulment of illegal marriage ……………………………… ……. . Page 56
5. Early marriage and incestuous marriage…………………………….…Page 57
6. Handling of illegal marriages……………………………………. Page 59
7. Rights and obligations of husband and wife…………………………… Page 60
8. Divorce………………………………………………………………. Page 62

Section 3. Some provisions of the 2024 land law ................Page 68
1. Rights and obligations of land users…………………………...Page 68
2. Land support policy for some disadvantaged groups according to the provisions of the Land Law………………………………………………Page 70
3. Land disputes……………........…………………………………Page 72
4. Participation of legal aid in resolving land disputes
in the civil field……………………………………………...…….Page 77
APPENDIX NO. 1: Application form for legal aid………...………...Page 79
APPENDIX NO. 2: Documents proving eligibility for assistance
legal assistance …………………………………………….....Page 81
APPENDIX NO. 3: List of organizations providing legal aid on province ..Page 86
 
 

 
Introduce
Legal aid is a humane policy of the Party and State of Vietnam for the poor, people with revolutionary contributions and vulnerable groups in society, helping them protect their legitimate rights and interests, the right to access justice, and fair access to the law even when they have financial difficulties. Many people eligible for legal aid living in rural areas, especially remote areas, areas with difficult socio-economic conditions, have difficulty accessing information about the law in general and legal aid in particular. Therefore, the team of village elders, village chiefs, clan leaders, prestigious people in the community... (collectively referred to as community cadres) play a very important role, being the closest to the people, regularly contacting and quickly grasping the needs and problems of the people ; being the bridge to bring information about legal aid to the people, helping people understand their rights and request legal aid when needed.
          Within the framework of the Project “Enhancing Legal Aid for the Poor and Vulnerable” funded by the World Bank from the support of the Japan Social Development Fund, of which the Ministry of Justice is the managing agency, the Expert Group (including domestic and international experts) conducted research and developed guidance documents to equip knowledge on legal aid and some legal knowledge related to local people to train and consolidate knowledge for community staff, support to improve skills in providing information, introduction, and guidance on legal aid for people.
          The purpose of this document is to:

• Provide some regulations and guidance information for community staff to understand the nature, purpose and significance of legal aid activities ; subjects and procedures for requesting legal aid; rights and obligations of people receiving legal aid; methods and skills for providing information, introducing legal aid and some related contents, creating conditions for people to access the State's free legal aid services.
• Providing some information and regulations in some legal fields that people at the grassroots level are often interested in, such as the rights of individuals in civil affairs (including inheritance, compensation for non-contractual damages, ownership rights to lost livestock; property warranty; some common civil contracts such as contracts for sale, borrowing of property, etc., marriage and family (such as marriage, divorce, early marriage, illegal marriage, rights and obligations of husband and wife); regulations of land law in civil affairs (such as rights and obligations of land users, land support policies for some subjects, land disputes, participation of legal aid in resolving civil land disputes); regulations of law on complaints and denunciations (such as rights and obligations of complainants and denouncers; procedures, processes, and authority to resolve complaints and denunciations) ... These contents contribute to consolidating knowledge, creating conditions for community cadres to understand current regulations of the law. laws and guidance for local people when legal problems arise; at the same time, promptly introduce and notify local legal aid organizations to coordinate support and help people to remove difficulties and obstacles, and develop livelihoods for people at the grassroots level.

The document is organized into 4 parts:
Part I. Introduction and information on legal aid by community officers;
Part II. Some reference information on legal aid;
Part III. Some reference information on information skills, introduction to legal aid;
Part IV. Some provisions of law relating to people.
There are also specific appendices on the application form for legal aid, types of documents proving eligibility for legal aid, and a list of organizations providing legal aid in Yen Bai province.
          The sections of the Document are designed quite independently of each other. Depending on the actual needs in specific cases, community officers can look up and refer to specific sections of the document.
Objects using the document :
These documents are designed primarily for village elders, village chiefs, clan chiefs, prestigious people in the community, etc. and those involved in legal aid and access to legal aid for people at the grassroots level. They can refer to these documents in the process of contacting, communicating, and supporting people at the grassroots level, including those eligible for legal aid. In addition, these documents can be used as a reference for researchers, reporters, propagandists, and community activists at the grassroots level. 
 
 

 
List of abbreviations

Acronym	Meaning
TGPL	Legal Aid
People's Committee	People's Committee

   

Objective of this section: Provide concise, practical and useful information to help community officers understand the purpose, requirements, procedures and content of introducing and providing information about TGPL to people at the grassroots level; including: State's free legal aid policy; People eligible for free legal aid; How to introduce TGPL to people; Information contents such as what is TGPL, what tasks will TGPL perform for people, do people have to pay when receiving TGPL; instructions for people when they need TGPL; rights and obligations of TGPL recipients, procedures for requesting TGPL, how to submit a TGPL request...

 
1. Proactively grasp the need to learn and use the law and the problems and disputes in the community.
Village elders, village chiefs, clan chiefs, prestigious people in the community... play an important role in connecting information about law and legal aid to local people. They are prestigious people in the locality, trusted by the people, exemplary in implementing legal regulations, and are pioneers in the following tasks: mobilizing people to be aware of law compliance, building and protecting the country; regularly coordinating with the people's security team, women's association, elderly association... to understand each family's situation; disseminating, communicating, mobilizing to prevent and combat crimes, social evils, implementing a new cultural lifestyle, eliminating bad customs and social evils, actively producing, eliminating hunger and reducing poverty; propagating and mobilizing people to implement land policies according to the law; converting production models, converting crop and livestock structures to suit local conditions; preventing epidemics... ; Support functional sectors to mobilize the masses to participate in building a lifestyle and working according to the Constitution and laws...
Through these tasks, community officers have the opportunity to quickly contact and grasp the need to learn about and use the law and the problems and disputes in the community. At that time, community officers can provide initial support by providing relevant information, suggesting solutions or advising people (if possible); one of those solutions is to guide people to request legal aid.

For example: Mr. A is the head of village H. Once, when he came to Mr. B's family to propagate and encourage Mr. B's family to use the vacant land to plant acacia trees, increasing the family's income, Mr. A learned that Mr. B's family's land was in dispute with Mr. C's family. Knowing that Mr. B was eligible for legal aid, Mr. A introduced Mr. B to his right to legal aid and the benefits of legal aid, and then advised Mr. B to go to the State Legal Aid Center of province H to request legal aid.

 
2. Identify people eligible for legal aid.
When meeting people with difficulties or disputes, community officers should refer to the provisions of Article 7 of the Law on Legal Aid. 2017 and related legal documents to determine whether that person is eligible for TGPL or not (see subsection 4.2, section 4, part I of this document).
Correctly identifying the subjects eligible for TGPL will create conditions for community officers to confidently advise that person to request TGPL to protect their rights and interests and help people more conveniently in the process of solving their work, limiting cases where people come to request TGPL but are refused because they are not eligible for TGPL.
3. How to introduce information about legal aid to people
Community officers can choose different ways to introduce and inform about TGPL. to local people. Examples of ways to introduce and inform about TGPL include:

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
4. Introduction to legal aid for local people
4.1. Explain what legal aid is
TGPL Legal aid is the act of a legal aid provider [1]providing free legal services (including: legal advice, participation in litigation, out-of-court representation [2]) to people receiving legal aid in the fields of civil, criminal, and administrative law (except for business and commercial fields) according to the provisions of the Law on Legal Aid , contributing to ensuring human rights and citizens' rights in access to justice and equality before the law.
4.2. Who is eligible for legal aid?
Article 7 of the Law on Civil Procedure 2017 regulations on people eligible for TGPL include:
 

1. People with revolutionary contributions

2. People from poor households

3. Children

4. Ethnic minorities residing in areas with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions

5. The accused is from 16 years old to under 18 years old

6. The accused belongs to a near-poor household.

7. People in one of the following cases have financial difficulties: a) Father, mother, wife, husband, children of martyrs and people who raised them when they were children; b) People infected with Agent Orange; c) Elderly people; d) People with disabilities; d) Persons from 16 to under 18 years of age are victims in criminal cases; e) Victims of domestic violence; g) Victims of human trafficking as prescribed by the Law on Prevention and Combat of Human Trafficking; h) People infected with HIV.

 
F NOTE:
In case people do not understand the categories of people eligible for legal aid, community officers need to clearly explain each category of subjects. If they are not clear, they should contact the State Legal Aid Center or the local State Legal Aid Center Branch for support.
Subjects eligible for TGPL Specifically as follows:

1. People with revolutionary contributions According to Ordinance on preferential treatment for people with revolutionary contributions No. 02/2020/UBTVQH14 dated December 9, 2020, people with revolutionary contributions include: (1) Revolutionary activists before January 1, 1945; (2) Revolutionary activists from January 1, 1945 to the August 1945 uprising; (3) Martyrs; (4) Heroic Vietnamese Mother; (5) Hero of the People's Armed Forces; (6) Labor Hero during the resistance period; (7) War invalids, including type B war invalids recognized before December 31, 1993; people enjoying policies like war invalids; (8) Sick soldiers; (9) Resistance fighters infected with toxic chemicals; (10) People who participated in revolution, resistance, national defense, and international obligations were imprisoned or exiled by the enemy; (11) People participating in resistance wars to liberate the nation, protect the Fatherland, and perform international duties; (12) People who have contributed to the revolution.

2. People from poor households: According to Article 3 of Decree No. 07/2021/ND-CP dated January 27, 2021 of the Government stipulating multidimensional poverty standards for the period 2021 - 2025, the criteria for measuring multidimensional poverty for the period 2022 - 2025 are as follows: - Income criteria + Rural areas: 1,500,000 VND/person/month. + Urban area: 2,000,000 VND/person/month. - Criteria for the level of shortage of basic social services: + Basic social services (06 services), including: employment; healthcare; education; housing; domestic water and sanitation; information. + Indicators measuring the level of basic social service shortage (12 indicators), including: employment; dependents in the household; nutrition; health insurance; adult education level; children's school attendance; housing quality; average housing area per capita; domestic water source; hygienic toilets; use of telecommunication services; means of accessing information. * Accordingly, the poverty standard: - Rural areas: Households with an average monthly income per capita of VND 1,500,000 or less and lacking 03 or more indicators measuring the level of basic social service shortage. - Urban areas: Households with an average monthly income per capita of VND 2,000,000 or less and lacking 3 or more indicators measuring the level of basic social service shortage.

3. Children Article 1 of the 2016 Law on Children stipulates: “A child is a person under 16 years of age.”

4. Ethnic minorities residing in areas with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions: Areas with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions are identified as follows: (1) Communes, wards and towns in disadvantaged areas: according to Decision No. 1010/QD-TTg dated August 10, 2018 of the Prime Minister promulgating commune-level administrative units in disadvantaged areas. (2) Particularly difficult communes: - Communes with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions in ethnic minority and mountainous areas are communes in region III as stipulated in Decision No. 861/QD-TTg dated June 4, 2021 of the Prime Minister on approving the List of communes in region III, region II, region I in ethnic minority and mountainous areas for the period 2021-2025; Decision 698/QD-TTg dated July 19, 2024 of the Prime Minister approving the adjustment and correction of the list of communes in region III, region II, region I in ethnic minority and mountainous areas for the period 2021-2025 issued by the Prime Minister. - Particularly disadvantaged communes in coastal and island areas are communes specified in Decision No. 353/QD-TTg dated March 15, 2022 of the Prime Minister on approving poor districts and particularly disadvantaged communes in coastal and island areas for the period 2021 - 2025. (3) Particularly disadvantaged villages: stipulated in Decision No. 612/QD-UBDT dated September 16, 2021 of the Minister, Chairman of the Ethnic Committee approving the list of particularly disadvantaged villages in ethnic minority and mountainous areas for the period 2021 - 2025.

5. The accused is from 16 years old to under 18 years old[3] The accused include: the arrested person, detainee, defendant

6. The accused belongs to a near-poor household. Clause 2, Article 3 of Decree No. 07/2021/ND-CP dated January 27, 2021 of the Government stipulating multidimensional poverty standards for the period 2021 - 2025 stipulates specific near-poor household standards as follows: - Rural areas: Households with an average monthly income per capita of VND 1,500,000 or less and lacking less than 03 indicators measuring the level of basic social service shortage [4]. - Urban areas: Households with an average monthly income per capita of VND 2,000,000 or less and lacking less than 03 indicators measuring the level of basic social service shortage. ( See indicators in Section 2 “People in poor households”).

7. People in one of the following cases have financial difficulties: - Father, mother, wife, husband, children of martyrs and people who raised the martyrs when they were young; - People infected with Agent Orange; - Elderly: are people aged 60 years or older (Article 2 of the Law on the Elderly); - A person with disabilities is a person who has a defect in one or more body parts or a functional impairment manifested in the form of a disability that causes difficulties in work, daily life, and study (Clause 1, Article 2 of the Law on Persons with Disabilities); - Persons from 16 years old to under 18 years old are victims in criminal cases; - Victims of domestic violence (Domestic violence is an intentional act of a family member that causes or is likely to cause physical, mental, sexual, or economic harm to another family member. Acts of domestic violence are specified in Article 3 of the Law on Prevention and Control of Domestic Violence 2022); - Victims of human trafficking as prescribed by the Law on Prevention and Combat of Human Trafficking; - HIV infected people. Financial hardship is when a person is in a near-poor household or is receiving social benefits as prescribed by law. Thus, people in one of the 7 categories above who are near-poor households or are receiving monthly social benefits are eligible for TGPL .

