[Direct answer]It is permissible and necessary to issue invoices. Law firms are professional service organizations established in accordance with the law and registered with tax authorities. After collecting attorney's fees, they should issue formal invoices to clients, which is not only the bottom line of tax compliance, but also the basic proof for clients to verify whether the fees have been recorded and to prevent handling staff from collecting fees privately. Even for cases like criminal defense, which proceed in stages, invoices should be obtained for each payment received, rather than waiting until the case ends to retroactively issue invoices. Attorney Liu Liqiang of our firm (practice certificate number: 11101200910454358, subject to the certificate issued by the judicial administrative authority) handles criminal cases in accordance with the trustee agency contract, and the fees and invoices are executed on a case-by-case basis.

I. Problem Background and Typical Scenarios

The payment scenario for criminal defense commissions is more urgent and chaotic than that for general civil and commercial commissions. When family members first receive the detention notice, they are in the most anxious period and face a variety of channels for seeking help: some law firms provide standard quotes through their reception desks, some "intermediaries" refer clients to lawyers with higher fees, and some individuals claiming to have connections with law enforcement agencies charge higher fees. At such times, the seemingly trivial question of "whether to request an invoice" becomes a litmus test for distinguishing legitimate channels from shady ones. The formal process should consist of four interconnected steps: signing a written agency contract, making payments to the law firm's public account, obtaining an invoice from the law firm, and presenting the lawyer's practice certificate and firm letter. Any missing step—such as only signing a receipt, demanding payments to personal accounts, or promising "complete success" without issuing an invoice—means clients won't receive compliant receipts. In the event of disputes, proving the existence of the agency relationship could become difficult. Clarifying the process regarding invoices in advance only takes ten minutes, but it could save the cost of defending the entire case. Another high-frequency scenario worth highlighting is invoice management during multi-stage commissions. Clients hire a law firm during the investigation stage, switch to another firm during the review and prosecution stage, and hire a new lawyer for the trial stage. These three stages correspond to three contracts and three sets of invoices. Clients should file these documents by stage. Any missing invoices will become a critical point when claiming refunds or verifying service quality in the future. Especially since criminal defense often spans months or even years, with frequent changes in case handlers, ensuring that invoices follow the contracts rather than the handlers can maintain the integrity of the process chain.

II. Key points of contention

The disputes over invoices for criminal lawyers' fees primarily focus on four aspects in practice. Firstly, the tax category and tax rate: Legal services are classified as certification and consulting services under VAT, with a 6% tax rate applicable to general taxpayers. The invoice must bear the full name of the law firm, and invoices issued in the name of individuals or third-party companies should be regarded with caution. Secondly, discrepancies between the invoice amount and the contract amount: Some institutions include unclear "facilitation fees" in their quotes, which are neither taxable nor legally protected. Thirdly, the burden of attorney fees in civil suits accompanying criminal cases: The scope of compensation in civil suits accompanying criminal cases is limited to the victim's material losses. The attorney fees paid by the plaintiff are generally not recoverable from the defendant, so clients need to have a clear understanding of this in advance. Fourthly, the invoicing schedule under phased payment: For cases with phased fees charged at the investigation, review and prosecution, and trial stages, invoices should be issued immediately after each payment is received, rather than waiting until the case is concluded for a final settlement to avoid disruptions caused by personnel changes. Confirming these four points one by one during contract signing can effectively prevent most invoice disputes. The fifth pitfall is the timing of invoicing for prepayments. Some law firms require full payment upfront and issue invoices in stages, while others insist on issuing full invoices upon receipt of payment. Both approaches are compliant, but the difference lies in the client's financial risk: the former requires monitoring the law firm's invoicing progress, while the latter requires ensuring clear refund clauses in the contract. Regardless of the approach, the amounts on the invoice, contract, and payment records must match. Any discrepancies should be raised in writing immediately, rather than waiting until the case is concluded.

