The American Legal Profession

The American legal profession, like American law, has it roots in England, but with significant differences. In England, the legal profession is divided between office lawyers, known as solicitors, and courtroom lawyers, known as barristers.

In the United States, there is no division of the profession, and a lawyer frequently does both office work and courtroom work. There is, however, a great deal of variety in the types of the work done by lawyers. Depending upon the circumstances and the needs of the client, the lawyer maybe a counselor, a negotiator, and a litigator.

As the counselor attorney will help advise the client how to order the client's affairs. As the negotiator lawyer will work with opposing counsel to try to get a fa­vorable resolution for the client. In litigating, the attorney will help pick a jury and participate in pre-trial motions. All of the lawyer's roles require the investigation of relevant facts, including locating and interviewing witnesses. The lawyer is also an officer of the court and is required to deal fairly and honestly with the court and with its other officers, including the lawyer's opponents.

The judge is the final arbiter of the law. The judge is charged with the duty to state, what the law is, to maintain order in the courtroom. Judges in federal courts are appointed by the President with the "advice and consent" of the Senate. Many state court judges are elected by popular vote.

NOTES:

attorney – поверенный

negotiator – посредник

counselor – адвокат

litigator — сторона в судебном процессе

engage in factual investigation – заниматься фактическим расследованием

order the client's affairs – приводить в порядок дела клиента

get а favorable resolution – добиться благоприятного решения

the art of negotiation – искусство ведения переговоров

retain the right – сохранять право

accept – принимать

motion – ходатайство

locate – устанавливать местонахождение

be charged with the duty - иметь обязательства

What do usually lawyers do? Can you answer at once? If you can't read the texts below again and say whether the list of lawyers' functions is complete.

LAWYERS PERFORM FOUR MAJOR FUNCTIONS

First, lawyers counsel. This means that lawyers offer advice, even if it is advice their-clients would prefer not to hear. Of course, lawyers regu­larly counsel clients during negotiations and litigation.

Second, lawyers negotiate. This means that they mediate between competing interests aiming for results that will prove advantageous to their clients and, if possible, their opponents.

Third, lawyers draft documents. This is probably their most intel­lectually challenging function.

Fourth, they litigate. This is the skill most people associate with lawyers. Ironically, only a small fraction of all lawyers devote much time to courtroom activities. In fact, the majority of attorneys never venture into a courthouse except to file legal papers with a clerk.

You've learnt a lot about different types of legal professions. Now test yourself matching the following clippings with the law professional titles.

1. English lawyers who judge cases in the lower courts. They're usually unpaid and have no legal qualifications, but they're respectable peo­ple who are given some training.

2. They make up the largest branch of the legal profession in England and Wales. They are found in every town where they deal with all the day-to-day work of preparing legal documents for buy­ing and selling houses, making wills, etc. These lawyers also work on court cases for their clients, prepare cases for other lawyers to present in the higher courts, and may represent their client in a Magistrates' Court.

3. Each federal judicial district has this lawyer who is appointed by the President.

4. Only a small proportion of these lawyers doesn't preside in Magis­trates' Courts. They deal with the most serious crimes, such as those for which the criminal might be sent to prison for more than a year. They are paid salaries by the State and have considerable legal train­ing.

5. They defend or prosecute in the English higher courts. They special­ize in representing clients in court. In court, these lawyers wear wigs and gowns in keeping with the extreme formality of the proceedings. The highest level of them have the title QC (Queens Counsel).