 
4.3. In what forms do people receive legal aid?
People are provided with legal aid through the following 3 forms:

 
 
 
 
 
F Legal advice is to be guided, give opinions, help draft documents related to disputes, complaints, legal problems; guide and help parties reconcile, negotiate, and agree on how to resolve the case.
 

For example: Mr. T is eligible for legal aid. Mr. T is disputing the right to use the land plot with Mr. H. Mr. T can go to the provincial State Legal Aid Center to request legal aid for guidance in resolving his case.

 
F Participating in litigation are legal assistants and lawyers performing legal aid. participate in litigation as a defender or protector of the legal rights and interests of the person receiving legal aid according to the provisions of the Law on Civil Procedure and procedural law.
 

For example: Mr. M and Mr. H have a land dispute. Mr. M filed a petition with the People's Court of District X to request a resolution of the case. Mr. M is the person receiving legal aid . Mr. M can go to the State Legal Aid Center of the province to request legal aid in the form of participating in the proceedings so that the Center can send a legal aid officer to participate in the proceedings at the court as a person protecting Mr. M's legal rights and interests.

 
F Out-of-court representation is the act of a legal assistant or lawyer acting on behalf of a person receiving legal assistance to exercise their rights and obligations in legal relations (civil legal relations, administrative legal relations, etc.) before a competent state agency. These tasks are not part of the litigation stage or procedure. With this form of legal assistance , a legal assistant or lawyer performs tasks with a state agency as an authorized representative of a person receiving legal assistance .
 
 
 

For example: Mr. A is a person receiving legal aid . Mr. A wants to appeal the administrative decision of the People's Committee of District X. Mr. A can go to the State Legal Aid Center of the province to request legal aid in the form of out-of-court representation, authorizing a legal aid officer to help him exercise his right to appeal to protect his legitimate rights and interests.

 
Do people have to pay for legal aid ?
When receiving TGPL , people do not have to pay money or any material benefits. any other material benefit. Other material benefits may be gifts or commitments to do something that benefits the person performing the TGPL or organization implementing TGPL .

 
 
 
 
 

5. Guidance when people need legal aid
5.1. Introduction to the rights of people receiving legal aid
The person receiving TGPL has the following rights [5]:
1. Get TGPL without payment, material benefit or other benefit.
legal aid by oneself or through relatives, agencies, competent persons conducting proceedings or other agencies, organizations, individuals .
3. Be informed about the right to legal aid , procedures and processes for legal aid when coming to the organization to implement TGPL and relevant government agencies.
TGPL case confidential .
The person receiving legal aid has the right to request the person performing the legal aid and the organization performing the legal aid to keep confidential information related to the case.

For example: Ms. A is the mother of a 14-year-old girl T (T is a victim of sexual abuse). Ms. A is the legal representative of T who went to the State Legal Aid Center of M province to file a request for legal aid for T. Because T is suffering from mental disorder, Ms. A wants the content of the case to be kept confidential. Ms. A has the right to request the Center to keep the content of this legal aid case confidential .

 
5. Choose an organization to implement TGPL and the person implementing TGPL locally in the published list; request to change the person performing the TGPL [6].

For example: Ms. A is a legal aid recipient. She requests legal aid in a dispute over the division of inherited property. She goes to the State Legal Aid Center of Province B to request legal aid and is told that she has the right to choose a legal aid provider. Ms. A chooses legal aid provider H. The Director of the State Legal Aid Center of Province B, based on the provisions of the law, assigned legal aid officer H to protect the legal rights and interests of Ms. A.

 
6. Change, withdraw TGPL request .

For example: Mr. B, a victim in a criminal case, submitted a request to the State Legal Aid Center requesting that the Center assign a legal aid provider to protect his legal rights and interests in the case. However, during the negotiation and conciliation process, Mr. B received a reasonable amount of compensation, so he withdrew his legal aid request. Mr. B submitted a request to withdraw his legal aid request and sent it to the State Legal Aid Center. The State Legal Aid Center accepted and responded in writing that it would not continue to conduct the legal aid case.

7. Be compensated for damages according to the provisions of law.
8. Complaints and denunciations about TGPL as prescribed by law.
 
5.2. Introduction to the obligations of persons receiving legal aid
Person receiving TGPL have the following obligations [7]:
1. Provide documents proving that you are a person receiving legal aid. (see Appendix 2).
2. Cooperate, promptly and fully provide information, documents and evidence related to the TGPL case. and be responsible for the accuracy of that information, documents and evidence.

For example: Information, documents, evidence in criminal cases such as: Decision to initiate criminal proceedings; Decision to prosecute the accused, Investigation conclusions, Minutes of taking statements, Conclusions of appraisals, Indictments... Information, documents, and evidence in civil cases such as: For lawsuits to claim loans, the certificate of the amount written by the borrower himself, the property lease contract in cases of disputes over the rights and obligations of the parties in the property lease contract; the will in cases of lawsuits requesting inheritance division according to the will...; land use right certificate in cases of land use right disputes; Minutes of taking statements , Minutes of conciliation, First instance judgment (for cases participating in the appeal stage of litigation); personal information of the parties... Information, documents, evidence in administrative cases: Decision on handling complaints and denunciations by competent authorities, Minutes of on-site review and assessment, Minutes of conciliation, Decision on land recovery, Disciplinary decision...

 
3. Respect the organization implementing TGPL and the person implementing TGPL and other agencies, organizations and individuals related to the TGPL case .
During the implementation of legal aid, the person receiving legal aid must respect the organization implementing legal aid, the person implementing legal aid and other agencies, organizations and individuals related to the legal aid case. In case the person receiving legal aid infringes upon the health, honor and dignity of the person implementing legal aid and the reputation of the organization implementing legal aid, the legal aid case shall not be continued according to the provisions of Point b, Clause 1, Article 37 of the 2017 Law on Legal Aid. At the same time, acts of infringing upon the health, honor and dignity of the person implementing legal aid and the reputation of the organization implementing legal aid shall be subject to administrative sanctions or criminal prosecution according to the provisions of law.
4. No requirement for organizations to implement TGPL other than TGPL for me about the same case being handled and resolved by an organization implementing TGPL .
If the person receiving legal aid requests another organization to provide legal aid for him/her regarding the same case, the organization providing legal aid must refuse to provide legal aid and clearly explain to the person receiving legal aid the reason for refusal.

For example: Mr. A is a person receiving legal aid. Mr. A submitted a request for legal aid to the State Legal Aid Center of H province and the State Legal Aid Center of H province accepted the case and assigned a legal assistant to participate in the litigation in the land use rights dispute case between Mr. A and Mr. B. Then, Mr. A submitted a request for legal aid to the L Law Office in H province to request legal aid (Law Office L has signed a contract to provide legal aid with the Department of Justice of H province). Therefore, L Law Office has a document refusing to accept the case because the State Legal Aid Center of H province is handling the case.

 
5. Comply with the law on TGPL and regulations of the place where TGPL is performed .
 5.3. Instructions for procedures to request legal aid
a) People who can request TGPL
- The person receiving TGPL can request TGPL himself ;
- The person receiving TGPL can request TGPL through relatives ;
- The person receiving legal aid can request legal aid through the agency, person with authority to conduct the proceedings or other agencies, organizations or individuals .
Relatives of the person receiving TGPL include: wife, husband, biological father, biological mother, father-in-law, mother-in-law, father-in-law, mother-in-law, adoptive father, adoptive mother, biological child, adopted child, paternal grandfather, paternal grandmother, maternal grandfather, maternal grandmother, biological brother, biological sister, paternal great-grandfather, maternal great-grandfather, paternal uncle, paternal aunt, paternal aunt, paternal aunt, biological niece or nephew [8].
TGPL request file includes the following documents:
(1) Application for legal aid : Application form [9](see Appendix 1). The application form for legal aid can be obtained from organizations that implement legal aid. or at competent agencies conducting proceedings (Police, Court, Procuracy, Detention Center, Temporary Detention House, etc.), reception offices of some administrative agencies (Inspector, Commune People's Committee, etc.). In addition, the application form for legal aid also posted on TGPL Electronic Information Page Vietnam and TGPL Electronic Information Site local
(2) Documents and papers related to the TGPL case .
- For cases requiring consultation: Provide documents and papers related to the case (if any);
- For litigation cases, the following documents and papers are required:
+ In criminal cases : in addition to documents and papers that can be used as evidence of the case, depending on each stage of the proceedings and the status of participants in the proceedings, the requester must present one of the following documents related to the stage of the proceedings: Decision to temporarily detain, Decision to prosecute the accused; Summons to take statements; Investigation conclusion; Indictment: Decision to bring the case to trial; Judgment, Decision of the Court or other documents proving that the case is being handled by the agencies, thereby showing that the requester is a detainee, accused, defendant, victim, civil plaintiff, civil defendant or person with related rights and obligations in that criminal case.
+ In a civil or administrative case : depending on the stage of the proceedings, in addition to the documents and papers that can be used as a basis, the requester must present one of the following papers: Receipt of advance payment of court fees; Summons of the litigant; Judgment, Decision of the Court or other papers proving that the requester is the civil plaintiff, civil defendant or person with related rights and obligations in the civil case, the plaintiff or person with related rights and obligations in the administrative or labor case.
+ In the case of extrajudicial representation : Documents resolving the case by the competent authority; minutes of the case resolution; documents showing the results of conciliation... and documents and papers related to the extrajudicial representation case.
(3) Documents proving that the person is a legal representative (see Appendix 2 of this document).
5.4. How to submit a request for legal aid
TGPL requestor You can choose to submit your TGPL request file through one of the following three methods:

03 ways to submit TGPL requests
Submit your application directly	Send documents via postal services	Other electronic forms

 
FTGPL requestor directly to the organizations implementing TGPL locally to request TGPL . With this form, the person requesting TGPL Note: Please present the original or submit a certified copy of the document proving that you are a legal representative. for organizations implementing TGPL .
FSend documents via postal services (mail, fax) to the organization implementing TGPL locally. With this form, the person requesting legal aid must submit a certified copy of the document proving that he/she is the person receiving legal aid .
 
FOther electronic forms (email, zalo, text messages...): person requesting TGPL Take photos or scan documents to send to organizations that perform TGPL . With this form, the person requesting TGPL Must present the original or submit a certified copy of the document proving that the person is a legal representative. when meeting the person performing TGPL .
 
5.5. Location for receiving requests for legal aid
The organization implementing TGPL can receive TGPL beneficiaries at the following locations:
 

Headquarters of the organization providing legal aid

Other locations outside the organization's headquarters but must ensure conditions for easy and convenient presentation of requests.

 
 
 
 

At the headquarters of the organization implementing TGPL, there is a posted schedule and regulations for receiving TGPL beneficiaries .
In case the content of the legal aid case needs to be kept confidential, the person receiving legal aid may request the organization implementing the legal aid to arrange a suitable location [10].
6. Referral to legal aid organization
During the process of contacting and working with people, if we discover that there are cases where people have legal needs and are eligible for legal aid, as prescribed in Article 7 of the Law on Civil Procedure In 2017, community officers explained to them about their rights to legal aid and at the same time, introduced them to local organizations that implement legal aid.
6.1. Organization of legal aid implementation[11]
Organization implementing TGPL in provinces/cities including:
The list of these organizations is available on the website of the Department of Justice and the Electronic Information Portal of the Ministry of Justice (https://tgpl.moj.gov.vn).
Depending on the residential area of the person subject to TGPL , community officers will introduce the person to the organization implementing TGPL. appropriate in the locality to save time and travel costs. When introducing to the organization implementing TGPL , the community officer provides the phone number of that organization for people to contact.
6.2. Notification to legal aid providing organizations
When discovering that local people who are eligible for legal assistance are having legal problems or disputes, community officers will notify the State Legal Assistance Center. about this and provide information and contact phone number of the person receiving the TGPL or their relatives.
 
             Notification is made through the following means:
 

Call the organization implementing TGPL at the phone number provided by the Center or the TGPL hotline number: 024.6273.9631 to receive information about the organization implementing TGPL in the locality.

Text, email, or send documents to the address of the local State Legal Aid Center or the Legal Aid Department.

Go directly to the State Legal Aid Center or the local State Legal Aid Center branch.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

FVietnam TGPL website : https://tgpl.moj.gov.vn ) for more details.
 
 
 

 
           

Objective of this section: Provide some brief information about the person performing the legal aid; the conditions for accepting legal aid cases; cases where the legal aid request is rejected... so that community officers can understand and coordinate in the process of supporting and providing legal aid to people at the grassroots level.

