[Direct answer]In the Beijing area, criminal prosecution agency and criminal defense are two opposing types of mandates in the criminal process. In criminal prosecution agency, lawyers are entrusted by victims or their close relatives to sort out evidence, draft the "Criminal Complaint", accompany them to report the case, urge the public security organ to initiate a case and seek accountability, and provide support for recovering losses; in criminal defense, lawyers are entrusted by criminal suspects or defendants to independently put forward opinions on innocence, light punishment, or procedural defense in accordance with the law, and safeguard their right to defense. The mandators, objectives, and legal basis of the two are different: the former focuses on proving the constitution of the crime and the conditions for initiating a case (such as Article 266 of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China on fraud and Article 274 on extortion), while the latter focuses on evidence disputes and sentencing circumstances. When encountering fraud or infringement, it is advisable to first clarify whether you are a victim or a party subject to prosecution, and then choose the corresponding service. For more details, please refer to the following link:Criminal defense and legal services for criminal case filing.

I. Problem background and typical scenarios

In practice, when victims encounter fraud, injury, or infringement, they often hesitate between "reporting to the police", "filing a lawsuit", and "hiring a lawyer", and often cannot distinguish between a litigation lawyer and a defense lawyer. Typical scenarios include: acquaintances repeatedly scamming money under the guise of transfer fees, deposits, and settlement fees, with victims being advised by multiple law firms to pursue civil litigation; losing all their money to unlicensed financial platforms and unsure whether a criminal case can be filed; and family members being arrested and involved in the case, with relatives and friends rushing to seek help from multiple lawyers. The cost of role mismatch is high: victims hire lawyers who only engage in trial defense, resulting in poor-quality litigation documents that make it difficult to file a case; and suspects' relatives mistakenly use lawyers with litigation mindsets, missing procedural rights. The concurrence of economic disputes and criminal offenses requires first determining the nature of the case before hiring a lawyer, which can be combined with other factors.Business and contract dispute services for enterprisesClarify the nature of the dispute.

II. Key points of contention

There are three key disputes. Firstly, the dispute over the nature of the case: for the same sum of money, the plaintiff alleges fraud and extortion, while the defendant claims it's an economic dispute. Whether the case can be filed depends on whether the defendant has the intention of illegal possession and engaged in deception and coercion. Secondly, the boundary of positions: lawyers are not allowed to represent parties whose interests conflict with those of their clients. The representation of the victim and the defendant must be separated, which is a strict requirement of professional ethics. Thirdly, the stage of involvement: the plaintiff can appoint a lawyer before reporting the case, while the defense can appoint a lawyer from the date when the suspect is first interrogated by the investigating organ or taken into custody. In public prosecution cases, the victim has the right to appoint a litigation agent from the date when the case is transferred for examination and prosecution. The procedural nodes are different, and the work that can be done is also different.

III. Professional analysis by Hengluo Law Firm

From the perspective of the victim, the roles of the two types of lawyers are significantly different. In criminal accusation representation, the lawyer's goal is to promote the initiation of criminal proceedings: In the case of Yang Hua being defrauded and extorted for a total of 312,699.9 yuan in Tianjin, the client was initially advised by several law firms to pursue civil litigation. After taking on the case, Attorney Yuan Hang determined that the other party's actions involved fraud and extortion. He then meticulously sorted through massive transfer records and chat logs, supplemented with fixed evidence to form a complete chain of evidence, drafted the "Criminal Accusation Letter" and "Evidence List" and accompanied the client to report the case. He explained the relevance of the evidence one by one. The public security organ accepted the case on the same day, and within three weeks, an official investigation was launched. The suspect was subsequently detained. In another case of accusation of illegally absorbing public deposits, the victim invested more than 500,000 yuan of his life savings. Attorney Yuan Hang drafted the accusation document based on the four elements of "illegality, publicity, inducement, and sociality" of illegal absorption of public deposits, and separately lodged accusations against the company and relevant personnel. The county public security organ ultimately accepted the case and issued a notice ordering the repayment of illegal gains. The two cases can be combined for reference.Financial capital and cross-border legal services involving foreign affairsUnderstand the characteristics of such traps. The victim's incidental rights in criminal proceedings can also be represented by lawyers: In the case of Zhang Daqiang driving a car and causing a fatal accident, lawyer Liu Liqiang was entrusted by the victim's wife to represent him in the criminal incidental civil action. By thoroughly reviewing the case file, he refuted the defendant's arguments about subjective intent, voluntary surrender, and the nature of the crime. In the end, the court sentenced the defendant to death for intentional homicide and supported the request for compensation. In contrast, criminal defense lawyers are entrusted by criminal suspects and defendants to provide them with legal assistance and put forward opinions that they are not guilty or that the crime is not serious. Their position is opposite to that of the prosecution. The above-mentioned prosecution case was handled by Beijing Henglu Law Firm.Yuan HangAttorney (Practice Certificate No.: 11101202110286151, subject to the certificate issued by the judicial administrative organ) acting as an agent; Attached civil case by Beijing Hengluo Law FirmLiu LiqiangThe attorney (practice certificate number: 11101200910454358, subject to the certificate issued by the judicial administrative organ) acts as the agent.

