Solicitors
Solicitors are legal professionals who provide expert advice on legal matters, represent clients in lower courts, and prepare legal documents. They often specialize in specific areas of law such as family law, real estate, or corporate law. Solicitors also play a crucial role in negotiating settlements and representing clients in legal proceedings.
7 Key excerpts on "Solicitors"
eBook - ePub- J.R. Lewis, Stephanie Owen(Authors)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- Routledge(Publisher)
...2 The administration of English law The legal profession Barristers-at-law and Solicitors of the Supreme Court In England and Wales, the legal profession is divided into two completely separate branches, those of barristers and Solicitors, which have developed in entirely different ways. Collectively, they and legal academics are known as lawyers. Generally The man in the street seeking legal advice would firstly need to see a solicitor, whose name could be supplied from the yellow pages of the telephone directory, or the lists kept at Citizens Advice Bureaux. A solicitor could be described as the general practitioner of the legal profession. He will give general legal advice, and will undertake to do divorces, adoptions, conveyancing (buying and selling land), drawing up of wills, obtaining probate on the death of someone, and debt collection through the courts. Usually, he works at his office, but, if his work involves court appearances, then a solicitor is entitled to present the case (act as an advocate) in the magistrates' court, the county court, and in certain situations the Crown Court. If, however, the work involves a trial at the Crown Court, or litigation in the High Court, or there is an appeal to the Court of Appeal or House of Lords, then he must normally obtain the services of a barrister. Under the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990, Solicitors who are good at advocacy have the right to apply to extend their rights of audience to the higher courts. Such Solicitors must undergo a further training course and examination in advocacy and, in addition, must obtain a certificate of eligibility based on having taken part in 50 contested hearings over two years. As a result, in 1996, only 420 Solicitors out of a total of 70,000 had become solicitor advocates, and of those only 71 qualified via the course. The rest had been barristers originally. Thus, the barrister's main function is to act as an advocate, and he has a right of audience in all English courts...
eBook - ePub- Gary Slapper, David Kelly(Authors)
- 2009(Publication Date)
- Routledge-Cavendish(Publisher)
...Each branch has its own separate traditions, training requirements and customs of practice. It is important to remember that it is not only lawyers who regularly perform legal work. As one text noted (Bailey and Gunn, Smith & Bailey on the Modern English Legal System (1991), p 105): … many non-lawyers perform legal tasks, some of them full time. For example, accountants may specialise in revenue law, trade union officials may appear regularly before industrial tribunals on behalf of their members, and Solicitors may delegate work to legal executives. Conversely, many of the tasks performed by lawyers are not strictly ‘legal’. 10.3 Solicitors The solicitor can be characterised as a general practitioner: a lawyer who deals with clients direct and, when a particular specialism or litigation is required, will engage the services of counsel, that is, a barrister. Looking at the solicitor as a legal GP and the barrister as a specialist, however, can be misleading. Most Solicitors, especially those in large practices, are experts in particular areas of law. They may restrict their regular work to litigation or commercial conveyancing or revenue work. Many barristers, on the other hand, might have quite a wide range of work including criminal, family matters and a variety of common law areas like tort and contract cases. The origins of the solicitor go back to the attornatus, or later the ‘attorney’, a medieval officer of the court whose main function was to assist the client in the initial stages of the case. One group of people practising in the Court of Chancery came to be known as ‘Solicitors’. Originally, they performed a variety of miscellaneous clerical tasks for employers such as landowners and attorneys. Their name was derived from their function of ‘soliciting’ or prosecuting actions in courts of which they were not officers or attorneys...
eBook - ePub- Jonathan Leslie, John Kingston(Authors)
- 2020(Publication Date)
- Informa Law from Routledge(Publisher)
...CHAPTER 3 Solicitors AND COUNSEL The majority of lawsuits that are conducted in England, whether by litigation or arbitration, in practice involve both Solicitors and counsel. Although they have largely different roles, often they will work together on the same case. Clients may wonder why this should be necessary and why additional costs are being incurred. This chapter explains the part played by Solicitors and when and why it is necessary or prudent to employ counsel. A. INTRODUCTION In England the legal profession comprises Solicitors and barristers. They are subject to different governing and disciplinary bodies, the Law Society and the Bar Council respectively; have somewhat different training although they are subject to the same educational qualifications; and perform broadly different functions. “Counsel” is a word commonly used for barristers, whether individually or as a group, 1 whose profession is known generally as “the Bar”. There are two ranks of barrister: a “junior” is any barrister who, regardless of age or length of qualification, is not a Queen’s Counsel; and Queen’s Counsel, sometimes known as a “silk” or “leading counsel” or, more frequently, a “QC”, is a barrister who has been recognised by the Lord Chancellor’s Department as particularly skilled in his or her field. Solicitors in private practice generally operate as firms comprising partners, assistant Solicitors and auxiliary staff. It is they who have the initial and most regular contact with clients and others such as accountants, bankers and brokers, and factual and expert witnesses in litigation. 2 A client’s contract is with the firm of Solicitors as a whole even though he may regard the individual with whom he deals most regularly as “his” solicitor. Counsel are sole practitioners but are invariably grouped together in sets of chambers in or around the Inns of Court...