 

1. Legal aid provider

TGPL [12]implementers include:
a) Legal aid officer. Legal aid officer is an official of the State , with professional training like a lawyer;
b) Lawyers performing under contract with the state; lawyer practicing according to the assignment of the organization participating in ;
c) Legal consultants have 02 years or more of legal consulting experience working at organizations participating in ;
d) TGPL collaborator
 
2. In which cases is the case of a person receiving legal aid accepted?
Requests for legal aid will only be accepted when there is a specific case directly related to the rights and legitimate interests of the person receiving legal aid and in accordance with the provisions of the Law on Legal Aid.
The person receiving the request must check the contents related to the TGPL request and immediately respond to the requester regarding whether the application is eligible for acceptance or if additional relevant papers and documents are required.
To facilitate people receiving legal aid , the Law on Legal Aid 2017 also stipulates a number of cases where the requester cannot provide complete required documents but needs to carry out TGPL right.
The case is accepted immediately in the following cases :
+ The case is about to expire (less than 05 working days left);
+ The case is about to go to trial (less than 05 working days left);
+ In case of appointing a defense attorney according to the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code.
+ In case the competent authority conducting the proceedings transfers the request for legal aid to the organization implementing the legal aid.
+ Other cases to avoid causing damage to the legitimate rights and interests of the person receiving legal aid.
 

3. When is a request for legal aid refused?

TGPL Request be refused acceptance in the following cases:
TGPL request not directly related to the legitimate rights and interests of the person receiving legal aid .

For example: Ms. T is an elderly person with financial difficulties. She saw Mr. B's family encroaching on Mr. A's land (Ms. T's neighbor). She requested the State Legal Aid Center of X province to reclaim the land for Mr. A. In this case, Ms. T's request was not accepted because it was not directly related to Ms. T's legitimate rights and interests. The organization implementing the legal aid must refuse to accept the request and clearly notify Ms. T in writing of the reason .

 
TGPL request illegal content;

For example: Ms. T requests the State Legal Aid Center to assign a legal aid officer to guide the procedures for the competent authority to issue a land use right certificate for the illegally encroached land plot. This request of Ms. T will be rejected because it violates the provisions of the land law.

        
- Person receiving TGPL dead;
- The case is being handled by an organization . other handling, resolution.
The refusal to accept must be clearly stated in writing to the person requesting legal aid .
 
 
 

                                                                      

Objective of this section :  Provide some reference information on skills for community officers to better inform and introduce TGPL to people: for example, skills in document development; skills in gathering the masses to serve the communication work on legal aid; presentation skills...

 
1. Documentation skills
In order for the communication session to be effective and suitable for local people, community officers need to collect information, documents, stories, evidence, and illustrations to make it easy for people to understand and visualize. These documents can be legal documents, articles, research papers, news reports, programs, reports, videos, clips, etc. When creating documents, it is important to choose necessary issues, main content, and conciseness. To attract listeners, all parts of the speech must be related to each other. For example, from the provisions in the legal document, it is related to the actual rights and obligations of the people or what they need to do to enjoy the legal rights and benefits according to the regulations.
 

Documentation skills

Identify the object

Building document content

Document layout

Document format

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

When developing documents, community officers need to pay attention to determining the following requirements to develop appropriate documents and ensure quality:

1. Identify the audience that needs information and communication : researching, evaluating, and clearly identifying the audience will help community officers prepare enough documents and develop content suitable for the audience .;

 Identify and understand the communication audience through factors such as:

• Number of participants: to prepare location, room, tables, chairs, speakers...;
• Components (workers, farmers, children, students, youth, women, ...);
• Ethnicity (are there any ethnic minorities, what ethnic groups, do they understand the common language, do they need an interpreter to hire or ask for an interpreter...);
• Educational level (for people with low educational level, it is necessary to create concise documents, using easy-to-understand words, if there are videos or illustrations, it is even better);
• Local customs (for example, there were customs of shifting cultivation in some areas in the past; slash-and-burn farming; wife capture...);
• Law enforcement at the grassroots level; awareness of law enforcement and the need to learn about the law. (For example, people in this locality have better awareness of law enforcement than other localities; in this area, there are emerging issues of land, early marriage, divorce and property division, etc.).

(ii) Document content :

• Focus on essential issues, commonly encountered in daily life, of interest to many people ; for example, land use rights; inheritance, property division upon divorce, policies for ethnic minorities, etc. Collect case documents, case examples, and illustrations.
• For the content on legal aid, the communicator needs to have a firm grasp of the general provisions of the law and the provisions of the law on legal aid : for example, it is necessary to understand what legal aid is, the category of people entitled to legal aid , the procedures, methods, and documents to request legal aid ... You can find articles and information on legal aid cases. have successfully implemented, especially cases in their locality to introduce to people to increase the persuasiveness of the communication session.

In the process of finding information about TGPL, community officers can regularly contact the local TGPL Center for detailed, updated information and support in providing documents when necessary.
(iii) Document layout : build a clear, logical, concise document layout; easy-to-understand language, avoid ambiguous writing.
(iv) Document format : documents need to be presented clearly, beautifully, with moderate font size and easy to read; moderate thickness, convenient for users to read and carry; should have illustrations for easy understanding.
2. Skills in gathering the masses to serve communication work on legal aid
Gathering the masses plays an important role in implementing the dissemination of the Party's guidelines, the State's policies and laws, socio-economic development programs, security, national defense... of the locality in general and communication on legal aid work in particular. Community cadres need to be equipped with skills to gather the masses. To do this well, community cadres need to:

• Grasp the situation of the people, especially ethnic minorities, religious people, remote and disadvantaged areas;
• Pay attention to building open, close relationships and regularly visit and encourage local people;
• Grasp their needs and aspirations and promptly help them when they encounter difficulties in life, thereby creating trust, a trusting and close relationship, creating favorable conditions for gathering the local people when there is a need to convey information.
• Strengthen mass mobilization work (especially before communication sessions); take propaganda, education and persuasion work combined with the work of caring for and protecting the legitimate rights and interests of the people as the goal;
• After each incident or communication campaign, it is necessary to continue to visit, encourage, solicit feedback, suggestions or express the needs of local people.

3. Presentation skills
          Presentation skills are the ability to convey information effectively and attractively to listeners. The presenter needs to aim to help the listener understand what he is saying, solve a problem of theirs, or simply receive new information. Community officers are people who play an important role in the locality, especially for local ethnic minorities; can guide the behavior and compliance with the law for many local people . Therefore, to present effectively to the people, community officers Attention should be paid to the following factors:
FMaintain a natural, comfortable, and friendly demeanor: the presenter should choose a suitable place to stand or sit to feel most confident and comfortable; show a cheerful facial expression and smile friendly...
FLook at all the participants: don't look at one place for too long, don't read the documents carefully, but observe the whole picture to see if people are interested in listening or not.

6. Opening and ending the presentation creates an impression, attracting the attention of the audience: community officers can open the presentation by asking questions or talking about unrelated things or with a story, unexpected state ,... this makes people curious about what is about to be presented, and creates initial attention for the content of the presentation.
6. Simple and easy-to-understand presentation structure: to make the presentation easier to convey information, community officers need to list the main ideas before starting the presentation; the presentation should follow a simple and easy-to-understand sequence and arguments; in addition, it must stimulate curiosity by emphasizing important ideas.
6. Moderate, easy-to-hear, slow, clear, inspiring voice: community officers need to present content clearly, fluently, emphasizing important content or issues so that people can follow the presentation more easily and understand the content.
6. Interact with people: listen actively (listen attentively, do not interrupt, do not look away, can nod slightly to show understanding and sympathy...); respond positively to people's questions (can ask questions to clarify; answer correctly the content people ask or need to know; if there are any issues that are unknown or uncertain, write them down and clearly state that you will contact the agency or competent person to ask for clarification and will answer later...); can interact with people by asking questions, suggesting some content related to the communication content, thereby attracting people's interest and participation.
6. Provide useful information: should choose concise, selective information to convey to people, avoid spreading out information that has no focus, key points, making it difficult for people to understand; avoid presenting long, unfocused information, re-reading all the content that has been presented or is already in documents, slides.
7. Appropriate presentation time: choose a presentation time that is appropriate to the intellectual level as well as the psychological characteristics of each group of people. Do not present continuously for a long time (from 1 hour or more). Between presentation times, there should be time to discuss the introduced content or discuss case studies or group interactive activities.
6. Before presenting, the presenter needs to prepare appropriate clothing, review the documents; if the documents are slides or videos, it is necessary to test the projection; check the presentation support equipment (for example, speakers, projectors, etc.); can practice before presenting to be coherent, fluent, avoid confusion, avoid having too much or not enough time.

 
 
            

   
SECTION 1.        PROVISIONS ON INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS
ACCORDING TO THE 2015 CIVIL CODE
 

Objective of the document: This section provides some current legal provisions related to individual rights under the 2015 Civil Code. Specifically: Regulations on inheritance; regulations on compensation for non-contractual damages, ownership of lost livestock; property warranty; some common civil contracts such as contracts for sale and borrowing of property ; Regulations on marriage and family such as marriage, divorce, early marriage, illegal marriage, rights and obligations of husband and wife ; Provisions of land law in civil matters (such as rights and obligations of land users, land support policies for certain subjects, land disputes, participation of legal aid in resolving civil land disputes); Regulations of the law on complaints and denunciations such as the rights and obligations of complainants and denouncers; procedures, processes, and authority to resolve complaints and denunciations .

1. Civil law provisions on inheritance

Inheritance is understood as the transfer of property from a deceased person to a living person . The property left by the deceased is called legacy.
“Inheritance is the right to leave one's property to others after death, to receive inheritance according to a will or according to the law” [13].

1.1.General provisions on inheritance

a. The right to leave inheritance and the right to inherit of an individual[14]
   Individuals have the right to:
- Make a will [15]to dispose of one's assets; leave one's assets to legal heirs;
- Inheritance by will or by law. b. The Heir
     It can be understood that an heir is a person who receives an inheritance according to a will or according to the provisions of law.
     An individual heir must [16]:
- A person alive at the time of inheritance opening.
- Or born and alive after the time of inheritance opening but conceived before the death of the testator.
          *Note: The time of opening the inheritance [17]is the time when the property owner dies (the time of death of the property owner can be understood as determined by the death certificate issued by the competent authority). In case the Court declares a person dead, the time of opening the inheritance is the date the Court determines the date of death of the person declared dead [18].
c. People not entitled to inheritance
     The following cases are not entitled to inheritance [19]:
- A person convicted of intentionally infringing upon the life or health of a person leaving an inheritance, or of seriously mistreating or torturing a person leaving an inheritance, or of seriously infringing upon the honor or dignity of that person;
- A person who seriously violates the obligation to support the person leaving the inheritance;
- A person convicted of intentionally infringing upon the life of another heir in order to receive part or all of the inheritance to which that heir is entitled;
- A person who deceives, coerces or prevents the testator from making a will; forges a will, alters a will, destroys a will, or conceals a will in order to receive part or all of the inheritance against the testator's wishes.
          * Note: The above cases are still entitled to inherit, if the person leaving the inheritance knew the act. the behavior of those people but still let them inherit according to the will.
d. Refuse to accept inheritance[20]

• An heir has the right to refuse to receive an inheritance, except in cases where the refusal is intended to avoid fulfilling his or her property obligations to others.
• The refusal to accept the inheritance must be made in writing and sent to the estate administrator, other heirs, and the person assigned to divide the inheritance for information.
• The refusal to accept the inheritance must be expressed before the time of division of the inheritance.

e. Inheritance statute of limitations
     The statute of limitations for inheritance is a period of time prescribed by civil law, at the end of which legal consequences arise for the subjects related to the inheritance legal relationship.
     The statute of limitations for inheritance is prescribed as follows [21]:
F30 years for real estate ( such as land, houses, construction works attached to land , etc. ) from the time of inheritance opening;
F10 years for movable assets (for example: money, valuable papers, books, pens, televisions, refrigerators, etc. that can be moved mechanically), from the time of inheritance opening.
After this period, the inheritance belongs to the heir who is managing the inheritance. In case there is no heir who is managing the inheritance, the inheritance will be resolved as follows:

The estate has a bona fide possessor.		The estate has no bona fide possessor.
For the legacy is real estate	For real estate heritage
The property belongs to the possessor after 10 years of bona fide, continuous, and open possession.	The property belongs to the possessor after 30 years of bona fide, continuous, and open possession.	The property belongs to the State if there is no one possessing it in good faith, continuously and openly for 10 years for movable property and 30 years for real estate.

          The statute of limitations for an heir to request confirmation of his or her inheritance rights or to reject the inheritance rights of another person is 10 years from the time the inheritance is opened.
- The statute of limitations for requiring an heir to fulfill obligations regarding the deceased's property is 03 years from the time of inheritance opening. f. Forms of inheritance
         Forms of inheritance include : Inheritance by law and inheritance by will.
 
 

Forms of inheritance

Inheritance by law

Inheritance by will

 
 
 
 
 
 

         
 

1.2. Inheritance by will

a. Form of will
There are 2 forms of inheritance by will [22]:

• Put into writing
• If it is not possible to make a written will, an oral will can be made.

 
 

02 hình thức thừa kế

Lập văn bản

Di chúc miệng

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Written wills include the following four types [23]:

1. Unwitnessed written will;
2. Written will witnessed (See item d of subsection 4.1.2 on Testamentary Inheritance);
3. Notarized written will [24];
4. Certified will [25].

