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One-stop legal aid in Hebei warms hearts of people in need

(en.moj.gov.cn)| Updated: 2020-03-20

With Spring Festival just around the corner, Yang Jin, a lawyer in North China's Hebei province, made a phone call to the mother of a 14-year-old boy named Xiao Mu, who had received Yang's legal aid in a medical dispute, to ask her about Xiao Mu's health condition and the needs of the family.

Yang's thoughtfulness reflects the core idea of Hebei's one-stop legal aid model which calls on lawyers to respond to both legal and non-legal issues of their clients.

To further improve its legal aid service, the province's legal aid center requires the selection of lawyers to be based on the specific need of applicants, and allows legal aid clients to apply for a change of lawyers whenever they are dissatisfied with the service.

Back to the case of Xiao Mu who was treated in a clinic for a cold before a medical accident descended upon him. Unable to afford the cost of a needed surgery, the boy's mother finally turned to the center in the hope of settling the medical dispute in court.

Sitting before the anxious mother, Yang, who was designated to act for the family, spent the initial 20 minutes of their first meeting in soothing her. "I'm also a mother of a 14-year-old kid," said Yang. "I would like to talk with you as a mother." Her reassuring words worked and the lady gradually calmed down.

Yang then started to draw on her legal expertise to help the mother comb through the case and lay down their strategy.

Beyond the legal help, Yang also actively found ways to raise money for Xiao Mu's surgery including successfully applying for a relief fund from the local women's federation. 

As with poor families like Xiao Mu's, migrant workers can also benefit from legal aid. The province laid out its three-year public legal service guideline last summer, requiring legal aid services to be accessible, feasible and convenient.

After coaching for about half a year at a gym in the capital city of Shijiazhuang, Xiao Li, whose hometown is in the countryside, tried to resign, only to be informed by the gym that she wouldn't get her salary if she left.

After multiple rounds of futile negotiations with the gym, Xiao Li decided to apply for the legal aid service.

After the lawyer designated by the legal aid center stepped in, the gym backed down from its tough stance and agreed to negotiate. 

In the end, Xiao Li reached a mediation agreement with the gym and received her salary.

From the perspective of Yang Changjun, deputy head of the province's legal aid center, legal aid services must evolve with the times and improve constantly.

"Meanwhile, we also encourage lawyers to help alleviate legal aid clients' mental distress while providing services to them," said Yang. "Our goal is to help them develop a harmonious and kind mentality."


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