USAID Helps Vietnam Strengthen the Rule of Law through Advancing Use of Precedent

Friday, August 4, 2017

The use of precedent in law ― an act, decision, or case that serves as a guide or justification for subsequent situations ― was officially recognized by Vietnam’s Supreme People’s Court in 2016. This has resulted in an increased demand for skilled judges, lawyers and other law practitioners who can apply precedent in legal writing and judgements effectively. To help meet this demand, on July 24-28, USAID’s Governance for Inclusive Growth Program and the Hanoi Law University developed a comprehensive training program on legal and judgement writing and the use of precedent that will become part of the university’s master degree program this year.  So what?  Training judges and lawyers in the use of precedent will help strengthen the rule of law, judicial effectiveness, and the consistency and transparency of court judgements in Vietnam.