On the afternoon of November 10, 2023, Chen Hongbing, Professor and Doctoral Supervisor of Law School of Southeast University, was invited by the Criminal Law and Criminal Defense Committee of Shanghai Lawyers Association (hereinafter referred to as the Criminal Law Committee) to give a special lecture on How to Find the Points of Argument for Criminal Lawyers. This lecture is the eleventh in a series of lectures on Criminal Defense: Concepts and Practices, and is hosted by Prof. Wang Enhai, Deputy Director of the Criminal Law Committee.
Prof. Chen Hongbing started from practical cases, combined with theoretical disputes and practical difficulties in practical cases, and elaborated on his research results and unique insights on hot controversial issues of criminal law sub-crimes. Prof. Chen pointed out that criminal lawyers can base on the concepts and principles of protection of legal interests, balance of crime and punishment, coordination of the system, compatibility of crime and punishment, etc. when handling cases. Based on the concepts and principles of protection of legal interests, balance between crime and punishment, coordination of the system and appropriateness of crime and punishment, we can accurately analyze the implementation of the act, clarify the legal application of the case, and then explore the case.
Regarding the protection of legal interests, Prof. Chen emphasized that different understandings of the protection of legal interests would lead to different interpretations of the constituent elements and different conclusions on specific cases. Grasping and understanding the legal interests to be protected by the crime is the fundamental premise for defense lawyers to study the case and find arguments. Defense lawyers only correctly understand and grasp the interests of the law, a clear crime to combat the crime, it is possible to jump out of the common arguments, to discover the essence of the case directly to the effective defense.
Regarding the balance between crime and punishment, Prof. Chen believes that criminal lawyers should pay attention to the balance between crime and punishment and crime and crime. In the process of handling cases, criminal lawyers should analyze and judge the conformity, illegality and culpability of the cases based on the elements of the crime, and find out the problems of the judicial authorities in the determination of facts and application of law.
Regarding system coordination, Prof. Chen pointed out that criminal law itself is a system of internal coordination. When criminal lawyers study the legal application of a case, they must take the basic law as the benchmark and analyze it with a certain number of supporting legal provisions, so as to accurately understand and explain the criminal composition. At the same time, in the understanding, application of criminal law, criminal lawyers need to organically combine the theoretical guidance of the general theory of criminal law and criminal law subsection of the role of the amendment, systematization of criminal law theory study and practical application.
Regarding the appropriateness of crime and punishment, Prof. Chen believes that the principle of appropriateness of crime and punishment is the iron rule of interpreting the sub-rule of the criminal law, and should be carried out in every interpretation of the sub-rule of the criminal law. When handling cases, criminal lawyers should accurately understand and fully utilize the principle of appropriateness of crime and punishment, and conduct accurate and comprehensive legal analysis of the acts of those involved in the cases.
In this lecture, the legal issues and practical cases raised by Prof. Chen are in line with the hot issues of practical disputes, and are insightful. Prof. Chen's fruitful research results and insights, in triggering the attorneys in the depth of thinking at the same time, opened up the criminal lawyer to handle the case, looking for a new perspective of the defense.