Lawyer

To become a lawyer, a person must be fully trained in the law of the country in which they reside; some people refer to them as attorneys or advocates, sometimes as legal advisors. When defending or prosecuting a person in court a lawyer will be called an advocate and this doesn't matter if the case is civil or criminal; not all want or will appear in court whilst others dedicate their whole lives to courtroom appearances. When advising on the issues relating to the law they become legal advisors; if a client has legal issues that need clarification, this is where they will be of assistance.

A lawyer who primarily spends time in court is called a trial lawyer; this does not appeal to everyone because it requires fast thinking plus a confident manner, and those who prefer to carry out his work are paid very well.Trial lawyers spend the majority of their time outside the courtroom; they investigate the case they are representing, talk to witnesses and arranging evidence, for example.

The legal system affects nearly every aspect of our society; it affects everyone's life from negotiating a house purchase to organizing a will and the reason why lawyers are governed by a very strict code of practice. There are many specialized areas of law which they can focus; however, all can and do appear in court from time to time to represent their clients.

For every area of society, industry and commerce there is a specialist area of law: examples of just a few are show below:

• Intellectual Property Rights
• Health Issues
• Contract Law
• Marine Law
• Fraud

This specialization means that some legal representatives may never have to practice their skills in court!

Those who decide to become experts in environmental law may represent any side relating to the disputed issue; just a few of the many examples are listed here:

• Recycling Companies
• State agencies
• Airports

Representatives in this field may be arranging for their clients to carry out certain actions; they might also represent a company in a civil action resulting from work they have already undertaken.

Attorneys are also involved with laws protecting intellectual property rights, an area much in the news of late; property like digital media, CD's, computer games and software for instance, are particularly at risk since the advent of the Internet. Most large insurance providers engage the services of specialist lawyers in their legal departments; insurance contracts and claims are often investigated which is an are where their expert knowledge will be invaluable.

Most attorneys work in the private sector working on criminal or civil law; persons charged with crimes are represented by criminal lawyers on both sides one for the defense and one for the prosecution; whereas civil law deals with civil disputes, usually between two parties.

Another high profile legal position is in cases where the public interest is served; these can include law suits and legal representation that affects the general public for instance. Lawyers who are endowed with a little more social conscience are the ones who work for charities and legal aid schemes; this aspect of legal assistance is often frowned upon but it is a dignified use of a person's legal skills.