from the local judicial authorities. In some cases, rights-defence lawyers have been able to offer free help in more complex and politically sensitive cases, but recent regulations and repression of the human rights lawyers’ community has made this more difficult. Appointment of legal aid lawyers Under the legal aid system for death penalty cases, the authorities at each stage of the criminal process are expected to notify the legal aid centre if a suspect or defendant has not appointed a lawyer. Historically, in many death penalty cases a legal aid lawyer was not appointed until the trial stage although it is difficult to know how often this situation still occurs. Legal scholars admit that the law is unclear about how and when it should be determined that a case may result in the death penalty and that a defence lawyer should be appointed. Published guidelines in 2017 for the new duty lawyers’ scheme do not include any specific provisions for ensuring early representation in death penalty cases. Duty lawyers are expected to provide detainees with help in making legal aid applications. They are also expected to play a role in the new expedited criminal procedures and in applications for the exclusion of illegally obtained evidence. In some provinces the legal aid centres contract with a single law firm to handle legal aid cases. Observers worry that a monopoly in the provision of legal aid will not help drive up standards. Where local authorities do provide legal aid in all three stages this often results in three different sets of lawyers representing the case. In a review of several cases, a senior lawyer reported that lawyers did not communicate with each other and information obtained from one stage was not available to lawyers at a later stage. One lawyer described how video evidence, indicating the possible use of torture, and reviewed by a lawyer during the procuratorate stage, was not shared with the defence lawyer for the trial stage. In another case, the lawyer at the procuratorate stage only reviewed a tiny proportion of the case files since, he argued, this was the only section relevant to his role at this stage. The appointment of different legal aid lawyers prevents lawyers from treating the procedure in its entirety and has led to evidence in support of the defendant being overlooked. The appointment of different legal aid lawyers prevents lawyers from treating the procedure in its entirety and has led to evidence in support of the defendant being overlooked. Inadequate levels of funding All lawyers who take criminal legal aid cases complain about the low level of remuneration. Lawyers report that the subsidy they receive for legal aid cases does not cover the costs of frequent meetings to interview their clients and witnesses. In one example, a lawyer reported being paid a subsidy of 650 RMB (approx. £65) for an appeal. The legal aid official suggested this was just a matter of submitting a document. The lawyer described how he and a colleague had made three trips to collect evidence and had held several meetings with the judge handling the case. The subsidy did not even cover the travel costs. 43