III. Professional analysis by Hengluo Lawyers

The issue of invoices and compliance is worth elaborating on because criminal cases are often entrusted at the most chaotic moments. Take a case handled by Attorney Liu Liqiang of our firm (practice license number: 11101200910454358, subject to the certificate issued by the judicial administrative authority) as an example: On the night of June 16, 2024, a fierce dispute broke out in the laboratory of a certain No. 50 batching station. During the drinking session, staff members Zhang Bin, Li Yuanzheng, Zhao Gang, and Zhou Xiaohua argued with Zhang Daqiang about the quality of the construction concrete. After being separated, Zhang Daqiang was sent back to his dormitory. However, Zhang Daqiang did not calm down and immediately drove a white Cheetah car at a speed of about 60 to 62 kilometers per hour to ram into the laboratory. The vehicle crashed through the door and burst out of the back wall, resulting in the death of Zhao Gang, injuries to Zhang Bin and Li Yuanzheng, and Zhou Xiaohua being affected. The victim's wife, Liu Shufen, entrusted a lawyer to represent her in the criminal and civil litigation of the case in her grief. After trial, the court determined that Zhang Daqiang intentionally deprived others of their lives by dangerous methods of driving vehicles, causing serious consequences of one death and two injuries. His actions constituted intentional homicide, and the crime was extremely serious, with great social harm and no remorse. He was ultimately sentenced to death, and the civil litigation part supported the victim's family's compensation request. When signing the contract, Liu Shufen clarified with the law firm the fee structure, payment deadlines, and invoicing arrangements for criminal defense and accompanying civil litigation. All expenses incurred during the case were matched with corresponding contracts and invoices. For families facing major tragedies, the sense of procedural order itself is a form of protection. It's worth noting that the contract for such major criminal cases is often divided into two parts: criminal defense and accompanying civil litigation. The fee structure and scope of work are independent, and the invoices should also be listed separately. In the case of Liu Shufen, the contract arrangement was to write the two parts of services into separate clauses, with payments and invoices corresponding to each part, to avoid confusion when settling the case.

IV. Practical Suggestions and Legal Basis

In terms of legal basis, Article 232 of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China (amended on December 26, 2020 and implemented on March 1, 2021) is the basis for convicting the defendant of intentional homicide in this case; Article 101 of the Criminal Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China (amended on October 26, 2018) stipulates the right of victims to file incidental civil actions when they suffer material losses from the defendant's criminal acts; regarding litigation costs, incidental civil actions in criminal cases are not subject to case acceptance fees according to law, and there is no need to estimate these expenses based on the standards for civil cases in the "Measures for the Payment of Litigation Costs" (implemented on April 1, 2007). Four practical suggestions: 1. The engagement contract must specify the service phase, the attorney handling the case, the total fee amount, and the payment schedule, and reject all oral promises. 2. All payments should be made through official accounts, and require VAT invoices issued by the law firm. 3. Be vigilant about parts of the quote that refuse to issue invoices. These expenses cannot be recorded in the accounts, and it will be difficult to hold the attorney accountable if problems arise. 4. Separately evaluate the claims items in the incidental civil actions, listing material losses such as medical expenses, funeral expenses, and the living expenses of dependents one by one, and filing the evidence and invoices simultaneously. If the case involves litigation in a different location, also consider the arrangement for travel expenses: whether they are included in the attorney's fees or reimbursed on a real-expense basis, and who the invoices are issued to. All of these should be specified in the contract to avoid disputes during settlement after the case is concluded. For more systematic considerations in criminal litigation, please refer to our website.Criminal defense and criminal case filingHomepage.

5. Hengluo Law Firm's Reminder

There are three specific actions regarding invoices: 1. Before making payments, include the "when to issue the invoice, what the invoice header should be, and what tax category to use" in the contract. A few lines of text are better than ten reminders later. 2. After making payments, check whether the invoice amount and tax category match the contract. If there are discrepancies, immediately request a replacement invoice. 3. After completing the case, archive and properly store the contract, invoices, and payment records. This serves as a complete chain of evidence in the event of refunds or complaints. Additionally, a reminder: Any channel that advertises "cheaper prices without invoices" likely means the seller is not declaring this income properly. If problems arise, they may even disappear without a trace. For criminal cases, the amount of funds entrusted is significant. Managing these receipts responsibly is not only a duty to the case itself, but also a responsibility to one's family. Treat every payment as a reconciliation check: - How many invoices should be issued for the current period? - Which clauses in the contract correspond to these invoices? - What is the remaining balance? By completing these checks in three minutes, you can eliminate the root causes of potential disputes.

