During the initial period after the founding of New China in 1949, the State started to set up a system of people's lawyers while abolishing the old lawyers' system. After several years' efforts, there had been some accomplishments. Nevertheless, in the following years the lawyers' system was stagnant or even collapsed.

In April 1979, the Legislative Affairs Commission of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress founded a special group for drafting the lawyers' regulathons. On August 26 of that year, the Standing Committee of the Fifth National People's Congress adopted the Interim Regulations on Lawyers at its 15th meeting, providing legal basis and safeguards for the establishment and development of the lawyers' system. With the reform and development in the lawyers' system, the Law on Lawyers was adopted in May 1996 at the 19th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Eighth National People's Congress. The promulgation and implementation of the Law on Lawyers marked a new development and improvement in the lawyers' system.

In accordance with the provisions of the Law on Lawyers, lawyers must adhere to the following basic principles in their practice: the principle of abiding by the Constitution and law and strictly observing lawyers' professional ethics and practice discipline; the principle of basing themselves on facts and taking law as the criterion; the principle of being subject to supervision of the State, society and the parties concerned in their practice; the principle of protecting lawful practice of lawyers according to law.

A lawyer may engage in the following seven categories of businesses: (1) legal counsel: a lawyer accepts engagement by citizens, legal persons or other organisations to act as legal counsel, who provides opinions regarding legal issues to the person who has engaged him, drafts and reviews legal documents, and acts as agent to participate in litigation, mediation or arbitration activities, etc.; (2) agent ad litem in civil or administrative proceedings: a lawyer accepts authorisation by a party in a civil or administrative case to act as agent ad litem and participate in the proceedings; (3) defendant or agent ad litem in a criminal case: a lawyer accepts engagement by a criminal suspect in a criminal case to provide him with legal advice and represent him in filing a petition or charge or obtaining a guarantor pending trial; accepts authorisation by a criminal suspect or defendant or accepts appointment by a people'scourt to act for the defence; and accepts authorisation by a private prosecutor in a case of private prosecution or by the victim or his close relatives in a case of public prosecution to act as agent ad litem and participate in the proceedings; (4) acting for filing petition: a lawyer represents clients in filing petition in all types of litigation; (5) participating in mediation and arbitration activities: a lawyer accepts authorisation by a party to participate in mediation and arbitration activities; (6) handling non-litigation legal matters, which involve all aspects of social and family life of the people; and (7) providing legal advice and representing clients in writing legal documents.

A law firm is the organisation in which lawyers practise. A law firm is an independent organisation in different forms which has its own name, articles of association and assets, bears legal responsibility on its own and exercises legal rights, mainly consists of lawyers and arranges its lawyers to practise. In accordance with the provisions of the Law on Lawyers, a law firm can be organised in the form of a partnership, cooperative firm or firm with capital of the State. (1) Partnership law firms. Such law firm has its assets owned by all its partners and distributes dividends among its partners based on its beneficial results. Any partner of a partnership law firm undertakes unlimited and joint and several liability for the debts of the law firm. (2) Cooperative law firms. Such law firm is owned collectively by its co-operators and adopts a wage system based on beneficial results. A cooperative law firm undertakes liability for its debts with its entire assets. (3) Law firms established with the capital contribution from the State. Such law firms are generally treated as institutions under the control of judicial administration departments. The local departments in charge of staff quota determine their size of establishment and allocate a small amount of operating fund, and the judicial administration departments select staff and organise their establishment. At present, State capital law firms are mainly operated in the poverty-stricken areas in the west and need support of the State.

In accordance with the provisions of the Law on Lawyers, qualification as a lawyer is granted based on the academic qualification as required and the passing score of the uniform national judicial examination, or based on the fulfilment of the prescribed conditions and the evaluation in accordance with such conditions. To fulfil the conditions on academic qualification and professional knowledge, a candidate must have completed four-year courses of law in an institution of higher education, or have completed four-year courses in any other field of learning in an institution of higher education. To practise law, a person must apply to obtain and be issued a lawyer's practice certificate.

A lawyer's practice is protected by law. The Law on Lawyers prescribes lawyers' rights and obligations: (1) the right of the person: in practice activities, a lawyer's right of the person shall not be violated; (2) the right to present a defence: when a lawyer acts as agent ad litem or defends clients, his right to argue or present a defence shall be protected in accordance with law; namely, lawyers may not be held legally liable for their arguments and the statements of defence in the courts; (3) the right to address inquiries and collect evidence: when undertaking legal matters, a lawyer may, with the consent of the relevant units or individuals, address inquires to such units or individuals; (4) the right to meet the defendant held in custody, etc.: a lawyer participating in litigation activities may collect and consult the materials pertaining to the case he is undertaking, meet and correspond with a person whose personal freedom is restricted, appear in court, participate in litigation, and enjoy other rights provided for in the procedure laws; (5) the right to refuse to defend or to represent a client: if the matter authorised violates law, the client uses the service provided by the lawyer to engage in illegal activities or the client conceals facts, the lawyer has the right to refuse to defend or to represent the client. At the same time, lawyers shall perform the following obligations: (1) keep confidential secrets and private affairs: a lawyer shall keep confidential secrets of the State and commercial secrets of the parties concerned that he comes to know during his practice activities and shall not divulge the private affairs of the parties concerned; (2) pay tax in accordance with law; (3) keep from representing both parties: a lawyer shall not represent both parties involved in the same case; (4) observe lawyers' discipline; (5) the obligation of recusal: a lawyer who once served as a judge or prosecutor shall not act as agent ad litem or defend clients within two years after leaving his post in the people's court or the people's procuratorate.

According to the provisions of the Law on Lawyers and the Code on Lawyers' Professional Ethics and Practice Discipline, the disciplinary power against lawyers is vested in the judicial administration department at or above the level of a prefecture, city or autonomous prefecture, which establishes a lawyers' disciplinary commission to be responsible for taking disciplinary measures. A lawyers' disciplinary commission is composed of members from practising lawyers, the lawyers association and the judicial administration department. Disciplinary measures against lawyers mainly include: (1) issue a warning, or, where the case is serious, impose a penalty of cessation of practice for no less than three months and no more than one year; and confiscate any illegal income; (2) revoke the lawyer's practice certificate by the judicial administration department of the people's government at provincial level; where the case constitutes a crime, pursue criminal responsibility according to law; (3) if a lawyer practises illegally or causes losses to a party due to his fault, the law firm in which he practises shall bear the liability for compensation. After paying compensation, the law firm may claim recovery from the lawyer that acted intentionally or committed gross negligence.