 
 
 

DI CHÚC BẰNG VĂN BẢN GỒM 4 LOẠI

Có chứng thực

Có công chứng

Không có người làm chứng

Có người làm chứng

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Note: A will is only required to be notarized or authenticated if it is the will of a physically disabled person or an illiterate person [26].
b. In case of oral will
In case a person's life is threatened by death and he/she cannot make a written will, he/she can make an oral will. After 03 months from the time of making the oral will, if the testator is still alive, lucid and clear-minded, the oral will is automatically revoked.[27] An oral will must satisfy [28]the following conditions to be legally valid:
An oral will is considered legal if the testator orally expresses his or her last will in front of at least two witnesses and immediately after the testator orally expresses his or her last will, the witnesses record it, sign it or fingerprint it. Within 05 working days from the date the testator orally expresses his or her last will, the will must be notarized or certified by a competent authority to confirm the signature or fingerprint of the witness.
c. Legality of will
A will is legal when it meets the following conditions [29]:
- The testator is of sound mind and lucidity when making the will; is not deceived, threatened or coerced;
- The content of the will does not violate the prohibitions of the law, is not contrary to social ethics; the form of the will does not violate the provisions of the law.
* Note: The will of a person from 15 years old to under 18 years old must be made in writing and must have the consent of the father, mother or guardian.
The will of a physically handicapped person or an illiterate person must be made in writing by a witness and notarized or authenticated .
d. Who can witness the making of a will?[30]
Anyone can witness the making of a will, except the following people:
- The heir by will or by law of the testator;
- People with property rights and obligations related to the content of the will;
- Minors, people without civil capacity, people with difficulty in cognition and behavior control.
e. Can a will be amended, supplemented, replaced or revoked?[31]
- The testator may amend, supplement, replace or revoke the will at any time.
- In case the testator supplements the will, the established will and the supplement have the same legal effect; if a part of the established will and the supplement contradict each other, only the supplement has legal effect.
- If the testator replaces the will with a new will, the previous will is revoked. f. The heir does not depend on the content of the will.
The following persons have the right to inherit, regardless of the will, unless they refuse to receive the inheritance or are not entitled to inherit.[32] stated in sub-section c, section 1.1, "Civil law regulations on inheritance":
 

Heirs regardless of the contents of the will:
Minors, father, mother, wife, husband	Minors who are unable to work

 

1.3.Inheritance by law

a. Cases of inheritance by law
          The deceased's assets will be divided according to the law in the following cases [33]:
(i). No will;
(ii). Invalid will;
(iii). The testamentary heirs die before or at the same time as the testator; the agency or organization entitled to inherit under the will no longer exists at the time of inheritance opening;
(iv). Those designated as heirs under a will who are not entitled to inherit or who refuse to inherit.
* Note: In some cases, the deceased leaves a will, but some parts of the estate are divided according to the will, and some parts are divided according to the law. Specifically as follows:
- The portion of the estate not determined in the will;
- The part of the inheritance related to the part of the will that has no legal effect;
- The part of the inheritance related to the heir according to the will but they do not have the right to inherit, refuse to receive the inheritance, die before or die at the same time as the testator; related to the agency or organization that is entitled to inherit according to the will, but no longer exists at the time of inheritance opening.
b. Legal heir
     Legal heirs are divided into the following 3 inheritance lines [34]:
- First order of inheritance includes: wife, husband, biological father, biological mother, adoptive father, adoptive mother, biological children, adopted children of the deceased;
- Second-order heirs include: paternal grandfather, paternal grandmother, maternal grandfather, maternal grandmother, full brothers, full sisters of the deceased; grandchildren of the deceased who is the paternal grandfather, paternal grandmother, maternal grandfather, or maternal grandmother;
- Third-order heirs include: paternal and maternal great-grandparents of the deceased; paternal and maternal uncles and aunts of the deceased; nieces and nephews of whom the deceased is the paternal and maternal uncle and aunt; great-grandchildren of whom the deceased is the paternal and maternal great-grandparents.
     Heirs of the same rank receive equal shares of the inheritance and those in the next rank of inheritance are only entitled to inherit if there is no one in the previous rank of inheritance due to death, lack of inheritance rights, disinheritance or refusal to receive the inheritance.
 

2. Provisions of civil law on compensation for non-contractual damages in some cases

Currently, Vietnamese law does not specifically define what compensation for non-contractual damages is. However, it can be understood that compensation for non-contractual damages is the responsibility to compensate not arising from contractual relationships. According to the provisions of the law, anyone who commits an illegal act that infringes upon the life, health, honor, dignity, reputation, property, and legal rights of another person and causes damage must compensate.

1. Compensation for damage caused by stimulant users[35]

- A person who, due to drinking alcohol or using other stimulants, becomes unable to perceive and control his or her behavior, causing damage to another person must compensate.
- When a person intentionally uses alcohol or other stimulants to cause another person to lose the ability to perceive and control his or her actions, causing damage, he or she must compensate the damaged person. 2.2. Compensation for damages caused by persons under 15 years of age or persons lacking civil capacity
- If a person under fifteen years of age causes damage and his or her parents are still alive, the parents must compensate for the entire damage. If the parents' assets are not enough to compensate and the minor who caused the damage has his or her own assets, that asset will be used to compensate for the remaining amount. If a person between fifteen and eighteen years of age causes damage, he or she must compensate with his or her own assets. If he or she does not have enough assets to compensate, the parents must compensate with their own assets [36].
- However, in case a person under 15 years of age causes damage while under the direct supervision of the school, the school must compensate for the damage.[37]
- If a minor, a person without civil act capacity, or a person with difficulty in cognition or control of behavior causes damage and has a guardian, the guardian may use the property of the person under guardianship to compensate; if the person under guardianship has no property or does not have enough property to compensate, the guardian must compensate with his/her own property; if the guardian can prove that he/she is not at fault in the guardianship, he/she does not have to use his/her own property to compensate.[38]
- In case a person who has lost civil act capacity causes damage to another person during the time the hospital or other legal entity is directly managing the hospital or other legal entity, the hospital or other legal entity must compensate for the damage [39]. Schools, hospitals or other legal entities do not have to compensate if they can prove that they were not at fault in management; in this case, the parents or guardians of a person under fifteen years of age or a person who has lost civil act capacity must compensate.[40]
 

1.  Compensation for damage caused by animals[41]

Currently, the civil code does not specifically define what an animal is, but it can be understood that an animal is an animal that has been domesticated, raised, controlled or lives in the same environment as humans, such as buffalo, cows, chickens, dogs, etc.
- The owner of an animal must compensate for damage caused by the animal to another person; if the person suffering the damage is entirely at fault for causing the animal to cause damage to him, the owner does not have to compensate.
- In case a third person is entirely at fault for causing an animal to cause damage to another person, the third person must compensate for the damage; if the third person and the owner are both at fault, they must jointly compensate for the damage.
- In case of illegal possession or use of animals causing damage, the illegal possessor or user must compensate.
- In case of livestock allowed to roam freely according to custom and causing damage, the owner of the livestock must compensate according to custom but must not violate the law or social ethics.

1. Compensation for damage caused by trees

Owners, possessors and managers must compensate for damage caused by trees.[42]

3. Some other legal provisions to note

3.1.Establishing ownership of lost livestock

The establishment of ownership of lost livestock [43]is as follows:
- A person who captures a lost livestock must keep it and immediately notify the People's Committee of the commune where he or she resides to publicly notify the owner to reclaim it. After 06 months from the date of public announcement or after 01 year for livestock that roam freely according to custom, the ownership of the livestock and the number of livestock born during the period of keeping the livestock shall belong to the person who captured the livestock.
- In case the owner is allowed to reclaim the lost livestock, he must pay the fee for keeping and other expenses to the person who caught the livestock. During the time of keeping the lost livestock, if the livestock gives birth, the person who caught the livestock is entitled to half of the livestock born or 50% of the value of the livestock born and must compensate for damages if there is intentional fault in causing the livestock to die.

 

3.2.About warranty obligations and warranty claims

Warranty can be understood as ensuring that the machine sold or repaired will operate well for a certain period of time.
During the warranty period, if the buyer discovers a defect in the purchased item, he has the right to request the seller to repair it free of charge, reduce the price, exchange the defective item for another item, or return the item and get a refund.[44]
The seller is obliged to provide a warranty for the goods sold by him for a certain period of time, called the warranty period, if the warranty is agreed upon by the parties or stipulated by law. The warranty period is calculated from the time the buyer is obliged to receive the goods.[45]

3.3.About the property sale contract

A property sale contract is an agreement between parties, under which the seller transfers ownership of the property to the buyer and the buyer pays the seller.
Contracts for the sale and purchase of houses and the sale and purchase of houses for other purposes shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of the Civil Code, the Housing Law and other relevant laws.

1. Term of performance of sales contract[46]

- The time limit for performing the sales contract is agreed upon by the parties. The seller must deliver the property to the buyer within the agreed time limit; the seller may only deliver the property before or after the time limit if agreed by the buyer.
- When the parties do not agree on a time limit for delivery of the property, the buyer has the right to request the seller to deliver the property and the seller also has the right to request the buyer to receive the property at any time, but must notify each other a reasonable time in advance.
-

Ví dụ: Ms. H signed a contract to sell her old computer to Ms. M with the agreement that after receiving the money, she would hand over the property within 3 days. However, the deadline for handing over the computer is approaching, and Ms. H has not yet transferred all the data to the new computer. Ms. H intends to ask for an extension of 2 more days. Is that possible?

The buyer shall pay the purchase price according to the agreed time. If the payment time is not specified or is not clearly specified, the buyer shall pay immediately upon receipt of the purchased property or upon receipt of the property ownership certificate.
In this case, Ms. H's intention to extend the contract performance period must be agreed by the buyer, Ms. M.

2. Method of delivery of assets[47]

- The property is delivered in a manner agreed upon by the parties; if there is no agreement, the property is delivered by the seller in one go directly to the buyer.
- In case, according to the agreement, the seller delivers the property to the buyer in many times, but the seller fails to perform the obligation properly in a certain time, the buyer can cancel the part of the contract related to that violation and request compensation for damages.

3.4.About the loan contract

A property loan contract is an agreement between the parties, according to which the lender delivers property to the borrower; when the payment is due, the borrower must return to the lender property of the same type in the correct quantity and quality and must only pay interest if there is an agreement or if the law so stipulates.[48]
a. Ownership of the loaned asset
The borrower becomes the owner of the loaned property from the time of receipt of that property.[49]
b. Lender's obligations
The lender has the following obligations [50]:
- Deliver the assets to the borrower in full, with the correct quality and quantity at the agreed time and place.
- Compensate the borrower for damages if the lender knows that the property is not of guaranteed quality but does not notify the borrower, except in cases where the borrower knows but still accepts the property.
- The borrower shall not be required to return the property before the due date, except in the case of a term loan contract as prescribed in Article 470 of the 2015 Civil Code.
c. Borrower's obligation to repay debt
The borrower is obliged to repay the debt [51]as follows:
- If the loaned property is money, the borrower must repay the full amount when due; if the property is an object, the borrower must return an object of the same type, quantity and quality, unless otherwise agreed.
- In case the borrower cannot return the item, he can pay in cash the value of the borrowed item at the place and time of repayment, if agreed by the lender.
- The place of repayment is the place of residence or head office of the lender, unless otherwise agreed.
- In case of an interest-free loan and the borrower fails to repay or does not repay in full when due, the lender has the right to request payment of interest at a rate equal to 50% of the maximum interest rate (the maximum interest rate is 20%/year) of the loan on the overdue amount corresponding to the overdue period, unless otherwise agreed or otherwise provided by law.
- In case of interest-bearing loans, if the borrower fails to repay or does not repay in full when due, the borrower must pay interest as follows:
+ Interest on the principal according to the interest rate agreed in the contract corresponding to the loan term that has not been paid by the due date; in case of late payment, interest must also be paid at an interest rate equal to 50% of the maximum interest rate (the maximum interest rate is 20%/year).
+ Interest on overdue principal is equal to 150% of the loan interest rate according to the contract corresponding to the late payment period, unless otherwise agreed.
 

Ví dụ: To pay for his child's medical treatment, Mr. H borrowed 50 million VND from Mr. P and was lent by Mr. P without interest. Mr. P requested that Mr. H repay the money within one year. However, more than a year later, Mr. H had not come to repay the debt, so Mr. P immediately went to Mr. H's house to demand the money, but Mr. H gave the reason that when the debt was due, he did not see Mr. P come to collect the money, so he used the money to pay for his child's school fees. According to the provisions of the 2015 Civil Code, is Mr. H's reason appropriate? Mr. H's failure to pay Mr. P when due violated the borrower's obligation to repay the debt. In addition, Mr. H's use of the excuse that Mr. P did not come to his house to collect the money as a reason for not complying with the debt repayment obligation is inappropriate. Thus, when the debt repayment deadline comes, Mr. H is obliged to bring the entire amount of 50 million VND to Mr. P's house to repay the debt. For Mr. H's violation of his debt repayment obligation, Mr. P has the right to request Mr. H to pay interest at an interest rate determined at 50% of the maximum interest rate (20%/year) on the amount of VND 50 million that Mr. H has delayed paying.

d. Use of borrowed assets
The parties may agree that the borrowed property must be used for the intended purpose of the loan. The lender has the right to inspect the use of the property and has the right to reclaim the borrowed property before the due date if, despite warnings, the borrower still uses the property for the wrong purpose.[52]

3.5.About them, hui, bieu, phuong[53]

- Associations, rotating savings and credit associations, and guilds (hereinafter referred to as associations) are forms of property transactions according to custom based on an agreement between a group of people who gather together to determine the number of people, time, amount of money or other assets, contribution and collection methods, and the rights and obligations of the members.
- The organization of mutual assistance among the people is carried out in accordance with the provisions of law.
- In case the organization is profitable, the interest rate must comply with the provisions of this Code.
-

Ví dụ:  M, N, P and Q all participate in the lottery with Q as the dealer, the monthly lottery amount is 1,200,000 VND/person. In the first month, M is the one who receives the money, then N and P each have to pay 1,200,000 VND to Q and Q hands over 3,600,000 VND (including the lottery fees of N, P, Q) to M. Like that, the next month, N is the one who gets to draw the lottery, then M and P have to pay money to Q and Q hands over the lottery fees of all 3 people to N. When the last person draws the lottery, the lottery chain ends.