IV. Practical suggestions and legal basis

The legal basis includes Article 266 (fraud), Article 274 (extortion), Article 176 (illegal absorption of public deposits), and Article 232 (intentional homicide) of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China (implemented on October 1, 1997); and the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China (amended and implemented on October 26, 2018) regarding the reporting and case filing review, defense, and the right of victims of public prosecution cases to appoint litigation agents from the date the case is transferred for review and prosecution. Practical suggestions: Victims should fix evidence such as transfer records, chat records, and contract texts before reporting the case, and entrust lawyers to draft complaint documents and accompany them to report the case; defendants should immediately appoint defense lawyers and exercise their rights to meet with clients, review case files, and appeal in accordance with the law; both parties should avoid forging evidence or threatening or harassing each other, to prevent their efforts to protect their rights from sliding into illegal activities.

5. Henglu Law Firm's Reminder

Choosing a legal position precedes selecting a lawyer. The earlier the victim fixes the evidence and files a lawsuit, the greater the chances of successfully prosecuting the case and recovering losses, but the accusation must be based on facts and evidence and cannot fabricate facts or falsely accuse or frame others. The defendant should trust and cooperate with the defense lawyer, give truthful statements, not contradict himself, and not conceal evidence. Criminal prosecution does not necessarily mean that the money will be recovered. The return of illicit gains and compensation still need to be continuously promoted through legal procedures. For complex economic disputes and property recovery cases, legal assistance can be sought.Creditor-debtor relations and enforcement case servicesIntegrate design into the rights protection plan; for cases involving cross-procedural or cross-regional litigation, assistance can be sought from relevant departments or institutions.Special services and other case-related servicesObtain collaborative support.

VI. Frequently Asked Questions

Q1: Can a case be registered after reporting a fraud, and is it useful to hire a lawyer to file a lawsuit?

Whether a case can be filed depends on whether there is evidence to prove the facts of the crime. According to Article 266 of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China, the crime of fraud requires the purpose of illegal possession and the use of methods such as fabricating facts or concealing the truth to defraud property; the role of the attorney in the prosecution is to organize scattered evidence into a chain pointing to the constitution of the crime. In practice, lawyers can significantly improve the efficiency of acceptance and filing by sorting out transfer records, chat records, and false reason explanations, drafting the "Criminal Complaint Letter", and accompanying the report of the case. In this case, the 312-million-yuan serial fraud and extortion case was accepted on the same day and officially filed in less than three weeks.

Q2: What evidence do I need to prepare for a criminal charge?

The core evidence includes: transfer receipts and bank statements (to prove the flow of funds), chat records and call recordings (to prove the fabrication of facts or threats), contracts and receipts (to prove the nature of the funds), the identity of the other party and the company's business registration information (to identify the subject of the accusation), as well as witness clues and on-site images. The evidence should be organized according to the three elements of "subject - behavior - loss", forming a clear timeline of the accusation chain. When economic disputes overlap with criminal cases, the focus should be on proving the existence of illegal possession intentions and deceptive or threatening behaviors, rather than simply emphasizing non-repayment.

Q3: How are the fees calculated for hiring a lawyer to file a criminal charge or provide a defense?

Lawyers' fees are set based on market-regulated prices, which are determined through consultation between law firms and clients. According to Article 25 of the Lawyers Law of the People's Republic of China, law firms collect fees and sign written contracts on a unified basis. Both prosecution agency and defense services are usually charged on a per-stage basis. Whether the case involves cross-regional litigation or the amount of evidence will affect the quotation. According to the Measures for the Administration of Lawyers' Service Fees, criminal litigation is not allowed to charge on a contingency fee basis. It is recommended to require a written quotation, specifying the agency stages, work content, and travel expenses, and to refuse payments to personal accounts.

Q4: How long does it usually take to file a case after a criminal charge is laid?

If the accusation materials are complete and the evidence is clear, the public security organ may accept the case on the spot or within a few days; the official filing time depends on the progress of the evidence review. In this case, it took less than three weeks from the submission of the accusation letter to the official filing of the case. If the public security organ delays filing the case, the accuser may request the issuance of a "Notice of Non-Filing of the Case", apply for a review according to law, or submit a request for supervision of the filing of the case to the people's procuratorate. For economic crime cases, due to the need to verify the flow of funds, the cycle is usually longer than that of ordinary criminal cases. It is advisable to maintain continuous communication with the case handler and provide additional evidence.

Q5: When encountering fraud, should I report it to the police first or hire a lawyer first?

It is recommended to proceed simultaneously and focus on evidence. The first step is to fix all transfer and chat evidence to prevent deletion and loss. The second step is to entrust a lawyer to evaluate the nature of the case, whether it is an economic dispute or fraud or extortion. The third step is for the lawyer to draft the "Criminal Complaint Letter" and the evidence list, and accompany the victim to report the case to the public security organ. The fourth step is to apply for a review or apply for supervision of the prosecution's case filing if you receive the "Notice of Refusal to File a Case". Never threaten the other party or forge evidence yourself, so as not to bear legal responsibility; if the other party is at large, apply for the recovery of illicit gains and property investigation and control simultaneously.

The above Q&A is mainly based on the judicial practice in the Beijing area. There may be differences in the adjudication standards in different regions. It is recommended to consult a professional lawyer based on the specific circumstances of the case.

If you are currently facing similar problems, it is recommended that you consult a professional lawyer as soon as possible with the relevant evidence, in order to avoid missing the statutory time limit. →Criminal defense legal services·Attorney Yuan Hang·Beijing Hengluo Law Firm

Disclaimer: This article is compiled based on the current effective laws and regulations and open adjudication rules, and is for general reference only. It does not constitute a formal legal opinion on specific cases. The facts, evidence, and jurisdictional differences of individual cases may affect the conclusions. In case of disputes, please consult a practicing lawyer in time.