Seminar | Supreme Court Oral Argument Rules and Related Reforms Seminar

Time: January 30, 2016 (Sat.) 13:30～17:30
Venue: Taipei Bar Association Main Conference Room (9F, No. 7, Sec. 1, Roosevelt Rd., Taipei City)
Organizers: Taiwan Bar Association, Taipei Bar Association
Co-organizers: Covenants Watch, Taiwan Alliance to End the Death Penalty, Taiwan Association for Human Rights, Judicial Reform Foundation, Taiwan Innocence Project

On December 18, 2015, on the eve of the third anniversary of the Supreme Court's initiation of oral argument reforms, legal reform and human rights groups jointly published a statement: "A Half-Opened Door Does Not Let in Sunlight—Judicial Reform and Human Rights Groups' Earnest Expectations for the Supreme Court." The statement emphasized that the Supreme Court opened the door to reform in 2012, moving toward alignment with the Two Covenants; however, the door to reform should not be left only half-open. Civil society looks to Supreme Court judges to muster the courage to lead the judicial system and become pioneers in judicial human rights.

Aside from issues related to criminal procedure in the Supreme Court, Article 474, Paragraph 1 of the current Code of Civil Procedure stipulates that oral argument shall be the principle, yet the Supreme Court rarely holds court hearings. What are the underlying bottlenecks? Article 253 of the Code of Administrative Procedure explicitly provides three scenarios in which oral argument shall be held; how does the Supreme Administrative Court operate this in practice? These are questions this seminar also aims to address and understand through dialogue.

To foster more thorough explanation, dialogue, and exchange of opinions, relevant organizations have planned and hosted this seminar, inviting representatives from the Supreme Court, the Supreme Administrative Court, the Supreme Prosecutor's Office, as well as scholars and civil society groups.

January 30, 2016 (Sat.)
Time	Agenda	Moderator / Panelists
13:30~14:00	Registration
14:00~14:05	Opening Remarks by Organizer Taiwan Bar Association	Deputy Chairman Ch'ao Chien-hsing
14:05~14:10	Opening	Former Grand Justice Hsu Yu-hsiu
14:10~15:00	Topic I: Due Process of Law in Legal Review of Criminal Procedure
	(1) Basic requirements of due process for oral argument 1) The defendant's right to be heard 2) Matters subject to argument 3) Facts (evidence) to be investigated for sentencing	Judge Chen Chih-hsiang, Prosecutor Chu Chao-liang, Associate Professor Wu Ching-ch'in, Attorney Li Nien-tsu, Attorney Yu Po-hsiang, Attorney Li I-kuang
	(2) Legalization of oral argument rules 1) The court's duty to disclose oral argument procedures 2) Regulatory approach for oral argument procedures in the Code of Criminal Procedure
15:00~15:50	Topic II: Due Adjudication Procedure for Death Penalty Sentences
	(1) Unanimous decision for death penalty sentences	Judge Chen Chih-hsiang, Prosecutor Chu Fu-mei, Associate Professor Wu Ching-ch'in, Attorney Li Nien-tsu, Attorney Yu Po-hsiang, Attorney Chi Keng-yen
	(2) Constitutional review of death penalty sentences
15:50~16:00	Tea Break
16:00~16:30	Topic III: The De Jure and De Facto of Oral Argument as Due Process of Law in Legal Review
	(1) Are there differences among civil litigation, administrative litigation, and criminal litigation?	Judge Shuai Chia-pao, Attorney Li Lin-sheng
	(2) Reviewing the development of our country's practical operations and legal system
16:30~17:20	General Discussion and Q&A	All Panelists
17:20~17:30	Presentation of Seminar Consensus and Conclusions	Moderator Former Grand Justice Hsu Yu-hsiu

 

 

Introduction to Moderator and Panelists:
Moderator: Hsu Yu-hsiu (Former Grand Justice)
Panelists (ordered by stroke count of names):
Attorney Yu Po-hsiang (Executive Director, Taipei Bar Association)
Prosecutor Chu Fu-mei (Supreme Prosecutor's Office)
Prosecutor Chu Chao-liang (Supreme Prosecutor's Office)
Associate Professor Wu Ching-ch'in (Department of Law, Aletheia University)
Attorney Li I-kuang (Chair, Criminal Procedure Law Committee, Taiwan Bar Association)
Attorney Li Nien-tsu (Adjunct Professor, Graduate Institute of Law, Soochow University)
Attorney Li Lin-sheng (Chair, Civil Procedure Law Committee, Taiwan Bar Association)
Judge Shuai Chia-pao (Supreme Administrative Court)
Attorney Chi Keng-yen (Member, Board of Directors, Taiwan Bar Association)
Judge Chen Chih-hsiang (Judge, Keelung District Court)