The Ministry of Justice ("MOJ") has recently issued the List of Public Legal Service Items (the "List").
The List expounds on 16 public legal service items, and for each item, the targeted service receivers, content of service, ways to offer/have access to the service, service providers, and legal basis. As for "legal consulting service", for example, answering basic legal questions, giving guidance on relevant services and issuing professional legal opinions are specific content of the service. "Inquiry of information about legal service agencies and personnel", another service item, enables the general public to have access to basic information on legal service agencies and practitioners and other information about their professions, history of awards and punishment, business, social services, and credit status. The service item "easy access to laws" provides the general public with guides to access to legal services, while the service item "legal assistance (upon application)" will require legal assistance agencies to accept and examine applications for legal assistance, and designate or arrange for practitioners to offer free legal services, such as legal consultation, agency service, and criminal defense, to eligible individuals.