You have probably noticed that some legal professionals say ” attorney at law ” and started wondering whether there is an attorney at anything else.
Historically, the old English court system was comprised of courts of law and courts of equity. If attorneys were acting as a party’s attorney in the courts of law, he/she was an “attorney at law.” Accordingly, if attorneys were acting in the courts of equity, they were called an “attorney at equity.” Courts of law tackled the violations of written code, and courts of equity dealt with matters of “fairness” outside the codified laws. However, most equity courts were eventually “merged with courts of law” although some states of the US still follow the English tradition of keeping separate courts for law and equity.
Also, ”attorneys at law’’ is used in contradistinction to ‘‘attorneys in fact’’. ”Attorney at law” are lawyers who have been legally qualified to prosecute and defend actions before a court of law. They have passed the bar examination and are authorized by the state to practice law. ”Attorneys in fact” are legal professionals who are allowed to act on behalf of another person but aren’t necessarily authorized to practice law. They can represent a person through a power of attorney, a document that gives them the right to act on the person’s behalf.
In addition, some jurisdictions have two types of lawyers: barrister, and solicitors.
A barrister is a qualified legal professional who specializes in higher court appearances by offering specialist advice while representing its clients in court or at a tribunal. Many barristers practice in one area of the law, although some may have a more general specialization and cover a variety of areas.
A solicitor is a qualified legal practitioner who is trained to prepare cases and give advice on legal subjects and can represent people in lower courts. Solicitors mainly perform legal work outside the court. In other words, they are responsible for preparing legal documentation before and during a court case. A solicitor specializes in a variety of areas of law.
