Have you ever wondered where all these somewhat confusing terms came from? Well the answer is they are all types of Lawyers originated from various legal systems. Some of the terms are from the English legal system, some are from Scotland and some from the American legal system.
An Attorney is somebody legally empowered to represent another person, or act on their behalf.
A Lawyer is somebody who can give legal advice and has been trained in the law.
Are Attorney and Lawyer are synonyms? Basically yes, but they are not necessarily Interchangeable terms, you cannot for instance say I give you the Power of a Lawyer, but you definitely might say I give you the power of Attorney...
Look again at the above definitions, does it now make any sense? Off course it does.
An attorney in fact is an agent who conducts business under authority that is controlled and limited by a written document called a letter, or power, of attorney granted by the principal. An attorney at law is an officer of a court of law authorized to represent the person employing him (the client) in legal proceedings.
A Solicitor- One that solicits, especially one that seeks trade or contributions. The chief law officer of a city, town, or government department but does not act as an advocate in court, as opposed to the Attorney who pleads in court. (English Law).
A Barrister(Called Advocate in Scotland) presents the case in court. Most senior and distinguished barristers are designated King's (Queen's) counsel.
A Counselor at law- In the past at least in some U.S states there was a distinction between the term A Counselor at Law who argued the case in court and an attorney who prepared the case but didnt argue it.
Nowadays an attorney at law is authorized to exercise all the functions of a practicing lawyer. All of them must, however, like the ordinary attorney, be admitted to the bar. The term attorney is also used for county, state, and federal prosecuting officers, as county attorney, district attorney, and attorney general.
Lawyers, also called attorneys, act as both advocates and advisors in our society. As advocates, they represent one of the parties in criminal and civil trials by presenting evidence and arguing in court to support their client. As advisors, lawyers counsel their clients concerning their legal rights and obligations and suggest particular courses of action in business and personal matters. Although all lawyers are licensed to represent parties in court, some appear in court more frequently than others. Trial lawyers, who specialize in trial work, must be able to think quickly and speak with ease and authority. In addition, familiarity with courtroom rules and strategy is particularly important in trial work. Still, trial lawyers spend the majority of their time outside the courtroom, conducting research, interviewing clients and witnesses, and handling other details in preparation for trial.
Lawyers types:
The legal system affects nearly every aspect of our society, from buying a home to crossing the street. Lawyers hold positions of great responsibility and are obligated to adhere to a strict code of ethics.
The more detailed aspects of a lawyers job depend upon his or her field of specialization and position. Although all lawyers are licensed to represent parties in court, some appear in court more frequently than others.
Lawyers may specialize in a number of different areas, such as bankruptcy, probate, international, or elder law. Those specializing in environmental law, for example, may represent public-interest groups, waste disposal companies, or construction firms in their dealings with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other Federal and State agencies. These lawyers help clients prepare and file for licenses and applications for approval before certain activities may occur. In addition, they represent clients interests in administrative adjudications.
Some lawyers concentrate in the growing field of intellectual property, helping to protect clients claims to copyrights, artwork under contract, product designs, and computer programs. Still other lawyers advise insurance companies about the legality of insurance transactions, writing insurance policies to conform with the law and to protect companies from unwarranted claims.
Most lawyers are found in private practice, where they concentrate on criminal or civil law. In criminal law, lawyers represent individuals who have been charged with crimes and argue their cases in courts of law. Attorneys dealing with civil law assist clients with litigation, wills, trusts, contracts, mortgages, titles, and leases. Other lawyers handle only public-interest casescivil or criminalwhich may have an impact extending well beyond the individual client.
These issues might involve patents, government regulations, and contracts with other companies, property interests, or collective-bargaining agreements with unions.
Other lawyers work for legal-aid societiesprivate, nonprofit organizations established to serve disadvantaged people. These lawyers generally handle civil, rather than criminal, cases. A relatively small number of trained attorneys work in law schools.
The real life situations have created specialties according to business profitability. This is how terms like Vioxx Lawyer, DUI Lawyer, Lemon Law Lawyer , Structured Settlements Lawyer and others came about.
Additional Information:
MBA - International Trade & Finance - Heriot-Watt University. Bsc. Computers and Information Systems - Long Island University - C.W Post Campus. Hobby: Photography. Married with two Children.
Owner Editor of: http://www.Lawyers-Best-Infoweb.com
Ditech MortageWith mortgage rates near 20-year lows, competition in the mortgage industry is fierce. It seems like every day a new mortgage loan strategy comes out that is suppose to be the best thing since sliced bread. Whether it's a mortgage with no closing costs or an interest only mortgage, everyone is claiming they can save you a ton of money. Now someone has come out with something called Mortgage Cycling. Mortgage Cycling could save you thousands of dollars or it could cost you your home.
Mortgage cycling is a program that advertises itself as a method to payoff your mortgage in 10 years or less without making biweekly mortgage payments or changing your current mortgage. Does mortgage cycling work as advertised? The answer is unequivocally yes with a few caveats. I'm going to let you in on the secret to mortgage cycling.
Mortgage cycling is based on making huge lump sum principal payments every 6-10 months. What this means is mortgage cycling works well for those who have at least a few hundred dollars in extra cash at the end of each month. The problem is most people don't have that kind of cash available.
Mortgage Cycling relies on using a revolving Home Equity Line of Credit to make huge lump sum payments against their original mortgage principal balance. When you take out a home equity line of credit, you pay for many of the same expenses as when you financed your original mortgage such as an application fee, title search, appraisal, attorney fees, and points. You also may find most loans have large one-time upfront fees, others have closing costs, and some have continuing costs, such as annual fees. You could find yourself paying hundreds of dollars to establish a home equity line of credit. Most home equity lines of credit also carry what is known as interest rate risk.
Home equity line of credit interest rates are typically variable. The Federal Reserve is currently in the process of raising the overnight federal funds rate. As the Fed continues to raise rates, it is all but inevitable that variable interest rates for mortgages will also rise. Your savings may not be as great as anticipated.
While Mortgage Cycling does have some additional costs for most people, that is not what makes this mortgage reduction strategy risky. If you use a Home Equity Line of Credit and money gets tight, you could lose your home and the equity you have built up. Home equity lines of credit require you to use your home as collateral for the loan. This may put your home at risk if you are late or cannot make your monthly payments. And if you sell your home, most lines of credit require you to pay off your credit line at that time.
Mortgage Cycling requires you to make mortgage payments and Home Equity Line of Credit payments for up to 10 years. For most people mortgage cycling is an extremely risky way to payoff a mortgage. Mortgage cycling should be used only after a careful assessment of the risks and benefits. Prepaying your mortgage is smart. You should explore all of the mortgage reduction alternatives before choosing Mortgage Cycling as a mortgage reduction strategy.
George Burks of http://www.mybiweeklymortgagepayment.com has offered a biweekly mortgage payment plan with no enrollment fee since 1999. His interest in financial topic is varied. Visit http://www.mybiweeklymortgagepayment.com financial library for more information about a revolving Home Equity Line of Credit.
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