扩大法律援助范围。为进一步保障犯罪嫌疑人、被告人的辩护权和其他权利，2012年修改的刑事诉讼法将法律援助在刑事诉讼中的适用范围，从审判阶段扩大到侦查、审查起诉阶段，并扩大了法律援助对象范围。犯罪嫌疑人、被告人是盲、聋、哑、未成年人、尚未完全丧失辨认或者控制自己行为能力的精神病人，以及可能被判处无期徒刑、死刑，没有委托辩护人的，人民法院、人民检察院和公安机关应当通知法律援助机构指派律师为其辩护。

　　强化证人出庭作证义务。证人出庭对提高庭审质量至关重要。为提高证人出庭率，2012年修改的刑事诉讼法明确了证人必须出庭的范围，建立了证人出庭作证补助机制。规定控辩双方对证人证言有异议，且该证人证言对案件定罪量刑有重大影响的，证人应当出庭作证。证人因履行作证义务而支出的交通、食宿等费用，由国家财政予以保障。证人所在单位不得克扣或者变相克扣其工资、奖金及其他福利待遇。

Expanding the scope of legal assistance. In order to further protect the rights to defense and other relevant rights of criminal suspects and defendants, the Criminal Procedure Law amended in 2012 expanded the scope of legal assistance in criminal litigation, to make it cover the investigation and prosecution review processes as well as trials, and expanded the scope of people entitled to receive such assistance. If the criminal suspect is blind, deaf or mute, or is a minor or is a mentally ill person who has not completely lost his/her capacity to comprehend or to control his/her behavior, or if a criminal suspect may be sentenced to life imprisonment or death, but he/she has not appointed a defender, the relevant people's court, people's procuratorate or public security organ should inform the legal assistance agency to assign a defense attorney.

Stressing witness's duty to testify in court. Witness testimony in court is crucial to improving the quality of a court trial. In order to have more witnesses testify in court, the Criminal Procedure Law amended in 2012 defines the scope of witness appearance at a court and sets up an assistance mechanism for their appearance at court. It stipulates that if the prosecutor and the defender disagree upon the testimony of a witness that bear significantly on sentencing, the witness should attend the court. A witness should be compensated for transportation, accommodation and meal expenses related to his/her court duties by the government. The employer of the witness may not reduce or reduce in disguise the witness's remuneration, bonuses or other social benefits in the period he/she is absent from work providing testimony.

　　完善证人保护制度。对一些严重犯罪案件，证人、鉴定人、被害人因在诉讼中作证，本人或者其近亲属人身安全面临危险的，人民法院、人民检察院和公安机关应当采取不公开证人信息，不暴露外貌、真实声音等出庭作证方式，禁止特定的人员接触证人或者其近亲属，对人身和住宅采取专门保护等措施。  

　　（三）保障律师执业权利

　　保障律师执业权利对于维护犯罪嫌疑人、被告人的合法权益，保证案件公正处理至关重要。针对律师在会见、阅卷、调查取证等执业活动中存在的困难，近年来，中国修改完善法律，为律师依法执业提供法律保障。

Improving protection for witnesses. In cases involving serious crimes, if the personal safety of a witness, expert witness, or victim or a close relative of the same is at risk because of court testimony, the relevant people's court, people's procuratorate and public security organ should withhold the personal information, and disguise the appearance and voice of such persons during testimony, prohibit certain persons to be in contact with the witnesses, or their close relatives, and take special measures for personal and residential protection.

3. Protecting Lawyers' Rights to Practice

The protection of lawyers' rights to practice in the course of criminal litigation is essential to protecting the lawful rights and interests of the criminal suspect or defendant and ensuring that such cases are dealt with impartially. China is revising related laws to provide a legal guarantee for lawyers to overcome difficulties in meeting with the suspect or defendant, accessing to materials concerning the case and obtaining evidence through investigation.