It is strictly forbidden to organize them in the form of usury.

3.6.About the loan contract

A property loan contract is an agreement between parties, according to which the lender transfers property to the borrower for use for a period of time without having to pay, and the borrower must return the property when the loan period expires or the purpose of the loan has been achieved.[54] a. Subject of the loan contract
Any non-consumable asset can be the subject of a loan contract.[56]
b. Obligations of the borrower
The borrower has the [57]following obligations:
- Maintain and preserve borrowed property, do not arbitrarily change the condition of the property; if the property is damaged normally, it must be repaired.
- Not to be re-lent to others without the consent of the lender.
- Return borrowed property on time; if there is no agreement on the time limit for returning the property, the borrower must return the property immediately after the purpose of the loan has been achieved.
- Compensate for damages, if lost or damaged borrowed property.
- The borrower shall bear the risk of the borrowed property during the period of delay.
c. Rights of the borrower
The borrower has the [58]following rights:
- Use borrowed assets in accordance with their intended use and agreed purpose.
- Require the lender to pay reasonable costs of repairing or increasing the value of the borrowed property, if agreed.
d. Obligations of the property lender
The property lender has the [59]following obligations:
- Provide necessary information about the use of the property and its defects, if any.
- Pay the borrower for repair costs and costs of increasing the value of the property, if agreed.
- Compensate the borrower for damages if the borrower knows the property is defective but does not notify the borrower, resulting in damage to the borrower, except for defects that the borrower knows or should know.
e. Rights of the property lender
The property lender has the [60]following rights:
- Reclaim the property immediately after the borrower has achieved its purpose if there is no agreement on the borrowing period; if the lender has a sudden and urgent need to use the lent property, the property can be reclaimed even if the borrower has not achieved its purpose, but a reasonable notice must be given in advance.
- Reclaim the property when the borrower uses it for a purpose other than the agreed purpose, use, or method, or re-lends it to someone else without the lender's consent.
- Claim for compensation for damage to property caused by the borrower.          

 
SECTION 2. SOME PROVISIONS ON MARRIAGE
1. What is marriage?
Marriage is the act of a man and a woman establishing a marital relationship with each other according to the provisions of the 2014 Law on Marriage and Family on marriage conditions and marriage registration.[61]

2. Conditions for marriage[62]

- Men must be 20 years of age or older, women must be 18 years of age or older. This determination of marriageable age is based on psychological development and average health to ensure that married people have full awareness of their responsibilities to family and society.
- Marriage is voluntarily decided by men and women; that is, marriage is completely voluntary and self-determined by both parties, without being forced by others, whether it is father, mother, grandfather, grandmother or anyone else.
- Men and women must not lose their civil capacity [63]. People getting married must ensure that they have full awareness and control of their behavior before they can decide whether to get married or not.

Note : Cases where marriage is prohibited include:[64] 1. Prohibit fake marriages and fake divorces. For example: Agreeing to marry or divorce for reasons such as serving personal interests rather than for love and the purpose of building family happiness. 2. Prohibit early marriage, forced marriage, fraudulent marriage, and obstruction of marriage. Early marriage is getting married when one or both parties are under the legal age of marriage (men 20 years of age or older, women 18 years of age or older [65]); Forced marriage is the act of threatening, intimidating, torturing , mistreating, demanding property or other acts to force another person to get married.[66] Obstructing marriage is the act of threatening, mentally intimidating, torturing, mistreating, demanding property or other acts to prevent marriage of a person who is eligible according to the provisions of law.[67]   Fraudulent marriage is an intentional act by one party or a third party to mislead the other party into agreeing to the marriage; without this act, the deceived party would not have agreed to the marriage [68]. 3. A married person is prohibited from marrying or living with another person as husband and wife, or from not having a wife or husband is prohibited from marrying or living with another person as husband and wife. 4. Marriage or cohabitation as husband and wife is prohibited between people of the same direct bloodline [69]; between relatives within three generations; between adoptive parents and adopted children; between former adoptive parents and adopted children, father-in-law and daughter-in-law, mother-in-law and son-in-law, stepfather and wife's stepchild, stepmother and husband's stepchild. 5. Prohibit property claims in marriage. For example: The bride's parents require the groom's family to have a certain number of trays of food, a certain amount of money, a certain number of trays of gifts before agreeing to the wedding . 6. Prohibition of forced divorce (forcing divorce even though both spouses do not want it), fraudulent divorce (intentionally falsifying and leading to agreement on divorce), and obstruction of divorce (not allowing divorce even though both spouses want it). 7. Prohibiting giving birth using assisted reproductive technology for commercial purposes, commercial surrogacy [70], choosing the sex of the fetus (choosing a boy or a girl), and asexual reproduction. 8. Prohibition of domestic violence. For example: Husband/wife frequently beats and curses each other; prohibits communication; forces overwork; does not allow knowledge and use of family finances. 9. It is prohibited to take advantage of the exercise of marriage and family rights to traffic people, exploit labor, sexually abuse or commit other acts for the purpose of profiteering. For example: Pretending to marry a foreigner to be taken to a prostitution establishment, sold abroad or to a massage or prostitution establishment.

- The state does not recognize same-sex marriage, which means that people of the same sex will not be able to register their marriage.
 

Some discussion situations: 1. Fake marriage Ms. A comes from a very poor family. When she learned that Mr. B was the only child of a wealthy family whose father was seriously ill and about to die, Ms. A's parents urged their daughter to pretend to marry Mr. B to divide the property and Mr. B agreed to the fake marriage. Ms. A and Mr. B discussed the fake marriage (without registering the marriage). Thus, the two parties agreed to pretend to marry to gain economic benefits. This violates Point a, Clause 2, Article 5 of the 2014 Law on Marriage and Family. 2. Early marriage Ms. Ly Mui D, Dao ethnic group, born in 2007. In 2023, when D was 16 years old, her father forced her to drop out of school and get married. D's husband is also Dao, born in 2006, living in the same village. They both studied at the same school. When they got married, D was 16 years old, her husband was 17 years old, meaning that both of them were not old enough to get married according to the law. This violates point b, clause 2, Article 5 of the 2014 Law on Marriage and Family. 3. Forced marriage  Mr. and Mrs. B in X commune have a 30-year-old son named T who was born with Down syndrome. Because she wanted to get her son married, Mrs. B tried to falsely accuse Ms. C, a maid for her family, of stealing a gold bar. Mrs. B threatened that if Ms. C did not want to be reported to the police station or go to jail, she would have to marry her son, so that she could be the boss, not have to be a maid, and have a comfortable life. Because she was afraid of being taken to the police, Ms. C agreed to marry Ms. B's son. This violated point a, clause 2, Article 5 of the 2014 Law on Marriage and Family. 4. Obstructing marriage Mrs. A continuously forbade and hindered her daughter's love for Mr. B, and did not agree to marry her daughter to Mr. B because she thought Mr. B's family was poor. However, Mrs. A's daughter loved and was determined to marry Mr. B. Therefore, when Mr. B's family asked to meet to discuss the marriage, Mrs. A put forward many conditions such as: forcing Mr. B to live with her family while knowing that Mr. B's mother was old, seriously ill, and was the only eldest son, so he had to live with her to take care of her, and to support her. The dowry was high, and the engagement gift had to be 9 trays and the "black gift" (money envelope) was 50 million. This request of Mrs. A made it impossible for Mr. B to ask to marry Mrs. A's daughter. This violated point a, clause 2, Article 5 of the 2014 Law on Marriage and Family. 5. Forced divorce Ms. C and Mr. D have been married for 5 years and have 3 children, all of whom are girls. Their family's finances are very difficult, sometimes they are full, sometimes they are hungry, but Ms. C's mother-in-law insisted on forcing them to have another son, on the grounds that Mr. D is the eldest son. Ms. C was pregnant with her fourth child, but it was a girl, so Mr. D's mother forced her son to sign a divorce paper to leave his wife and marry another woman, hoping to have a son to continue the family line. This violates point e, clause 2, Article 5 of the 2014 Law on Marriage and Family. 6. Cheating or obstructing divorce Mr. A and Ms. B fell in love and got married. After 5 years of living happily together, Mr. A had an affair and wanted to live with his lover in the South. Therefore, Mr. A lied to his wife that he wanted to go to work abroad and would stay abroad and not return to Vietnam. Mr. A asked for a divorce. At first, Ms. B did not agree, but Mr. A was still determined to get a divorce, so Ms. B reluctantly signed the divorce papers. This violated point e, clause 2, Article 5 of the 2014 Law on Marriage and Family.

 

3. Marriage registration

  - Marriage registration is specifically regulated as follows [71]:
+ Authority competent to register marriage:

• The People's Committee at the commune level carries out domestic marriage registration or marriage registration with foreign elements in communes in border areas.
• The People's Committee at district level carries out marriage registration with foreign partners [72].

+ Procedures for marriage registration:

• Step 1 : The person requesting to submit the marriage registration application directly to the One-Stop Department of the People's Committee at the commune or district level.
• Step 2 : The civil servant of the one-stop-shop department is responsible for checking the accuracy, completeness and validity of the dossier. If the dossier is complete and valid, the dossier will be accepted, an appointment slip will be issued for the results and the civil status officer will be transferred to the judicial - civil status officer for processing. The judicial - civil status officer will examine the dossier, if it is complete, valid and in accordance with regulations, he/she will record it in the Marriage Registration Book and update the marriage registration information on the Electronic Civil Status Registration and Management Software.
• Step 3 : Citizens (both male and female must be present according to the appointment form, present identification documents for comparison) check the information on the Marriage Certificate, in the Marriage Registration Book, confirm the voluntary marriage and sign the Marriage Registration Book, sign the Marriage Certificate, each male and female receive 01 original copy of the Marriage Certificate.

         
          => A marriage that is not registered according to the law is not recognized by law.

 

4. Annulment of illegal marriage

4.1. Who has the right to request the annulment of an illegal marriage? including [73]

         

4.2. Individuals, agencies and other organizations, upon discovering an illegal marriage, have the right to request

- State management agencies on family (Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, People's Committees at all levels, etc. );
- State management agencies on children (People's Committees at all levels);
- Women's Union.

5. Early marriage and incestuous marriage

5.1. Concept

- Early marriage is getting married when one or both parties are under the legal age of marriage (men from 20 years old or older, women from 18 years old or older [74]);
- Consanguineous marriage is the marriage or cohabitation between people of the same bloodline, who are related by blood; between people who are related within three generations (people born from the same origin including: parents are the first generation; full brothers and sisters, half brothers and sisters, second generation; children of uncles, aunts, paternal aunts, maternal aunts are the third generation).
The current situation of early marriage and consanguineous marriage still exists in some places, especially in some ethnic minority areas in remote, isolated and extremely disadvantaged areas, causing many consequences for individuals, families and society. In addition to the causes arising from living conditions, economy, and backward customs; the low level of education of the people, limited access to information, limited awareness and sense of law compliance, and lack of understanding of the consequences of early marriage and consanguineous marriage; in some places, local authorities have not really paid attention to propaganda activities, dissemination of legal education, especially the 2014 Law on Marriage and Family ; the punishment of early marriage cases is not enough of a deterrent...

Note: The 2014 Law on Marriage and Family prohibits child marriage and incestuous marriage.

 

5.2. Consequences

- Consequences of early marriage:
+ Physically: people who get married early are seriously affected in terms of health. According to scientific research, people under the age of marriage (men under 20 years old, women under 18 years old) are not fully developed in terms of psychology and physical health. Having sex early and giving birth early will adversely affect the health of the mother and child and often lead to premature birth; especially those who give birth under 15 years old, have a higher risk of death than women who give birth at the age of 20; children born to early marriage are often stunted, weak or sick;
+ Mentally : getting married and having children early makes couples have no time to study, rest, relax, have fun, and have no conditions to participate in entertainment, cultural, artistic activities and self-development;
+ Regarding education : early marriage often leads to dropping out of school, limiting the development of children's personality, talent and intelligence;
+ Economically: Early marriage often makes family life difficult and deprived, because the couple is young and does not have a stable income, so they do not have a stable economy, their young children often get sick, and the young couple lacks experience in raising children, which can lead to discord and poor quality of life;
+ Regarding society : Child marriage is a burden on society, rapid population growth, low population quality, putting pressure on education and health care. Child marriage is the cause of poverty and backwardness and a burden on the community and society.
- Consequences of incestuous marriage
+ Many studies show that incestuous marriage is the cause of diseases such as:

• Early hearing loss, vision loss;
• Birth defects, genetic disorders;
• Disability, mental retardation;
• Slow or no physical development;
• There are cases of epilepsy, blood disorders, congenital hemolytic anemia, bone deformities, intellectual disability, albinism, psoriasis... leading to reduced life expectancy.

