Local courts have been asked to recruit about 120,000 eligible “lay judges” for the first roster of 300 homicide cases, as the judicial system prepares to implement the National Judge Act (國民法官法) on Jan. 1 next year.
Under the new lay judge system, three professional judges and six private citizens, or lay judges, are to form a collegiate bench to preside over trials.
During the first phase of implementation, collegiate benches are to preside over cases in which intentional criminal acts have resulted in death, while the second phase is to involve cases in which a defendant is facing at least 10 years in prison.
The nation sees about 300 homicide cases every year.
Local district courts are to ask local governments for a list of eligible citizens chosen at random to serve as lay judges, Judicial Yuan Disciplinary Court Head Judge Peng Hsing-ming (彭幸鳴) said.
Republic of China citizens aged 23 or older would be eligible to serve, Peng said, adding that local district courts would start issuing notices by the end of the year.
The estimated 120,000 eligible candidates “should be mentally prepared that they will have to serve in the coming year,” Peng said.
Judicial Yuan spokesman Chang Yung-hung (張永宏) said that the agency has held more than 55 trial sessions for the lay judge system to prepare for its implementation.
Specific groups and professionals were invited to attend five of the sessions, while for the remaining 50 sessions, local governments were asked to randomly select residents for a preliminary list, which was then trimmed by the district court, Chang said.
Based on the past year, about 102,343 individuals from 363 townships and districts have been deemed eligible, or about 98.64 percent of the eligible population.
A total of 12,114 people were selected from the initial list, Peng said, adding that they were roughly evenly split along gender lines with 6,073 men and 6,041 women, of which 471 were ultimately chosen.
They came from all walks of life, while people aged 40 to 49 were best represented, followed by 30-to-39-year-olds and 50-to-59-year-olds, Peng said.
This demonstrates that participants all have a modicum of social experience, Peng added.
Peng said that there were 167 judges, 144 prosecutors and 144 advocates, of which 128 were dispatched from bar associations, six from legal aid foundations and 10 from assigned counsel, adding that this shows that more practicing lawyers are endeavoring to become better at their profession.
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Monday called for greater cooperation between Taiwan, Lithuania and the EU to counter threats to information security, including attacks on undersea cables and other critical infrastructure. In a speech at Vilnius University in the Lithuanian capital, Tsai highlighted recent incidents in which vital undersea cables — essential for cross-border data transmission — were severed in the Taiwan Strait and the Baltic Sea over the past year. Taiwanese authorities suspect Chinese sabotage in the incidents near Taiwan’s waters, while EU leaders have said Russia is the likely culprit behind similar breaches in the Baltic. “Taiwan and our European
The Taipei District Court sentenced babysitters Liu Tsai-hsuan (劉彩萱) and Liu Jou-lin (劉若琳) to life and 18 years in prison respectively today for causing the death of a one-year-old boy in December 2023. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said that Liu Tsai-hsuan was entrusted with the care of a one-year-old boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), in August 2023 by the Child Welfare League Foundation. From Sept. 1 to Dec. 23 that year, she and her sister Liu Jou-lin allegedly committed acts of abuse against the boy, who was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries on Dec. 24, 2023, but did not
LIKE-MINDED COUNTRIES: Despite the threats from outside, Taiwan and Lithuania thrived and developed their economies, former president Tsai Ing-wen said Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Saturday thanked Lithuania for its support of Taiwan, saying that both countries are united as partners in defending democracy. Speaking at a reception organized by the Lithuania-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Group welcoming her on her first visit to the Baltic state, Tsai said that while she was president from 2016 to last year, many Lithuanian “friends” visited Taiwan. “And I told myself I have to be here. I am very happy that I am here, a wonderful country and wonderful people,” Tsai said. Taiwan and Lithuania are in similar situations as both are neighbors to authoritarian countries, she
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) is to visit the UK during her ongoing European trip, which originally included only Lithuania and Denmark, her office said today. Tsai departed Taiwan for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark, marking her second visit to the continent since her two-term presidency ended in May last year. Her office issued a statement today saying that Tsai would also visit the UK "for a few days," during which she is to meet with UK politicians and Taiwanese professionals, and visit academic and research institutions. Following Tsai's stop in Denmark, she is to visit the
RSS