Senior officials from Vietnamese and Canadian justice agencies shared information and experiences in legal and social reform at a workshop in Hanoi on Aug. 5.

Representatives from the Vietnam Ministry of Justice introduced new points in the 2008 law on the issuance of legal norm documents, which stipulate that agencies and organisations in charge of compiling such documents take responsibility for making an assessment of their potential impact.

Such assessments will help compiling agencies gain an overview of issues to be addressed in the documents and provide consultancy to authorised agencies, the representatives said.

Meanwhile, a representative from the Supreme People’s Court briefed the workshop on issues related to over-hauling the organisation and operation of the court system in the spirit of justice reform.

At the workshop, Canadian Justice Minister Alberta Alison Redford and his delegation proposed three main principles for the administrative management of the courts. They aimed to support the fairness of trial proceedings, ensure public accountability, and create a uniform and effective system of management for the justice system.

The workshop also discussed issues relating to publishing verdicts and decisions made by people’s courts, the training of justices, and challenges in training judges in the 21 st century./.