+ Incestuous marriage has negative impacts on morality, traditional culture, clan and family relationships. Children born with illnesses are a burden to the family, due to having to care for and treat their children, economic difficulties, always feeling inferior, and having difficulty integrating into the community.
+ Consanguineous marriage affects the quality of population, human resources and race. This is a barrier to socio-economic development, holding back social progress.

6. Handling of illegal marriages

6.1. Concept

- Illegal marriage is when a man and a woman have registered their marriage at a competent state agency but one or both parties violate the marriage conditions [75](men must be 20 years old or older, women must be 18 years old or older, both parties are voluntary and do not lose their civil capacity).
- Cases such as: Fake marriage; early marriage; forced or deceitful marriage; marriage with a married person; marriage between people of the same bloodline; between relatives within three generations; between adoptive parents and adopted children; between former adoptive parents and adopted children, father-in-law and daughter-in-law, mother-in-law and son-in-law, stepfather and wife's stepchild, stepmother and husband's stepchild... are considered illegal marriages.

6.2. Handling of illegal marriages [76]:

- The process is as follows
+ The competent authority to handle illegal marriages: District People's Court; for marriages involving foreign elements, the provincial People's Court shall carry out the proceedings in accordance with the provisions of the 2014 Law on Marriage and Family and the law on civil proceedings.
+ The Court's decision on the annulment of an illegal marriage or recognition of a marriage relationship must be sent to the agency that registered the marriage for recording in the family register; the two parties to the illegal marriage; and relevant individuals, agencies and organizations according to the provisions of the law on civil proceedings.

 

Note : In case at the time the Court resolves the request to annul the illegal marriage, both parties have met the conditions for marriage as prescribed by the Law and both parties request recognition of the marriage relationship, the Court shall recognize that marriage relationship. In this case, the marriage relationship is established from the time the parties meet the conditions for marriage.

- Legal consequences of illegal marriage annulment [77]:
+ When an illegal marriage is annulled, the two parties to the marriage must end their relationship as husband and wife.
+ The rights and obligations of fathers, mothers and children are resolved according to the regulations on the rights and obligations of fathers, mothers and children after divorce.
+ Property relations, obligations and contracts between the parties are resolved according to the provisions of law.[78]

7. Rights and obligations of husband and wife

7.1. General principles

- Husband and wife are equal in rights and obligations.
- Husband and wife are equal to each other, have equal rights and obligations in all aspects of the family, in exercising the rights and obligations of citizens as prescribed in the 2013 Constitution , the 2014 Law on Marriage and Family and other relevant laws.[79]
For example: Husband and wife both have the right to vote, the right to study and the right to work equally. The reason that the husband or wife is the head of the household cannot be used to prohibit the other (wife or husband) from exercising his or her rights.

7.2. Protection of personal rights and obligations of husband and wife

The personal rights and obligations of husband and wife are respected and protected [80]. For example: Husband and wife have the right to private life, personal secrets, and family secrets.

7.3. Husband and wife relationship[81]

- Husband and wife have the duty to love, be faithful, respect, care for, look after, and help each other; to share and perform household chores together. This is the common duty of both husband and wife; not only the wife has the duty of housework, taking care of children , etc.
- Husband and wife have the obligation to live together, unless otherwise agreed by the husband and wife or due to requirements of profession, work, study, participation in political, economic, cultural, social activities and other legitimate reasons.
7.4. Choice of residence of spouses :
The choice of residence of husband and wife is agreed upon by the husband and wife, not bound by customs, practices, or administrative boundaries.[82]

For example: According to custom, after marriage, the wife will move to her husband's house. However, the couple has the right to agree on a place of residence to make it convenient for the husband/wife's work and life, such as being able to live in the wife's hometown.

 

7.5. Other obligations

- Respect the honor, dignity and reputation of husband and wife: Husband and wife have the obligation to respect, preserve and protect each other's honor, dignity and reputation.[83]
- Respecting the freedom of belief and religion of husband and wife: Husband and wife have the obligation to respect each other's freedom of belief and religion.[84]
- Rights and obligations regarding study, work, participation in political, economic, cultural and social activities: Husband and wife have the right and obligation to create conditions and help each other choose a career; study, improve cultural level, expertise and profession; participate in political, economic, cultural and social activities.[85]

8. Divorce

8.1. Concept

- Divorce is the termination of a marital relationship according to a legally effective judgment or decision of the Court . [86]Thus, legally, a marital relationship ends and is recognized as a divorce when there is a legally effective judgment or decision of the Court.
- A sham divorce is the act of taking advantage of divorce to avoid property obligations, violate population policies and laws, or to achieve other purposes that are not intended to end a marriage.[87]
- The law strictly prohibits taking advantage of divorce to evade property obligations, violate population policies and laws, or to achieve other purposes other than the purpose of ending a marriage; threatening, intimidating, mentally abusing, mistreating, demanding property, or other acts to force others to maintain a marriage against their will.
8.2. Right to request divorce settlement 
8.2.1 Persons entitled to request divorce settlement [88]:
- The wife, husband or both have the right to request the Court to resolve the divorce.
- Fathers, mothers, and other relatives have the right to request the Court to resolve a divorce when one spouse is mentally ill or has another illness that prevents them from perceiving or controlling their behavior, and is also a victim of domestic violence caused by their husband or wife, seriously affecting their life, health, and spirit.
 

Note : - In case the wife is pregnant or giving birth, the husband has no right to request a divorce under any circumstances. - The husband does not have the right to request a divorce in case the wife is pregnant, giving birth or raising a child under 12 months old from the date of birth.[89] Giving birth is in one of the following cases:[90] + The wife has given birth but does not raise the child from birth until the child is under 12 months old. + The wife gave birth to a child but the child died within 12 months of birth. + Wife is 22 weeks pregnant or more and must terminate pregnancy.

 

8.2.2Basis for divorce settlement

 

Note : The Court will only resolve the divorce for a couple when there is a basis for divorce. In the case of no marriage registration but a request for divorce, the Court will accept the case and declare that the marital relationship is not recognized because the man and woman have the conditions to get married according to the regulations but living together as husband and wife without registering their marriage does not create rights and obligations between husband and wife; if there is a request regarding children and property, the resolution will be as follows: - The rights and obligations between men and women living together as husband and wife and their children are resolved according to the provisions on the rights and obligations of parents and children. - Property relations, obligations and contracts between men and women living together as husband and wife without registering their marriage shall be resolved by agreement between the parties; in case there is no agreement, they shall be resolved according to the provisions of the Civil Code and other relevant provisions of law. - The settlement of property relations must ensure the legitimate rights and interests of women and children; housework and other related work to maintain a common life are considered income-generating labor.

 Grounds for divorce include:
a) Divorce by mutual consent
The grounds for divorce when both husband and wife request to terminate the marriage are shown by a petition for divorce by mutual consent or both husband and wife request a divorce.
“In the case where both husband and wife request a divorce, if it is found that both parties truly voluntarily divorce and have agreed on the division of property, the care, upbringing, care and education of children on the basis of ensuring the legitimate rights of the wife and children, the Court shall recognize the divorce by mutual consent; if no agreement is reached or there is an agreement but it does not ensure the legitimate rights of the wife and children, the Court shall resolve the divorce.”[91]
b) Divorce at the request of one party[92]
When one spouse requests a divorce; the spouse commits acts of domestic violence, seriously violates the obligations of the spouse, causing the marriage to fall into a serious situation, the common life cannot be prolonged, and the purpose of the marriage cannot be achieved. The subject of the act of violence can be one spouse or another or other family members (father, mother-in-law, father, mother-in-law, etc.). Serious violation of the obligations of the spouse is understood as violating the obligation of fidelity, destroying property, violating regulations on representation: arbitrarily establishing, performing, terminating transactions; hindering the right to freedom of assembly, participating in cultural activities , etc. These acts are the direct cause of the seriousness of the marriage, the common life cannot be prolonged, and the purpose of the marriage cannot be achieved.
c) Divorce in case of third party request
Parents and relatives of the spouse may request a divorce when there is evidence that the spouse has committed acts of violence that seriously affect the life, health and spirit of the other. The conditions for parents and relatives to request a divorce from a spouse are: one spouse has a mental illness or another illness that prevents them from perceiving and controlling their actions, and that person is a victim of domestic violence committed by their husband or wife. Such acts of violence seriously affect the life, health and spirit of the victim.[93]

8.2. 3. Reconciliation in divorce proceedings

The State and society encourage grassroots reconciliation when a husband and wife request a divorce. Reconciliation is carried out in accordance with the provisions of the law on grassroots reconciliation. [94]Grassroots reconciliation is only encouraged but not required when a husband and wife request a divorce.

8.2.4. Principles for settling property of husband and wife upon divorce[95]

a) In case the property regime of spouses is prescribed by law, the settlement of property shall be agreed upon by the parties; if no agreement is reached, at the request of the wife, husband or both spouses, the Court shall settle in accordance with the provisions of the 2014 Law on Marriage and Family [96].
In case the property regime of spouses is by agreement, the settlement of property upon divorce shall be applied according to that agreement; if the agreement is not complete and clear, the corresponding provisions of the 2014 Law on Marriage and Family shall be applied for settlement.[97]
b) The common property of the spouses is divided equally but the following factors are taken into account:
i) The circumstances of the family and of the husband and wife. For example : the health status, assets, and ability to work and generate income after the divorce of the husband and wife as well as of other family members to whom the couple has the right and obligation to provide support. The party who is in more difficulty after the divorce is given a larger share of the assets than the other party or is given priority to receive the type of assets to ensure the maintenance and stability of their lives;
ii) The contributions of the husband and wife to the creation, maintenance and development of the common property. The labor of the husband and wife in the family is considered as income-generating labor. For example : The wife or husband who stays at home to take care of the children and family without going to work is considered a worker with an income equivalent to the income of the working husband or wife. The party who contributes more will receive a larger share;
iii) Protect the legitimate interests of each party in production, business and occupation so that the parties have the conditions to continue working to generate income. For example, a husband and wife have common assets, which are a car that the husband is driving a taxi worth 500 million VND and a grocery store that the wife is running worth 300 million VND. When resolving the divorce and dividing the common assets, the Court must consider transferring the grocery store to the wife and the car to the husband so that they can continue to do business and generate income. The husband who receives the larger portion of the property must pay the wife the value of 100 million VND;
iv) The fault of each party in violating the rights and obligations of the spouses. For example, in the case where the husband commits acts of domestic violence, is unfaithful or destroys property, when resolving the divorce, the Court must consider the husband's fault when dividing the common property of the spouses to ensure the rights and legitimate interests of the wife and minor children.
c) The common property of the spouses is divided in kind. If it cannot be divided in kind, it is divided according to value; the party receiving the property in kind with a value greater than the portion they are entitled to must pay the other party the difference.
d) The separate property of a husband or wife belongs to that person, except in cases where the separate property has been incorporated into the common property.
In case of merger or mixing of private property with common property, if the husband and wife request division of property, they will be paid the value of their property contributed to that property, unless otherwise agreed by the husband and wife.
e) Protect the legitimate rights and interests of the wife, minor children, adult children who have lost civil act capacity or are unable to work and have no property to support themselves.
8.3. Child care, upbringing, and education after divorce[98]
- After divorce, parents still have the right and obligation to look after, care for, raise and educate minor children, adult children who have lost civil act capacity or are unable to work and have no property to support themselves according to the provisions of the 2014 Law on Marriage and Family, the Civil Code and other relevant laws.
- Husband and wife agree on the person who will directly raise the child, the obligations and rights of each party after divorce towards the child; in case of failure to reach an agreement, the Court shall decide to assign the child to one party for direct raising based on the child's interests in all aspects; if the child is 7 years old or older, the child's wishes must be considered.
- Children under 36 months of age are entrusted to the mother for direct care, except in cases where the mother is not qualified to directly look after, care for, raise and educate the child or the parents have another agreement in accordance with the child's interests.
8.4. Obligations and rights of parents who do not directly raise their children after divorce
Regarding the obligations and rights of parents who do not directly raise their children after divorce, they are stipulated as follows [99]:
- Parents who do not directly raise their children have the obligation to respect the child's right to live with the person who directly raises them.
- Parents who do not directly raise their children have the obligation to support them.
- After divorce, the person who does not directly raise the child has the right and obligation to visit the child without being hindered by anyone.
If the parent who does not directly raise the child abuses visitation rights to hinder or negatively affect the care, upbringing, and education of the child, the parent who directly raises the child has the right to request the Court to restrict that person's right to visit the child.
8.5. Obligations and rights of the parent directly raising the child towards the parent not directly raising the child after divorce[100]
- The parent directly raising the child has the right to request the person not directly raising the child to fulfill the obligations and rights of the parent not directly raising the child after the divorce; request the person not directly raising the child and family members to respect their right to raise the child.
- The parent directly raising the child has the right to request the person not directly raising the child to perform the obligations and rights of the parent not directly raising the child after the divorce; request

 
SECTION 3. SOME PROVISIONS OF LAND LAW FOR PEOPLE IN THE CIVIL FIELD
 

Objective of the document: This section focuses on clarifying some provisions of the land law for people in the civil sphere. It clearly states the provisions of the land law on the rights and obligations of land users, some land support policies for people (including the poor, ethnic minorities, etc.), identifying land disputes between land users and the participation of legal aid in resolving these disputes.

