| Legal aid system considered as a group of national legal norms relating to ways, processes and carrying out mechanisms about reducing and exempting the legal fees for people who are poor, weak or disabled. Based on different scopes, it has been divided into legal aid for civil matters, for criminal matters, for administrative matters and for non-lawsuit matters. Legal aid system has been hailed as "hope project", "image project""sunshine project " of the legal world in China. Nowadays, it has blended into every levels and links of the implementation of national laws and has became a state responsibility, which means a modern country ruled by law should responsible for protecting the legitimate rights of her citizens, foreigners and stateless persons. Meanwhile, as an important way of protecting fundamental human rights and safeguarding juridical justice, it has been adopted by most countries of the world. Thus the perfection degree of legal aid system is a manifestation of the social advancement and civilization.Legal aid system originated in the UK 500 years ago, at that time, lawyers must provide free legal aid for the have-nots under the order of Scotland King. It has then undergone the process of being "charitable deed" to "national responsibility" and "government duty". Modern England legal aid system which has been the national responsibility is formed in the late 1940s.There have four management patterns in western countries for legal aid system, which are as following: 1. managed by the independent legal aid committees or organs; 2. managed by the national court; 3. managed by the bar association or law association; 4. managed by national government. Above which, NO.1 is the most popular one that legal aid matters are managed by independent legal aid committees or organs. Fund guarantee is the key thing of most countries to implement legal aid. Many fund guarantee systems formed during the process of legal aid implementation in many counties, most are funded by government first and supplemented by social donation. Currently, most of legal aid service patterns from all the countries including juridical guarantee pattern, full-time lawyer pattern, contract project pattern and multi-purpose services pattern. Studying the legal aid patterns of western counties and borrow their mature experience means a lot to develop and perfect the legal aid system of our country.Started in 1994, our legal aid system had assisted many vulnerable groups, including the poor and disabled, which has not only safeguarded the legitimate rights of the person received the legal aid, but also contributed much to keep the society harmonious and table, improved our international image in protecting human rights as well. Since 2003, the Regulations on Legal Aid is implemented, the practice of our legal aid had been placed on the legal and regular track. It had been a short time since our legal aid system established, all work still under the phase of improvement and standardization. Influenced by political, economic, cultural and legal construction factors of our country, many difficulties and problems remain here. Main problems are that legal aid legislation is in a lower legal statue, Regulations on Legal Aid has its deficiency, the financial support from government is insufficient, the limited legal aid resource cannot satisfy the heavy demand, and service quality needs to be improved.This paper divides into three parts.Chapter one is a primary research about the development and current situation of our legal aid, including concept, characteristics and features of legal aid, also the theory basis and current situation of it.Chapter two concerns the study and analysis of practice and experience from western country about legal aid, by which I try to borrow something to the construction of our legal aid system.Chapter three analyzes the existing problems of our legal aid system, presents some pointedly advices.
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