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The Latest: On May 13, the Ministry of Justice held a conference to discuss the draft amended Law on Lawyers, which focuses on a new requirement that lawyers must possess “firm political loyalty.”

During the conference, Đỗ Ngọc Thịnh, chairman of the Vietnam Bar Federation, expressed dissatisfaction with the current provision and proposed “redesigning” it. He suggested that lawyers must both “follow the Communist Party’s line” and place “the interests of the state” above the interests of their clients.

The Details: Expanding on his proposal, Đỗ Ngọc Thịnh argued that “political loyalty” should be defined by two main criteria:

First, it requires lawyers to comply with “the party’s line, the state’s policies and laws, and lawyers’ professional ethics.”

Second, when advising clients, if there is a “conflict” or “overlap” between a client’s interests and the interests of the state or the nation, lawyers must “explain the situation to the client” and, when necessary, “refuse the client.”

According to Đỗ Ngọc Thịnh, for lawyers, “the interests of the nation and the people” should be “placed above all else,” superseding client interests. Other participants at the conference supported defining “firm political loyalty” as a steadfast commitment to the guidelines and policies of the Communist Party and the state.

The Background: The Ministry of Justice is currently preparing the dossier for the draft of the amended Law on Lawyers, having already submitted a draft proposal to the government on April 17.

While the ministry has not yet released the full text of the draft amended law, its proposal suggests adding “firm political loyalty” as a standard for lawyers. The ministry stated that the phrase should be understood to mean that “lawyers must have a proper understanding of the political system and always maintain the awareness and responsibility to protect justice, rights, and the interests of the nation and the people,” although it has not provided a specific definition.

The law is expected to be submitted to the National Assembly for consideration in October 2026.

Why It Matters: The Vietnam Bar Federation is the unified national socio-professional organization of bar associations and Vietnamese lawyers. While its main functions are to represent, support, and protect the rights and interests of lawyers and member bar associations, the organization operates under the leadership of the Communist Party of Việt Nam.

This comes on the heels of recent tensions; earlier, when the government issued Decree 109 in early April 2026, allowing commune chairpersons to revoke lawyers’ practicing licenses, the move sparked outrage among legal professionals. It took the Việt Nam Bar Federation more than a month to formally request a “temporary suspension” of the provision.

Hoàng Nam wrote this article in Vietnamese and published it in Luật Khoa Magazine on May 14, 2026. The Vietnamese Magazine has the copyrights of the English translation.

Vietnam Bar Federation Chairman Proposes Putting National Interests Above Clients

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