eBook - ePub- Janice Denoncourt(Author)
- 2013(Publication Date)
- Routledge(Publisher)
...3 The Legal Profession Introduction In England and Wales, there are essentially two main branches of the legal profession – Solicitors and barristers. ‘Solicitors’ advise individuals and organisations on legal matters and ensure that their clients act in accordance with the law. Solicitors usually work in an office rather than in court. There are over 116,000 practising Solicitors in England and Wales, governed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). Almost 45 per cent of Solicitors are women and over 11 per cent of all Solicitors are from ethnic minority groups. ‘Barristers’ provide two main services – advocacy (representing clients in court) and giving specialist opinions on complex legal matters. They generally receive instructions through Solicitors. There are around 12,000 barristers practising in the UK, governed by the Bar Standards Board. About 68 per cent of barristers are men and 11 per cent are from ethnic minority groups. The distinction between Solicitors and barristers has blurred slightly over time. Since the 1990s Solicitors have been able to represent clients in the lower courts (such as magistrates’ courts) and, if they have enough experience and gain specific ‘higher rights’ qualifications, they can become ‘solicitor advocates’ and represent clients in higher courts (such as Crown Courts or the High Court). Barristers are not allowed to form partnerships. Groups of barristers share offices called ‘chambers’ and are allocated work by a barrister’s clerk, who is also responsible for negotiating the barrister’s fees. A barrister can only be employed by a solicitor and can only meet the client he represents if the solicitor is also present. Queen’s Counsel (QC) or a ‘silk’: senior barristers are known as Queen’s Counsel and they generally appear with a junior barrister assisting them. The Queen’s Counsel Selection Panel makes the award of Queen’s Counsel...
eBook - ePub- Jacqueline Martin(Author)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- Routledge(Publisher)
...The size of firms varies from the sole practitioner to partnerships with over 100 partners and several hundred assistant Solicitors. 4 The work of a solicitor will vary according to the type of firm. Small high street firms are likely to concentrate on family law, wills and probate, housing law, consumer law and criminal law. Large city firms specialise in business and commercial law. 5 Other careers are available as an employed lawyer in an organisation such as the CPS, Civil Service or local authority. Solicitors are also employed by private businesses as legal advisers. 12.1.3 Advocacy rights 1 Solicitors in private practice can also act as advocates. They have always had full advocacy rights in the Magistrates’ Court and the County Court. 2 The Courts and Legal Services Act 1990 allowed them to apply for an advocacy certificate for rights in the higher courts, but only about 5% have applied for a certificate. 3 The Access to Justice Act 1999 provided that all Solicitors will be given full rights of audience. The intention was to bring in new training requirements to ensure that newly qualified Solicitors will automatically have advocacy rights but this has not yet happened. 4 Solicitors employed by the CPS may act as a prosecutor-advocate in any court for which they hold an advocacy qualification. 5 Solicitors employed by the Legal Services Commission may act as an advocate to represent members of the public in any court for which they hold an advocacy qualification. 6 Other employed Solicitors only have rights of audience to represent their employer. 12.2 Barristers 12.2.1 Training 1 To qualify as a barrister it is usual to have a law degree...
eBook - ePubEnglish Legal System
An Emerald Guide
- (Author)
- 2015(Publication Date)
- Straightforward Publishing Digital(Publisher)
...6 The Legal Profession In the English Legal System, there are two types of lawyers, Barristers and Solicitors. The Law Society oversees the activities of Solicitors as well as the legal profession as a whole. The General Council of the Bar oversees Barristers. Solicitors To become a solicitor it is usual to either have a law degree or have completed an extra year of law if the degree is a non-law degree. This is called the Common Professional Examination. When the course has been completed successfully the student is still not a solicitor. A training contract must be obtained from a firm of Solicitors and two years work must be completed. This training period can also be undertaken in other legal organisations such as the Crown Prosecution Service, or the legal department of a local authority. During the training period he or she will have to undertake their own work and complete a 20 day Professional Skills Course after which time the person will be admitted as a solicitor by the Law Society. Even after qualifying, Solicitors have to attend continuing education to keep their skills up to date. There is a non-graduate route to become a solicitor for mature candidates but the process takes longer to complete. Solicitors who qualify will either work in private practice in a Solicitors firm, or can work for the Crown Prosecution Service or for a local authority or government department. Some will become legal advisors to big companies. Solicitors will work in sole practices or partnerships and the type of work carried out will be varied depending largely on the specialism of the firm. A small firm will usually cover a whole range of matters from housing, family, conveyancing and business matters. It is usual for a solicitor to specialise in a particular area. All Solicitors can act as advocates in the Magistrates Court...
- (Author)
- 2013(Publication Date)
- Straightforward Publishing Digital(Publisher)
...13. THE LEGAL PROFESSION The legal profession is very diverse and can be a very rewarding career. the training is long and arduous and not always that glamorous. However, for the right person the rewards can be many. In this chapter we cover: • Solicitor • Barrister • Barristers clerk • Legal secretary • Licensed conveyancer For details of other roles in the legal profession you should go to: Law Careers www.lawcareers.net All About Law - The Law Careers Website www.allaboutlaw.co.uk SOLICITOR The nature of the work You could work as a solicitor in a range of settings, including: • private practice - providing legal services such as conveyancing, probate, civil and family law, litigation, personal injury and criminal law • commercial practice - advising and acting for businesses in areas including contract law, tax, employment law and company sales and mergers • in-house legal advice for companies, the government or local authorities • Crown Prosecution Service - examining evidence to decide whether to bring cases to court. • You would often choose to specialise in a particular area of law. Your duties would vary according to the setting you worked in, but might typically include: • advising clients about legal matters • representing clients in court, or instructing barristers or advocates to act for your clients • drafting letters, contracts and documents • researching similar cases to guide your current work • keeping financial records • attending meetings and negotiations • preparing. papers for court. What can you earn? The minimum salary for trainee Solicitors is £18,590 a year in London, and £16,650 in the rest of England and Wales. Once qualified, salaries can rise to between £25,000 and £70,000 a year, depending on experience and the type of employer...