VI. Frequently Asked Questions

Q1: Is there any risk if I don't sign a written contract or receive an invoice when hiring a criminal defense attorney?

The risks are very high. Article 469 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China (effective January 1, 2021) recognizes that contracts can be in various forms such as written and oral, but oral agreements are almost impossible to provide evidence for in payment disputes; without invoices, even the fact of payment needs to be reconstructed based on the transfer notes. Regular law firms accepting criminal defense cases should sign written agency contracts, charge fees in a standardized manner, and issue invoices truthfully. The so-called "channels" lacking contracts and invoices not only fail to prove the content of the entrustment, but also make it difficult to hold lawyers accountable in case of problems. Families should directly terminate contact with such quotations. In addition, the contract should specify the name and license number of the lawyer handling the case, and the payment account should be verified as the law firm's public account. These two details are the most commonly tampered with.

Q2: Who will bear the attorney's fees for the plaintiff in the accompanying civil action?

Under normal circumstances, the plaintiff bears the cost himself. Article 101 of the Criminal Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China (amended on October 26, 2018) stipulates that the scope of compensation in an incidental civil action is limited to the material losses caused by the defendant's criminal acts. Whether attorney's fees can be included in the scope of claims is rarely supported in practice, unless the parties voluntarily reach an agreement in mediation. In the aforementioned Liu Shufen case, the incidental civil action only obtained support for statutory material loss compensation items. When entrusting a lawyer, the law firm will explain this in advance, and the family should include attorney's fees in their own rights protection budget, rather than assuming that the defendant will pay for them.

Q3: What are the tax items and tax rates for invoices of criminal legal services?

Legal services are classified as appraisal and consulting services under the value-added tax (VAT) tax category. Law firms that are general taxpayers are subject to a 6% tax rate, while small-scale taxpayers are charged at the levying rate and issue corresponding invoices. After receiving the invoice, the client should check three items: the invoice header must be the full name of the law firm, not an individual or a third-party company; the tax category should reflect legal services or appraisal and consulting services; and the amount, date, and payment records must correspond to each other. If any of the three items do not match, the client should request a replacement on the spot and suspend payment for subsequent stages until the invoice is completed.

Q4: What should I do if the invoice amount is inconsistent with the fees stipulated in the commission contract?

There are two scenarios to deal with this issue. If the invoice amount is lower than the contractual amount and the difference does not correspond to any corresponding service content, the law firm should be required to supplement and re-issue the invoice, and keep the written communication records. If the invoice amount is higher than the actual payment, it constitutes an error in the invoicing information, and accepting such invoices also carries tax risks. In terms of the processing order, first engage in written negotiations with the law firm's administrative management department. If the issue is not resolved within 30 days, it can be reported to the lawyers' association in the law firm's location and the competent tax authority simultaneously. With the three materials of the contract, payment vouchers, and communication records in place, such problems can generally be resolved. If the law firm delays the process on the grounds of financial procedures and still fails to handle it within 30 days, the complainant can file a complaint and claim breach of contract simultaneously, with the two claims supporting each other.

Q5: If a lawyer charges a service fee but refuses to issue an invoice, can I file a complaint with the Lawyers' Association?

Yes, and there are more than one channels. Firstly, you can file a complaint with the lawyers' association to which the law firm belongs, and the association will verify the compliance of the fees charged and invoices issued. Secondly, you can report to the judicial administrative authority, as unauthorized fee collection and failure to record the fees in the accounts constitute violations of professional ethics. Thirdly, you can call the 12366 Tax Service Hotline to report the refusal to issue invoices to the tax authorities. When filing a complaint, attaching the power of attorney, payment records, and communication records regarding the request for invoices will significantly improve the processing efficiency. It should be noted that the complaint targets the fee collection and invoicing practices, which will not affect the normal progress of the criminal defense case itself. Therefore, family members do not need to interrupt their cooperation on the case for this reason. Before filing a complaint, it is better to send a written reminder to the law firm once and keep the evidence, which will make the process smoother.

Disclaimer: This article is compiled based on current effective laws and regulations and publicly available 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. If a dispute arises, please consult a practicing lawyer in a timely manner.