Statement | The Independence of Attorneys Shall Not Be Infringed—A Statement Regarding the Taitung District Prosecutors Office's Search, Arrest, and Detention Request Concerning Attorney Chang Ching

[Corrected as of the annotation in the text on March 23]

Regarding the incident where the Taitung District Prosecutors Office searched Attorney Chang Ching's office on March 21, arrested and sought his detention, and was subsequently ordered to be released by the Taitung District Court via Ruling 111-Ti-2, our foundation issues three statements as follows:

1. According to Article 22 of the Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers: "Governments shall recognize and respect that all communications and consultations between lawyers and their clients within their professional relationship are confidential." This imposes a duty on the state to protect lawyers' professional secrecy. The Taitung District Prosecutors Office initiated a compulsory search on the law office operated by Attorney Chang Ching—who was "neither a defendant nor a criminal suspect"—in the absence of the statutory requirement of "sufficient grounds" ^{[Corrected on March 23]}. Given that this search action may have obtained communication records or evidentiary materials between the attorney and his clients, it has severely undermined the attorney's obligation of confidentiality and duty of loyalty, thereby violating the aforementioned international norms.
   
2. According to Article 16 of the Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers: "Governments shall ensure that lawyers (a) are able to perform all of their professional functions without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference; (b) are able to travel and to consult with their clients freely both within their own country and abroad; and (c) shall not suffer, or be threatened with, prosecution or administrative, economic or other sanctions for any action taken in accordance with recognized professional duties, standards and ethics." This imposes a duty on the state to protect lawyers' personal liberty. The Taitung District Court determined in Ruling 111-Ti-2 that the Taitung District Prosecutors Office failed to specify in the subpoena the capacity in which the prosecutor was summoning Attorney Chang Ching, which did not comply with the statutory procedures for summoning, apprehension, and requesting detention, and thus ordered his release. Given that the prosecutor's actions involved unlawful arrest and detention, they have severely infringed upon the attorney's personal liberty and violated the aforementioned international norms.
   
3. "Lawyers, like judges and prosecutors, are among the pillars upon which human rights and the rule of law depend."^[1] The independence of attorneys is a vital principle of international law and shall not be infringed. The aforementioned actions of the Taitung District Prosecutors Office have violated the state's responsibility to protect the independence of attorneys and have severely damaged the trust of the people of Taiwan in the judiciary. Our foundation believes that the responsibility of the Taitung District Prosecutors Office and the handling prosecutor should be investigated, and the Minister of Justice should publicly apologize to the public in this regard.
   

Press Contact

Hsiao I-min, Office Director, Judicial Reform Foundation
Phone: 02-2523-1178#25
Email: equity@jrf.org.tw

 

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[1] International Commission of Jurists (2013). International Principles on the Independence and Accountability of Judges, Lawyers and Prosecutors. Taipei City: Taipei Bar Association. Page 67.
[Corrected on March 23] According to the subsequent press release issued by the Taitung District Prosecutors Office, this case involved applying to the court for and obtaining a search warrant prior to conducting the search.