Amendment to Article 83 of Taiwan Court Organization Act passes its third reading

　On May 22, 2018, the draft amendment to Article 83 of the Taiwan Court Organization Act successfully underwent its third reading at the Legislative Yuan, which amendment provides that the courts subordinate to the High Court and their respective prosecutors offices shall make public bill of indictment after a first-instance judgment has been made accessible to the public.  

　The Judicial Yuan explained that this amendment enables the public to have a basis to, through transparency of information, examine the facts and evidence with respect to the offense and the law provisions violated as set forth in a bill of indictment, so as to monitor prosecutor’s performance of statutory obligation and prosecutorial obligation to objectivity, however, provided that a bill of indictment shall be made public after and only after the relevant first-instance judgment has been rendered in consideration of presumption of innocence and a defendant’s right to a fair trial.  (May 2018) 

/CCS