What is the difference between an attorney and a lawyer.

Attorney vs. Lawyer: 

Characteristics between Attorney and Lawyer: What Are the Differences?

There are many satisfying and challenging careers in the legal industry. Two common functions in legal field are that of an attorney and a lawyer. Though these positions have some similarities, there are several prime differences between them.

In this article, we are going to discuss the differences between an attorney and a lawyer, and we procure additional legal professions you may be interested in pursuing.

Who is an attorney?

An attorney is a man or woman who has graduated from law school and passed the bar exam in the country in which they practice law. An attorney takes the role of a legal representation for his clients in a court of law. Extra duties of an attorney may include explaining the meaning of federal and state laws, applying his knowledge of the law to meet the demands of his clients and keeping careful records outlining his interactions with clients and other legal professionals.

Who is a lawyer?

A lawyer is a person who is educated in the law school. He provides legal advice to others, but he cannot represent clients in court because he has not passed the bar exam. Some lawyers may work under attorneys to gain experience in a law firm setting and thus  prepare himself to take the bar exam. Others are not interested  to be an attorney and work as a consultant or a government advisor not necessarily  taking the bar exam.

What can be the difference between a lawyer and an attorney?

It is good to remember that all attorneys are lawyers, but not all lawyers are attorneys. The difference in real between them is that attorneys can represent clients in court and other legal proceedings, but lawyers cannot do that.

Education and licensure

Another main distinction between these two professionals is how they use their education. An attorney  takes and passes the bar exam, but a lawyer may or may not have completed this bar exam. This so called bar exam is administered by the state's bar association and prepare questions as to test the knowledge of state-specific laws and general legal principles. The exam typically continuesfir two or three days and it takes a lot of time to prepare.

Both lawyers and attorneys generally graduate from law school. Course pattern in these law school focuses only on federal and state laws, past cases and the way to apply logic and analysis to individual client needs.

In most of the cases, students who graduate from law school generally earn a Juris Doctor (JD) degree. Many lawyers and attorneys hold this degree.  They may pursue another choice which is the Master of Laws (LLM) degree an advanced certification giving the holder credibility on a global scale. The curriculum of an LLM program relies on the university offering it, some focusing on international and comparative law, while others include specializing courses in subfields, such as law of human rights, law on tax , law of international environmental  or intellectual property.

Specialization of both lawyers and attorneys:

While attending law school, both lawyers and attorneys try to choose to specialize in an area of the law. At the time of practicing law, an individual in either role can provide legal advice and support as specialists. For specialisation, some of the most common fields include:

Civil rights law

Family law

General law

Criminal law

Real estate law

Intellectual property law

Environmental law

Corporate and business law

Tax law

Bankruptcy law

Personal injury law

Immigration law

Labor and employment law

Nevertheless law school provides a general overview of all the areas of the law, lawyers and attorneys go through additional training and education in their area of focus in order to gain more experience and knowledge to apply in their profession. Attorneys basically only consult clients with and provide their services to clients whose cases pertain to their chosen field of law.

Job titles for both lawyers and attorneys

There are several ways for both lawyers and attorneys to pursue.

For lawyers, some ways include legal consultants and legal regulatory specialists. Lawyers may easily find employment in corporations, government agencies or nonprofit organizations. Where Some may choose to pursue a career in education as well.

For attorneys, a lot of career paths are affected by a professional's specialization, location, the level of experience and professional goals they pursue.

Jobs for lawyers

Below are given some careers a lawyer might consider to choose.

1. Legal officer

Legal officer's national average salary is approximately $80,923 per year.

Main duties: A legal officer keeps records all the legal affairs within an organization, handling both internal and external affairs and concerns. His main duties include providing legal advice to clients, performing research, processing and developing legal documents and identifying potential risks to the organization.

2. Lawyer

A lawyer's national average salary is approximately $70,294 per year

A lawyers' primary duties: Lawyers provide legal advice to individuals, businesses and government agencies. They are required to  interpret rulings, regulations and laws and prepare and manage legal documents.

3. Legal counsel lawyer

A Legal counsel lawyer's national average salary is approximately $128,630 per year

Legal counsel lawyer's primary duties: A legal counsel lawyer mainly provides instructions and advice for a corporation or organization. They act as the in-house legal compliance resource, and thus aid the members of the organization in all legal-related needs.

Jobs for attorneys

Here are some common careers that attorneys can pursue.

1. Staff attorney

Staff attorney's national average salary is approximately $69,675 per year.

Staff attorney's primary duties: As a member of its staff, a staff attorney works for a specific organization remains responsible for managing the legal services which is required by that company. Duties are performing analysis and research of legal issues and laws, imparting training for professional development, managing contracts and employment agreements and protecting an organization's legal rights.

2. Litigation attorney

Litigation attorney's national average salary is approximately $101,920 per year

Primary duties of a litigation attorney : A litigation attorney represents their clients in court cases, arranges mediations, administrative law proceedings and arbitrations. Litigation attorney spends his time preparing to present cases in court, as well as reviewing past cases, preparing and maintaining paperwork, meeting with new clients and handling complex legal matters.

3. Patent attorney

Patent attorney's national average salary is approximately $139,559 per year.

Primary duties of a patent attorney : A patent attorney helps inventors bargain for and get the legal rights for their inventions. They inform their clients on what legal entities within their intellectual property and they often draft patent applications. They also represent their clients in cases of patent infringement and obtain redress for them.

YouTube video on What is the difference between an attorney and a lawyer