Lawyers’ Legal Services for Developing an Ecological Civilization
675
2. The service scope is limited and hard to expand
Lawyers’ current role in ecological and environmental protection includes representing the client in litigation and advising the client after environmental incidents; more specifically, they participate in environmental cases on behalf of parties
involved, provide legal advice to parties, help them mediate with polluting companies, or protect rights through non-litigation channels. But all these are only a small
part of the legal services for developing an ecological civilization. It is difficult for
the lawyer to develop and provide the right legal services much needed in key areas
and links of ecological conservation, and it is even more difficult to form a systematic
product of such services. As a result, the lawyer’s role in serving the development
of an ecological civilization is very limited, and for most lawyers, providing legal
services for promoting ecological progress doesn’t even count as an independent
source of income.
3. Poor awareness of the rule of law in ecological conservation
The environmental right is the most basic of human rights and an important part of the
right to survival, but it still needs to be interiorized among the people. For one thing,
many people have only little awareness of environmental protection which should
cover every aspect of life from waste sorting to ecological conservation. For another,
it is difficult to exercise one’s environmental right. In the face of environmental
pollution, many people won’t resort to legal means to protect their environmental
right, out of fear for or resistance against litigation. The poor awareness of rule
of law in building an ecological civilization is also reflected in the production and
operation of enterprises and their response to environmental administrative penalties
and litigation.
4 Conclusion
To contribute to the grand national blueprint of developing an ecological civilization, lawyers should uphold the concept of environmental protection, work together
to make the dream of building a “Beautiful Chinese” come true, jointly develop
legal services for building an ecological civilization, including all-round and threedimensional environmental non-litigation and litigation services for the government,
enterprises and citizens, alike, and strive to play our due part in developing an
ecological civilization.
675
2. The service scope is limited and hard to expand
Lawyers’ current role in ecological and environmental protection includes representing the client in litigation and advising the client after environmental incidents; more specifically, they participate in environmental cases on behalf of parties
involved, provide legal advice to parties, help them mediate with polluting companies, or protect rights through non-litigation channels. But all these are only a small
part of the legal services for developing an ecological civilization. It is difficult for
the lawyer to develop and provide the right legal services much needed in key areas
and links of ecological conservation, and it is even more difficult to form a systematic
product of such services. As a result, the lawyer’s role in serving the development
of an ecological civilization is very limited, and for most lawyers, providing legal
services for promoting ecological progress doesn’t even count as an independent
source of income.
3. Poor awareness of the rule of law in ecological conservation
The environmental right is the most basic of human rights and an important part of the
right to survival, but it still needs to be interiorized among the people. For one thing,
many people have only little awareness of environmental protection which should
cover every aspect of life from waste sorting to ecological conservation. For another,
it is difficult to exercise one’s environmental right. In the face of environmental
pollution, many people won’t resort to legal means to protect their environmental
right, out of fear for or resistance against litigation. The poor awareness of rule
of law in building an ecological civilization is also reflected in the production and
operation of enterprises and their response to environmental administrative penalties
and litigation.
4 Conclusion
To contribute to the grand national blueprint of developing an ecological civilization, lawyers should uphold the concept of environmental protection, work together
to make the dream of building a “Beautiful Chinese” come true, jointly develop
legal services for building an ecological civilization, including all-round and threedimensional environmental non-litigation and litigation services for the government,
enterprises and citizens, alike, and strive to play our due part in developing an
ecological civilization.