 
1. Rights and obligations of land users
a) Who are the land users ?
Land users who are allocated land, leased land, or have their land use rights recognized by the State; are using land stably, and are eligible for a Certificate of land use rights and ownership of assets attached to land but have not yet been granted a Certificate of land use rights, a Certificate of house ownership and land use rights, a Certificate of land use rights, house ownership and other assets attached to land, a Certificate of land use rights and ownership of assets attached to land; receive land use rights; sublease land according to the provisions of the Land Law [101].
- Land users include ^[102]:
i) Domestic organizations include:
a) State agencies, agencies of the Communist Party of Vietnam, people's armed forces, Vietnam Fatherland Front, socio-political organizations, socio-political-professional organizations, social organizations, socio-professional organizations, public service units and other organizations as prescribed by law;
b) Economic organizations as prescribed by the Investment Law, except for the case prescribed in Clause 7 of this Article (hereinafter referred to as economic organizations);
ii) Religious organizations and affiliated religious organizations;
iii) Domestic individuals, Vietnamese people residing abroad who are Vietnamese citizens (hereinafter referred to as individuals);
iv) Residential community;
v) Foreign organizations with diplomatic functions include diplomatic representative agencies, consular agencies, other representative agencies of foreign countries with diplomatic functions recognized by the Government of Vietnam; representative agencies of organizations under the United Nations, intergovernmental agencies or organizations, representative agencies of intergovernmental organizations;
vi) Vietnamese people residing abroad;
vii) Economic organizations with foreign investment capital.
b) General rights of land users^[103]
- Granted a Certificate of land use rights and ownership of assets attached to land when meeting all conditions according to the provisions of the law on land.
- Enjoy the fruits of labor and investment results on legally used land.
- Enjoy benefits when the State invests in protecting, improving and developing agricultural land.
- Receive guidance and assistance from the State in improving and restoring agricultural land.
- Be protected by the State when others violate your legitimate rights and interests regarding land.
- Have the right to change land use purposes according to the provisions of this Law and other relevant legal provisions.
- Receive compensation, support and resettlement when the State reclaims land according to the provisions of this Law.
- Complain, denounce, and sue about violations of one's legal land use rights and other violations of land laws.
In addition to general rights, the 2024 Land Law also stipulates specific rights on the right to convert, transfer, lease, sublease, inherit, donate land use rights; mortgage, contribute capital using land use rights (Article 27); receive land use rights (Article 28); rights to adjacent land plots (Article 29); right to choose the form of land rent payment (Article 30),...
c) General obligations of land users^[104]
- Use land for the right purpose, within the right plot boundaries, in accordance with regulations on underground depth and overhead height, protect underground public works and comply with other relevant legal regulations.
- Carry out land registration declaration; fully carry out procedures when converting, transferring, leasing, subleasing, inheriting, donating land use rights, mortgaging, and contributing capital using land use rights according to the provisions of law.
- Perform financial obligations on land according to the provisions of law.
- Implement measures to protect land; treat, improve and restore land in areas polluted and degraded by oneself.
- Comply with environmental protection regulations, do not damage the property and legitimate interests of relevant land users.
- Comply with legal regulations on finding objects underground.
- Hand over the land when the State decides to reclaim the land according to the provisions of law.
2. Land support policy for some disadvantaged groups according to the provisions of the Land Law
a) For the poor
According to the provisions of the 2024 Land Law, the poor and people in near-poor households are entitled to:
- Exemption and reduction of land use fees and land rent when implementing housing and land policies for the poor (Point b, Clause 1, Article 157 of the Land Law);
- Land allocation and lease to implement land policies (point c, clause 2, Article 181 of the Land Law),...
b) For ethnic minorities
The 2024 Land Law clearly stipulates that the State has policies to:
- Ensure communal living land for ethnic minorities in accordance with customs, practices, beliefs, cultural identity and actual conditions of each region (Clause 1, Article 16 of the Land Law);
- First-time land support for individuals who are ethnic minorities and are poor or near-poor households in ethnic minority and mountainous areas, in accordance with customs, practices, beliefs, cultural identity and actual conditions of each region to ensure a stable life (Clause 2, Article 16 of the Land Law).
- Land support to ensure stable life for individuals who are ethnic minorities who have been allocated land or leased land by the State but now have no land or lack land compared to the quota and are poor or near-poor households in ethnic minority and mountainous areas ( Clause 3, Article 16 of the Land Law) .
In addition, the 2024 Land Law stipulates that ethnic minorities are allocated land and leased land in specific cases for inheritance, donation, and transfer of land use rights to heirs (Article 48) ^[105]. Ethnic minorities are exempted from or have reduced land use fees and land rent when using land (Point c, Clause 1, Article 157 of the Land Law); are allocated land and leased land to implement land policies (Point c, Clause 2, Article 181 of the Land Law).
The 2024 Land Law adds provisions on the act of " Violating land support policies for ethnic minorities " as one of the prohibited acts when participating in land relations ^[106].
In order to facilitate organizations and individuals when applying the provisions of the 2024 Land Law to land policies implemented before the 2024 Land Law takes effect, the 2024 Land Law stipulates transitional conditions in the case of " Individuals who are ethnic minorities who are allocated land or leased land by the State under the land support policy for ethnic minorities as prescribed by law before the effective date of this Law and who meet the conditions for enjoying the land support policy for ethnic minorities as prescribed by this Law shall enjoy the land support policy prescribed by this Law " (Clause 14, Article 260 of the Land Law).
c) For other vulnerable people
- The 2024 Land Law stipulates the exemption and reduction of land use fees and land rent when using land to implement housing and residential land policies for people with meritorious services to the revolution, war invalids or sick soldiers who are unable to work, and families of martyrs who no longer have the main labor force [107](Point b, Clause 1, Article 157 of the Land Law); land allocation and land lease to implement land policies for people with meritorious services to the revolution in localities that do not have land or lack production land (Point c, Clause 2, Article 181 of the Land Law ),...
- Social security policies for vulnerable groups such as: land recovery for socio-economic development for public benefit when building social service facilities established by the State or permitted to operate as social work service centers, social protection facilities; medical treatment, education, social labor centers; nursing centers for meritorious people; child support facilities; counseling and care facilities for the elderly, people with disabilities, children in special circumstances, people with HIV/AIDS, mentally ill people; drug rehabilitation facilities; facilities for caring for the elderly and children in special circumstances (Clause 15, Article 79 of the Land Law )...
3. Land disputes
a) What is a land dispute?
 Land dispute is a dispute over the rights and obligations of land users between two or more parties in a land relationship ^[108].
Note: According to the law, land disputes include disputes between land users (excluding administrative disputes over land ^[109]).
b) Types of land disputes:
(i) Disputes to determine who has the right to use land (including disputes to reclaim land and assets attached to land from people in previous periods that have been divided and granted to others through many changes in land policies);

For example : When entering the new economic zone, Mr. A's family reclaimed a lot of land (without a land use right certificate, nor confirmed by the competent authority). Later, many people came to the new economic zone to do business. Because they were from the same hometown, when they saw Mr. B's family struggling and facing difficulties, Mr. A's family lent Mr. B's family their land for production (only verbally without confirmation from the local government, without witnesses). Later, when the land use right certificate was issued, that piece of land was registered under Mr. B's family's name. Mr. A filed a request to consider canceling the land use right certificate issued to Mr. B and requested that the land be reclaimed by Mr. A's family, and that Mr. B's family only borrowed Mr. A's family's labor.

 (ii) Land boundary disputes between adjacent land users;

For example: Household A and Household B live on two adjacent plots of land. Household A built a house in 2020. It was not until 2023 that Household B had the conditions to build a house. When building the house, Household B discovered that Household A had built the house on Household B's plot of land. Household A claimed that it was built on the land assigned to it. A dispute arose between the two parties.

(iii) Disputes over common access; Disputes over transactions related to land use rights (conversion, transfer, capital contribution, mortgage of land use rights, etc.), disputes over inheritance of land use rights , division of common property of spouses, which is land use rights , etc.;

Example of a common right-of-way dispute : The land is named after Mr. A's family and Mr. B's family share a common path. The two families live at the end of the alley, Mr. A built a kitchen on the common path. Mr. B's family is very upset because it hinders the movement of Mr. B's family as well as the cooking causes a fire hazard. In the hot summer, the temperature of Mr. A's kitchen is high, making Mr. B's family very uncomfortable. The two sides have a conflict because the kitchen is built protruding onto the common path.

 

Example of a dispute related to inheritance of land use rights : A family has 7 siblings in the same household registration. The father passed away in 2015 and did not leave a will. In 2020, the mother passed away and did not leave a will, the siblings are still in harmony and live together on this land. In 2023, the eldest brother got married. Since then, the eldest brother and his wife have made things difficult for the remaining siblings, not wanting them to live on the land left by their parents and presented the Land Use Rights Certificate in the name of the eldest brother. Conflicts arose, the 6 siblings wanted to sue to divide the inheritance.

 

Example of a dispute over land use rights : Mrs. A's family is in a difficult situation. To change their lives, the family decided to send their child to work abroad. To have money for their child to work abroad, her family decided to mortgage the land use rights of the house they were living in to get money. Because she was old and weak and had limited education, she asked a nephew in her family who knew many people to do the procedures to mortgage the house. Because she trusted him, whatever his nephew told her to do, she did it, and signed without checking or reading carefully before signing. After her child went to work abroad, she sent money back. Every month, she also sent money to her nephew to ask him to pay the monthly mortgage. After 1 year, when she had money sent back from her child, she went to the bank to pay off the debt and found out that her nephew had not mortgaged her land at the bank but had sold it to someone else. The money she gave him every month was considered money she paid to the landlord. A conflict arose, Mrs. A wanted to reclaim her land and sued her nephew.

(iv) Land disputes in the implementation of commercial housing and social housing real estate projects (often occurring between projects or projects and buyers; disputes related to future assets); land disputes in the transfer of all or part of real estate investment projects with land use rights .

For example : When selling social housing apartments, Investor B committed to having a common playground for the apartments in the social housing area. However, after receiving the apartments, Investor B turned the common playground into a paid parking area. The apartments filed a lawsuit against the Investor to demand the return of the right to use the playground.

c) Types of land dispute resolution
(i) Negotiation: the disputing parties resolve conflicts and disagreements themselves without the intervention of a third party.
This is a solution that should be encouraged because it saves time, money and is emotionally satisfying for both parties.
(ii) Mediation involves a mediator providing guidance or analysis to help the parties come up with a solution to the dispute.
- For grassroots mediation: The State encourages parties to land disputes to reconcile themselves and mediate at the grassroots level ^[110]according to the provisions of the law on grassroots mediation. The order and procedures are prescribed in the Law on Grassroots Mediation 2013.
Negotiation and conciliation are not mandatory procedures but are encouraged for disputing parties to undertake.
- For mediation at the People's Committee of the commune, ward or town: Clause 2, Article 235 of the 2024 Land Law stipulates that the disputing parties must conduct mediation at the People's Committee of the commune where the disputed land is located for disputes specified in Article 236 of the 2024 Land Law.

Authority of the People's Committee of the commune where the disputed land is located: - The Chairman of the People's Committee at the commune level is responsible for establishing a Land Dispute Mediation Council to conduct dispute mediation. - Land dispute mediation at the People's Committee at the commune level is carried out within no more than 30 days from the date of receipt of the request for land dispute mediation. - The conciliation must be recorded in a record signed by the parties involved in the conciliation and confirmed as successful or unsuccessful by the People's Committee of the commune. The record of conciliation shall be sent to the disputing parties and kept at the People's Committee of the commune where the disputed land is located. - In case the conciliation fails and one or more of the disputing parties do not sign the minutes, the Chairman of the Council and the members participating in the conciliation must sign the minutes, stamp them with the seal of the People's Committee at the commune level and send them to the disputing parties.

