Seminar｜Speaking Out for Disobedience: Pre-trial Defense and Civil Disobedience in Social Movements

Judicial trial practice in Taiwan places extreme emphasis on police interrogation and investigation records. Current Grand Justice Yu Po-hsiang once noted in the preface, "Guardians of the Cage Bird," to the book Rescuing the Defendant: A Lawyer's Manual for Police Stations: "A criminal suspect in an interrogation room is like a bird in a cage. If the defense counsel present during police questioning and interrogations cannot fully perform their function, it may increase the risk of innocent persons being wrongfully convicted in the future."

Protests organized during social movements often exhibit intense hostility between the police and the public. If citizens are consequently taken to police stations or other locations, the hostility they face is frequently higher than that faced by suspects in ordinary criminal cases. When lawyers perform accompanying interrogation duties or other responsibilities on such occasions, their role differs from that in ordinary criminal cases.

The Supreme Court Criminal Judgment 109-Tai-Shang-3695 stated, "Civil disobedience cannot be deemed lawful simply based on its political-moral justification, nor is it deemed unlawful merely because it lacks political-moral justification." It further noted, "If an act of civil disobedience is itself a special form of expression of freedom of speech, and the overall legal interest sought to be preserved is the free and democratic constitutional order that is about to be or has just begun to be undermined, the courts may analogically apply the provisions on necessity or excess of necessity to exclude illegality or exempt/mitigate criminal liability."

How should pre-trial defense during social movement protests uphold clients' right to resist? How should the principles of civil disobedience be applied? This lecture will be moderated by Chu Fang-chun (attorney of the volunteer legal team for the anti-cross-strait service trade agreement movement and director of the Legal Affairs Department at the Legal Aid Foundation), with a keynote presentation by Ch'en Hung-ch'i (attorney of the volunteer legal team for the anti-cross-strait service trade agreement movement and supervisor of the Taiwan Criminal Defense Lawyers Association), and features panelist Wei Pei-hsuan (vice president of the Taiwan Association for Human Rights and assistant professor in the Department of Public Affairs and Civic Education at National Changhua University of Education).

In-Person Registration  Online Registration

＊In-person attendees will have a chance to receive a copy of Rescuing the Defendant: A Lawyer's Manual for Police Stations. Quantities are limited; registration is warmly welcomed.

 

Event Date

Saturday, March 22, 2025, 10:00~12:00

Event Location:

1. In-person: 6th Floor Conference Room, Legal Aid Foundation Headquarters (6F, No. 189, Sec. 2, Jinshan S. Rd., Da'an Dist., Taipei City)
2. Online: Live-stream link will be provided after registration.

Capacity

In-person capacity is limited to 45 people; live-streamed online simultaneously.

Organizers

Judicial Reform Foundation, Legal Aid Foundation, Taiwan Association for Human Rights

Agenda

Time	Session	Details
09:30~10:00	Check-in
10:00~10:05	Opening Remarks by Moderator	Moderator Attorney Chu Fang-chun (Attorney of the Volunteer Legal Team for the Anti-Cross-Strait Service Trade Agreement Movement, Director of the Legal Affairs Department at the Legal Aid Foundation)
10:05~11:05	Pre-trial Defense in Social Movements	Keynote Speaker Attorney Ch'en Hung-ch'i (Attorney of the Volunteer Legal Team for the Anti-Cross-Strait Service Trade Agreement Movement, Supervisor of the Taiwan Criminal Defense Lawyers Association)
11:05~11:35	Civil Disobedience in Social Movements	Panelist Vice President Wei Pei-hsuan (Vice President of the Taiwan Association for Human Rights, Assistant Professor in the Department of Public Affairs and Civic Education at National Changhua University of Education)
11:35~12:00	Panel Discussion & Q&A
12:00	Conclusion

Contact

Deputy Director of Case Action Department Chang Hua-che
02-2523-1178 #22
ven@jrf.org.tw