A lawyer is a graduate or doctor of law.
A lawyer is a doctor or graduate in law who is responsible for the defense and direction of parties involved in judicial or administrative proceedings . He may also provide legal advice and counsel . The word comes from the Latin advocātus .
The professional practice of this profession is known as the legal profession and, in most countries , requires that the lawyer have a state license or be registered with a Bar Association or similar institution. A firm where one or more lawyers work is known as a law firm .
It is important to emphasize that there is a document called the Decalogue of the Lawyer , which is a set of "commandments" that are considered to be strictly followed by all legal professionals. Among these maxims are, for example, loving one's profession, being loyal to both the client and the adversary and also to the law itself, fighting for justice , working hard, being tolerant and having patience.
Functions of the lawyer
The lawyer is not only responsible for defending the interests of a third party during a trial . One of his most important functions is preventive, where he is responsible for advising his clients and drafting documents and contracts in such a way that legal conflicts do not arise.
The lawyer can also be an extrajudicial mediator to prevent a problem or confrontation from becoming a judicial procedure or litigation .
In a broad sense, someone who has completed a law degree is able to resolve different issues related to a legal process and to provide advice on statutes, regulations and laws in general. The lawyer must always know all the details of the legislation and must be able to analyze jurisprudence . Thus, according to his specialty, he can intervene in a civil procedure, an administrative procedure or a criminal procedure.
Drafting contracts is a common task for a lawyer.
Guarantee of defense
Generally, those who must appear before a judge or court must have a lawyer. The lawyer is a guarantee of legitimate defense for the person involved in the process. For this reason, the court documents and presentations are submitted with the signature of both the client and his lawyer.
Citizens who do not have the financial resources to pay for the services of a lawyer receive free legal assistance: these are official lawyers or public defenders , who depend on the State . Thus, when an accusation falls on an individual, the person in question can turn to an official lawyer to defend himself.
It should be noted that the lawyer is bound by professional secrecy (he cannot disclose the information provided by his client), and therefore must respect confidentiality and maintain privacy . His obligation is to litigate in accordance with the social responsibility that his role confers upon him, acting with professional ethics.
The office where one or more lawyers work is called a law firm.
Lawyers and branches of law
Lawyers usually specialize in a branch of law , focusing their work in a specific direction. Depending on their chosen specialization, these professionals intervene in certain types of cases.
Thus, a lawyer who specializes in family law will deal with issues related to marriage , divorce , adoption , guardianship , child custody or alimony, to name a few possibilities.
The commercial law expert, on the other hand, will analyze issues such as the formation of companies and the development of mergers and acquisitions. If a worker needs to claim compensation for dismissal, he will go to a lawyer focused on labor law , while a person who wants to start a claim for damages will need to agree on fees and hire a lawyer who works with civil law .
The lawyer dedicated to constitutional law , in turn, has experience in problems and situations related to the Constitution of his country. These professionals often act when the fundamental freedoms of citizens are trampled by those in power .
The registration of patents or trademarks, the preparation of a will and the filing of a complaint are other actions of various kinds that are carried out with legal advice , which is why the services of lawyers are needed to carry them out. Depending on each situation, the services of lawyers dedicated to different branches of law must be used .
Expressions with the term
Colloquially, it is common to use the expression "devil's advocate." This expression is intended to indicate that a legal worker is capable of defending any cause, even one in which he does not believe.
Another possibility is that someone who, outside of a legal or juridical context, decides to support someone who is frowned upon by most people is referred to as a “devil’s advocate.” Let’s suppose that, in a group of friends, someone is being criticized for a certain attitude. If a participant in the conversation chooses to justify that attitude, it can be said that he is acting as a “devil’s advocate.”
In the cinematographic field there is a film that is precisely titled "The Devil's Advocate" . This film was released in 1997 , directed by Taylor Hackford and starring Robert de Niro and Keanu Reeves , in which it tells the story of a young, ambitious and highly successful lawyer who is capable of putting aside his seriously ill wife in order to get his client, whom he knows is guilty of a serious crime , declared innocent.
There is also the expression "abogado de secano" (dry-law lawyer) which is commonly used to refer to a lawyer who not only does not practice as such but also lacks the necessary skills and abilities to do so. The term "abogado de secano" is also used to refer to a person who did not study law but who boasts of his supposed legal knowledge.