Vietnam’s New Administrative Procedural Rules – An Analysis from Judicial Reform Perspective

Abstract

Since 1990s Vietnam has started developing the mechanism for administrative litigation for the purpose of enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of public administrative practices, and promoting the implementation of citizens’ civil and political rights. The mechanism has contributed to the decrease of the administrative discretion in making decisions. However, there were many issues of both quality and quantity pertaining to the administration of litigation practice.

To improve the situation, Vietnam has made multiple efforts in strengthening the legal framework for administrative dispute resolution. One of the most notable moves was enactment of Law on Administrative Procedures in 2010 to replace the Ordinance on the Procedures for the Settlement of Administrative Cases 1998 for the purpose of enhancing the quality of administrative litigation and fulfilling social expectation. The new law introduces new set of administrative procedural rules which helps, among others, to clarify the jurisdiction of the administrative courts, simplify administrative procedures, improve the rights of parties in the administrative case, and save considerable time in dispute resolution. The new administrative procedural rules are expected to contribute significantly towards the judicial reform in Vietnam.

This paper aims to provide an introduction on the recent development of administrative litigation system in the context of judicial reforms in Vietnam. It starts with background development of administrative litigation system in Vietnam and critically analyzes the issues of the mechanism and inadequacies of the administrative procedural rules during the first decades of development. It then discusses the salient provisions of the new Law on Administrative Procedures and offers several thoughts for its further improvement.

Keywords: administrative procedural rules, Vietnam judicial reform, administrative lawsuit, law on administrative procedure, jurisdiction, litigation

JEL Classification: K41, J52