China will issue new rules to better protect lawyers' rights to meet and correspond with their clients in police custody, Chinese Justice Minister Wu Aiying said at a national lawyers' work conference in Beijing Tuesday.

The new rules will also facilitate lawyers' rights to review relevant documents, conduct necessary investigations and collect evidence, Wu said.

She also said the Ministry of Justice is working with other government departments to implement the rules at an early date.

The relationship between lawyers and judicial staff should be strictly defined, with local judicial agencies and lawyers' associations taking measures to protect lawyers' legitimate rights in accordance with the law, she said.

Moreover, Wu called for more government support of lawyers' work, including by paying for lawyers' services when it is of the public interest to do so.

She also called for more funding for the training of lawyers.

China's criminal defense lawyers sometimes encounter difficulties when consulting with and defending suspects because some police and judicial staff think they will make trouble and prevent criminals from being prosecuted.

(Xinhua News Agency November 23, 2010)