The Origin and Formation of the Socio-Legal Function of the Colonial Vietnamese Bar (1864–1945)

This article analyzes the historical stages of the origin, formation, and development of the socio-legal function of the colonial Vietnamese bar from 1864 to 1945, during which Vietnam was part of the Indo-Chinese Union within the French Colonial Empire. Based on the analysis of the regulatory framework of colonial Indo-China of that period, the author identifies the stages of development and the scope of powers of colonial Vietnamese lawyers, including the provision of free legal aid. The real state of affairs in colonial Vietnam differed from the legal norms declared in the decrees of the Governors-General governing the activities of the bar and the provision of free legal aid. Indigenous peoples were deprived of the right to use lawyer services in indigenous courts, and the bureaucratic procedures for obtaining permission for free legal aid made it practically unattainable. Discrimination by the colonial authorities against the indigenous population led to a series of uprisings, in which Vietnamese lawyers participated, ultimately resulting in the overthrow of colonial rule, the declaration of Vietnam’s independence, and the establishment of a new national Vietnamese bar in October 1945.