ASEAN law forum opens in Hanoi

In his opening remarks, Deputy Minister of Justice Nguyen Khanh Ngoc said four ASEAN countries are currently members of The Hague Conference and participated in a total of 12 conventions. 

Vietnam joined The Hague 1993 Convention on Protection of Children and Cooperation in Respect of Inter-country Adoption in 2011 and became a member of The Hague Conference in 2013. The country participated in The Hague Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters in 2016. 

Ngoc said Vietnam is considering the possibility of joining other conventions of The Hague Conference regarding legal and judicial cooperation, including those on the abolishment of requirement of legalisation for foreign public documents, the taking of evidence, and the civil aspects of international child abduction. 

He added that the forum affords a chance for participating countries to intensify judicial collaboration, especially in civil and commercial matters. 

Participants discussed benefits and challenges in joining and implementing conventions of The Hague Conference on Private International Law, and ASEAN cooperation in the effort.