Despite a rapid increase in the number of lawyers in Beijing, concerns about ability have forced the Beijing Lawyers' Association to punish 21 lawyers already this year.

Zhang Xuebing, head of the Beijing Lawyers' Association, told METRO the number of lawyers has been growing at an average rate of 26 percent annually. In this year alone, 3,365 lawyers joined the profession to bring the total to 22,000.

However, the quality of lawyers is a growing concern for the profession.

Zhang said that by the end of October, the association gave out disciplinary warnings and public reprimand to 21 lawyers from 10 law firms. Last year's total was 29.

The maximum punishment for a lawyer by the association is a 3-month suspension of license, Zhang said.

"So far this year, we haven't used the maximum punishment yet," he said.

Lack of professional ethics, overcharging clients, low efficiency, and not giving invoices are major problems, Zhang told METRO on Tuesday.

He said lawyers have been known to lose cases on purpose because of personal reasons, and some lawyers forge fake documents or seals.

Gao Qing, a judge at the Haidian district court, said it is true that the quality of lawyers should be improved.

"Lawyers can sometimes not communicate effectively with clients, which makes settlements very difficult," she said.

She said some lawyers even stole compensation awarded in lawsuits.

In March, a lawyer surnamed Yang violated the lawyers' professional code when he dealt with a corporate equity dispute case.

The client Wang, one of the shareholders in Dongfangmingxing Building Material Company, had an equity dispute with other shareholders.

Yang represented Wang in the suit against the other shareholders.

Wang complained to Beijing Lawyers' Association that Yang had not investigated evidence completely, which had stopped him from being able to present it in court. This resulted in a failed lawsuit.

Even worse, Yang charged a high fee of 350,000 yuan without offering an invoice, far more than the 70,000 yuan recommended fee.

After it was reported, Yang offered to return the extra money but only received a disciplinary warning by the Beijing Lawyers' Association.

From September to November, the association contracted market research company Horizon to conduct a survey of 1,598 people about lawyers.

According to the research, the public is generally satisfied with lawyers' services. About 77 percent of respondents said they would hire or consult lawyers in legal disputes.

(China Daily 12/03/2009 page25)