Joint Circular No. 02/2018/TTLT-BCA-VKSNDTC-TANDTC-BQP dated February 01, 2018 of the Ministry of Public Security; the Supreme People's Procuracy; the Supereme People's Court; the Ministry of National Defense on prescribing the order, procedures, time limit and place for the accused or at-law representatives of crime-committing commercial legal entities to read and take notes of copies of documents or digitized documents related to their accusation or exculpation or copies of other documents related to their defense

JOINT CIRCULAR

Prescribing the order, procedures, time limit and place for the accused or at-law representatives of crime-committing commercial legal entities to read and take notes of copies of documents or digitized documents related to their accusation or exculpation or copies of other documents related to their defense^[1]

Pursuant to the November 27, 2015 Criminal Procedure Code;

Pursuant to the National Assembly’s Resolution No. 110/2015/QH13 of November 27, 2015, on implementation of the Criminal Procedure Code;

Pursuant to the National Assembly’s Resolution No. 41/2017/QH14 of June 20, 2017, on implementation of Penal Code No. 100/2015/QH13, which has been amended and supplemented under Law No. 12/2017/QH14, and on the effect of Criminal Procedure Code No. 101/2015/QH13, Law No. 99/2015/QH13 on Organization of Criminal Investigation Bodies, and Law No. 94/2015/QH13 on Custody and Temporary Detention;

The Minister of Public Security, Procurator General of the Supreme People’s Procuracy, Chief Justice of the Supreme People’s Court, and Minister of National Defense promulgate the Joint Circular prescribing the order, procedures, time limit and place for the accused or at-law representatives of crime-committing commercial legal entities to read and take notes of copies of documents or digitized documents related to their accusation or exculpation or copies of other documents related to their defense.

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of regulation and subjects of application

1. This Joint Circular prescribes the order, procedures, time limit and place for the accused or at-law representatives of commercial legal entities to read and take notes of copies of documents or digitized documents related to their accusation or exculpation or copies of other documents related to their defense when such persons so request in accordance with the Criminal Procedure Code.

2. This Joint Circular applies to bodies and persons competent to conduct proceedings, temporary detention or custody facilities, the accused, at-law representatives of crime-committing commercial legal entities and other related agencies, organizations and individuals.

Article 2. Principles of application

1. Compliance with the Criminal Procedure Code and other relevant regulations.

2. Copies of documents or digitized documents constitute part of criminal case files and must have the same contents and be of the same quantity as original case files. It is prohibited to modify or otherwise change contents of originals and copies of documents or digitized documents.

3. The accused or at-law representatives of crime-committing commercial legal entities may read and take notes of documents after the investigation is completed, during the prosecution until the court decides to bring their cases to trial.

4. Compliance with the regulations on the order, procedures, time limit and place for, and the right of, the accused or at-law representatives of crime-committing commercial legal entities to read and take notes of copies of documents or digitized documents related to their accusation or exculpation or copies of other documents related to their defense when they so request.

5. Permission for the accused or at-law representatives of crime-committing commercial legal entities to read and take notes of copies of documents or digitized documents must ensure the confidentiality requirements in accordance with law, cause no impedance to, and ensure the time limits for, investigation, prosecution and trial.

Article 3. Cases where the accused or at-law representatives of crime-committing commercial legal entities are entitled to read and take notes of copies of documents or digitized documents

1. Competent proceeding-conducting bodies or persons that have accepted and are settling criminal cases shall decide on copying or digitalizing documents related to the accusation or exculpation and other documents related to the defense (below collectively referred to as documents) so that the accused or at-law representatives of crime-committing commercial legal entities can read and take notes of when they so request, unless they fall into one of the cases specified in Clause 2 of this Article.

2. Competent proceeding-conducting bodies or persons that have accepted and are settling criminal cases may refuse to permit the accused or at-law representatives of crime-committing commercial legal entities to read and take notes of documents or refuse to permit them to continue reading and taking notes of documents in the following cases:

a/ Such documents are related to state secrets; occupational secrets, business secrets or private life or family secrets of individuals participating in the proceedings that have requested competent proceeding-conducting bodies or persons to keep such secrets in accordance with the Criminal Procedure Code and other relevant regulations.

Information and documents which proceeding participants that have denounced or reported crimes request competent proceeding-conducting bodies or persons to keep secret;

b/ Procedural decisions, orders and documents which have been delivered by competent proceeding-conducting bodies or persons to the accused or at-law representatives of crime-committing commercial legal entities in accordance with the Criminal Procedure Code;

c/ There is a ground to believe that the accused or at-law representatives of crime-committing commercial legal entities have committed one of the following acts:

- Buying off, forcing or enticing others to make false statements and provide untruthful documents; destroying or forging evidence, documents, e-data and objects of cases; intimidating, controlling or taking revenge on witnesses, victims and crime denouncers and their relatives.

- Deceiving, intimidating, buying off or using force against witnesses to prevent them from giving testimonies or forcing other persons to give false testimonies; preventing victims from participating in the proceedings or forcing them to make untruthful statements; preventing expert witnesses and asset valuators from performing their tasks or forcing them to make conclusions untrue to the objective truth; preventing interpreters or translators from performing their tasks or forcing them to make false interpretations or translations; or preventing representatives of other agencies, organizations and individuals from participating in the procedings.

- Offending the honor, dignity or reputation of competent proceeding-conducting persons; intimidating or using force against or taking other acts to obstruct procedural activities of competent proceeding-conducting persons.

- Being absent from procedural activities neither for force majeure reasons nor objective obstacles although having been summoned, thus obstructing these activities; or preventing the delivery, handover, receipt or notification of procedural documents of competent proceeding-conducting bodies;

d/ There is a ground to believe that the accused or at-law representatives of crime-committing commercial legal entities will disclose information about criminal cases or investigation secrets which they know after competent proceeding-conducting persons have asked to keep them secret; or that they will use documents which they have read or taken notes of for the purpose of infringing upon the interests of the State, public interests, or lawful rights and interests of agencies, organizations and individuals;

dd/ When the investigation of criminal cases has not yet been finished or is resumed or additional investigation is conducted or the court has issued decisions to bring cases to trial;