(iii) Filing a lawsuit to resolve a dispute at Court : by submitting a petition. For this form, the order and procedures are prescribed in the 2015 Civil Procedure Code.
(iv) Dispute resolution at the competent People's Committee : by submitting a request for land dispute resolution to the People's Committees at all levels as prescribed in Article 236 of the 2024 Land Law.
d) Authority to resolve land disputes
Article 236 of the 2024 Land Law specifically stipulates the authority to resolve land disputes. Accordingly, the competent authorities to resolve land disputes include:
- District and provincial People's Committees;
            + The Chairman of the District People's Committee resolves disputes between households, individuals, and communities.
          + The Chairman of the District People's Committee resolves disputes in which one party to the dispute is an organization, religious organization, affiliated religious organization, Vietnamese people residing abroad, or economic organizations with foreign investment capital.
          - District and provincial courts as prescribed by the Civil Procedure Code;
- Vietnam Commercial Arbitration.
d) Provisions of land law on legal aid
Clause 4, Article 15 of the 2024 Land Law stipulates that one of the State's responsibilities towards land users is:
 “ 4. Propaganda, dissemination, guidance , Provide legal aid in accordance with the law for land users in implementing policies, laws, administrative procedures on land, and exploiting information in the national database on land .
          The 2024 Land Law stipulates the right to legal aid for people when implementing land policies and laws, participating in administrative procedures in land relations, and exploiting information in the national land database. This provision aims to create conditions for the poor, ethnic minorities and vulnerable groups to receive free legal aid to protect their legitimate rights and interests in the civil land sector.
According to this regulation, in the process of implementing policies, laws, administrative procedures on land, and exploiting information in the national database on land, land users eligible for legal aid have the right to request legal aid according to the provisions of the law on legal aid, as follows:
legal aid recipients are eligible : those eligible for legal aid as prescribed in Article 7 of the Law on Legal Aid ^[111]have the right to request the State ^[112]Legal Aid Center or organizations participating in legal aid ^[113]to provide legal aid when there are disputes or problems related to land law.
 (ii) The request for legal aid must be directly related to the rights and interests of the person receiving legal aid (Clause 1, Article 30 of the Law on Legal Aid ). For example, Mr. A is a land user belonging to a poor household or an ethnic minority residing in an area with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions. He can only request legal aid to protect his legitimate rights and interests in the land sector, and cannot request legal aid for relatives or acquaintances who are not his legal representative. not a person entitled to legal aid .
(iii) When there is a dispute or problem regarding land law as stated in item b, part 4.3.3 of this document, a person eligible for legal aid has the right to request legal aid and submit a dossier to the State Legal Aid Center or organizations participating in legal aid in the locality to receive assistance in accordance with the provisions of the law on legal aid.
Legal aid request documents include:
(1) Application for legal aid in the form (Appendix No. 1) ;
(2) Documents proving eligibility for legal aid (Appendix No. 2);
(3) Other documents and papers related to the case.
* A person requesting legal aid may submit a request for legal aid in one of the following ways:
local legal aid organization ;
+ Send documents via postal service;
+ Send documents via fax or electronic form ^[114].
4. Participation of legal aid in resolving land disputes in the civil field
Circular No. 12/2018/TT-BTP dated August 28, 2018 of the Minister of Justice guiding a number of legal aid professional activities and legal aid quality management stipulates that a legal aid case ends when:
“ Complete the legal request of the person receiving legal aid in the form of legal aid stated in the legal aid request ” ^[115].
Thus, legal aid is responsible for performing professional and technical activities to provide legal aid to land users eligible for legal aid from the time of assignment until the completion of the request stated in the request of the person receiving legal aid to best protect their legitimate rights and interests.
a) For legal advice^[116]
- Implementation method: guide, give opinions, help draft documents related to disputes, complaints, legal problems; guide and help parties reconcile, negotiate, and agree on how to resolve the case.
- Implementation results: legal advisory document.
In practice, in the field of land, the form of legal advice has brought many results, for example: helping people who are eligible for legal aid to access the law (including access to land law and legal aid law) in a timely and correct manner; helping them better understand their rights and obligations, and the provisions of land law so that they can choose appropriate ways to resolve and respond to land disputes and conflicts, even many cases are resolved satisfactorily at the mediation stage, without having to file a lawsuit in court, saving time, effort, and money.
b) Out-of-court representation^[117]
- Implementation method: Legal aid officers and lawyers providing legal aid carefully study the details of the case and the provisions of the law to come up with arguments and plans to best protect the legal rights and interests of the person receiving legal aid before the competent state agency in the civil scope. These tasks are not included in the litigation procedure. With this form of legal aid, legal aid officers and lawyers perform as authorized representatives of the person receiving legal aid. The procedures, content and scope of authorization strictly comply with the provisions of the Civil Code and related guiding documents.
Implementation results :
+ Document appointing a representative to perform legal aid outside of litigation.
+ The person performing legal aid protects the legitimate rights and interests of the person receiving legal aid before competent state agencies in the civil scope.
- Some tasks in the process of implementing legal aid cases in the form of out-of-court representation in the civil scope:
+ Meet and contact with people receiving legal aid, their relatives; witnesses, etc.;
+ Research files and prepare documents to carry out representation;
+ Verify, collect documents, objects, evidence, and details related to the representation;
+ Work with relevant agencies, organizations and individuals;
+ Participate in representing before competent agencies, organizations and individuals to resolve cases.
…
c) Participate in litigation Civil in Court
Implementation method : The person providing legal aid is a Legal Aid Officer or a Lawyer providing legal aid who participates in the proceedings as a protector of the legal rights and interests of the person receiving legal aid during the court's settlement process. land dispute in civil scope .
Implementation results :
+ Document appointing a person to participate in the proceedings.
+ Arguments and plans to protect the legitimate rights and interests of the person receiving legal aid provided to the Court.
- Some tasks when performing legal aid cases participating in civil proceedings:
+ Meet and contact with people receiving legal aid, their relatives; related people, etc.;
+ Research files, prepare documents;
+ Verify, collect documents, objects, evidence, and related details;
+ Request for property appraisal and valuation;
+ Work with relevant agencies, organizations and individuals;
+ Participate in questions and debates at court; view court minutes.

 
 
APPENDIX NO. 1: FORM FOR REQUEST FOR LEGAL AID  
SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM
Independence - Freedom - Happiness------------
.........., date ..... month ..... year 20......
REQUEST FOR LEGAL AID
Dear: .........................( 1).............................
I. Information for people receiving legal aid
Full name: ................( 2)...........................................................................................
Date of birth: ........................................ Gender: .............................
ID card number/Citizen identification card number/Identification number: ….. …...............................
Contact address: ……………………………………………………………… …..
Phone: ............................................................................................................
Persons eligible for legal aid: ........................................................................
II. Information for people requesting legal aid
Full name: ................( 3)........................................................ ………………………………
ID card number/Citizen identification card number/Identification number: ….. …...............................
Contact address: …………………………………………………………………...
Phone: .............................................................................................................
Relationship with the person receiving legal aid: .....................................................
III. Contents of legal aid case
1. Summary of request for legal aid
................................................................................................................................
................................................................ ................................................................ ..........................
................................................................ ................................................................ ..........................
................................................................ ................................................................ ..........................
2. Request for legal aid
Legal advice □
Participate in litigation □
Out-of-Law Representation □
3. Documents attached to the application
a) ................................................ ................................................................ ..........................
b) ................................................ ................................................................ ..........................
c) ................................................ ................................................................ ..........................
I hereby certify that the above statement is true. Request ................................... ....... (1) ....................... consider legal aid.

APPLICANT (Sign, print full name or address)

 
 
Note:
(1): Name of the organization providing legal aid.
(2): Full name of the person receiving legal aid.
(3): Full name of the person requesting legal aid.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
APPENDIX NO. 2
Types of documents proving that the subject is eligible for TGPL

STT	Person receiving TGPL[118]	Proof of documents[119]
1	People with revolutionary contributions: - Revolutionary activists before January 1, 1945; - Revolutionary activists from January 1, 1945 to the August 1945 uprising; - Heroic Vietnamese mother; - Hero of the People's Armed Forces; - Hero of Labor during the resistance war; - War invalids, including category B war invalids recognized before December 31, 1993; - People who enjoy policies such as war invalids; sick soldiers; - Resistance fighters infected with toxic chemicals; - People who participated in revolution, resistance, national defense, and international duty were imprisoned or exiled by the enemy; - People who participate in resistance wars to liberate the nation, protect the Fatherland, and perform international duties; - People who have contributed to the revolution.	Documents proving people with revolutionary contributions include one of the following documents: - Decision of competent authority recognizing as a person with revolutionary merit according to the provisions of the Ordinance on preferential treatment for people with revolutionary merit; - Decision to confer the title of Heroic Vietnamese Mother, Hero of the People's Armed Forces, Hero of Labor during the resistance war period; - Resistance Medal, Resistance Medal, Certificate of Vietnamese Heroic Mother, Certificate of Hero, Certificate of Merit to the country; - Decision on subsidies and allowances issued by competent authorities to determine that the person has contributed to the revolution according to the provisions of law on preferential treatment for people with contributed to the revolution; - Decision or certificate of war invalids, beneficiaries of policies such as war invalids, sick soldiers, diseases caused by chemical poisoning, resistance fighters infected with chemical poisoning; - The Fatherland Commemorative Medal in recognition of those who have contributed to the revolution, Certificate of revolutionary activists before January 1, 1945, Certificate of revolutionary activists from January 1, 1945 to the August 1945 uprising, Victory Medal, Victory Medal .
2	Poor people	Documents proving poor household status are Poor Household Certificates: - The certificate of poor household is issued to households as a basis to determine that the people named on the certificate are beneficiaries of policies for poor households, including policies on social assistance.[120] - For households that are not poor but have unexpected difficulties in that year and request for social assistance, the person receiving the social assistance request can guide them to contact the Village Chief (Village Chief, Head of Residential Group, Hamlet Chief, etc.) to complete the procedure to request the People's Committee of the commune or ward where they reside to review and recognize the newly arising poor or near-poor household.
3	Children: is under 16 years old [121].	Proof of child status includes one of the following documents: - Birth certificate, citizen identification card, identity card, passport, identity card (valid until December 31, 2024 [122]); - Document of the prosecuting agency [123]identifying the person requesting legal aid as a child; - Document of competent authority on applying administrative handling measures or administrative sanctions identifying the person requesting legal aid as a child.
4	Ethnic minorities residing in areas with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions is : a person who regularly resides (has registered permanent residence, has registered temporary residence or has confirmation from the police of the commune, ward or town) in an area with especially difficult socio-economic conditions (commune, ward or town in a difficult area and commune, village or hamlet with especially difficult socio-economic conditions) according to the provisions of law" [124].	Proof of identity includes one of the following documents : - Legal documents issued by competent authorities identifying the person named in the document as an ethnic minority and his/her place of residence. Legal documents can be: Identity card; Citizen identification card; Birth certificate... - Document of the prosecuting agency identifying the person requesting legal aid as an ethnic minority and his/her place of residence.
5	The accused is from 16 years old to under 18 years old [125].	Proof of identity is a document issued by the prosecuting agency identifying the person requesting legal aid as an accused person from 16 years old to under 18 years old.
6	The accused is from a near-poor household.	Supporting documents include the following: - Certificate of near-poor household; - Document of the prosecuting agency identifying the person requesting legal aid as the accused.
7	financial difficulties is a person belonging to a near-poor household or a person receiving monthly social allowance according to the provisions of law. The following people with financial difficulties are eligible for TGPL:
	a ) The father, mother, wife, husband, children of the martyr and the person who raised the martyr when he was young and has financial difficulties	Supporting documents include the following: - Certificate of near-poor household or decision to receive monthly social allowance or decision to accept the subject for care and nurturing at a social house or social protection facility; - Decision of competent authority on preferential allowance, death allowance for father, mother, wife, husband, children of martyrs and people who raised martyrs when they were young or Martyr's family certificate, Certificate of merit from the Fatherland with the name of martyr, accompanied by documents proving the family relationship with martyrs.
	b) People infected with Agent Orange have financial difficulties	Supporting documents include the following: - Certificate of near-poor household or decision to receive monthly social allowance or decision to accept the subject for care and nurturing at a social house or social protection facility; - Decision on preferential allowance for children of resistance fighters infected with toxic chemicals or Certificate of illness, deformity, or disability due to exposure to toxic chemicals.
	c) Elderly people with financial difficulties	Proof of identity includes one of the following documents: - Decision on receiving monthly social allowance; Decision on receiving subjects for care and nurturing at social houses and social protection facilities; - Certificate of near-poor household with legal documents issued by a competent authority confirming that the person named in the certificate is an elderly person.
	d) People with disabilities have financial difficulties	Proof of identity includes one of the following documents: - Certificate of near-poor household with Certificate of Disability issued by competent authority; - Decision on receiving monthly social allowance; Decision on receiving subjects for care and nurturing at social houses and social protection facilities.
	d) Persons from 16 to under 18 years old who are victims in criminal cases and have financial difficulties	Supporting documents include the following: - Certificate of near-poor household or decision to receive monthly social allowance or decision to accept the subject for care and nurturing at a social house or social protection facility; - Document of the prosecuting agency identifying the person requesting legal aid as a victim and between 16 and under 18 years old.
	e) Victims of domestic violence who have financial difficulties	Proof of identity includes one of the following documents: - Decision to admit victims of domestic violence into social housing and social protection facilities; - Certificate of near-poor household with one of the following documents: Certificate from a medical facility on examination and treatment of injuries caused by domestic violence; Decision to prohibit the perpetrator of domestic violence from contacting the victim of domestic violence; Decision to handle administrative violations against the perpetrator of domestic violence.
	g) Victims of human trafficking as prescribed by the Law on Prevention and Combat of Human Trafficking who are in financial difficulty	Supporting documents include the following: - Certificate of near-poor household or decision to receive monthly social allowance or decision to accept the subject for care and nurturing at a social house or social protection facility; - Papers and documents certifying the victim as prescribed in Article 28 of the Law on Prevention and Combat of Human Trafficking: Certificate of confirmation from the police agency of the district, town, city under the province; Certificate of confirmation from the rescue agency; Certificate of confirmation from the investigation agency, the agency assigned to conduct a number of investigation activities, the People's Procuracy, the People's Court; Papers and documents issued by foreign agencies that have been consularly legalized by the Vietnamese representative agency abroad or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam proving that the person is a victim.
	h) People infected with HIV have financial difficulties	Supporting documents include the following: - Certificate of near-poor household or decision to receive monthly social allowance or decision to accept the subject for care and nurturing at a social house or social protection facility; - Certificate issued by a competent authority confirming that the person is HIV-infected.