Solicitors

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  • Created by: freya
  • Created on: 13-06-22 18:27

Facts & Figures

Role

  • Approx. 130,000 solicitors practicing in England and Wales
  • 90,000 are in private practice and the rest are employed in places like civil service or CPS
  • Regulated and controlled by Law Society
  • A private practitioner may works a a sole practitioner or in a partnership
  • Their type of work depends on what firm they work for
  • A small practice will probably be a general practice, advising clients on a whole range of topics
  • A solicitor working in  a small practice will spend time interveiwing clients, negotiating on behalf of client, dealing with paperwork, drafting legal docs.
  • Some solicitors may choose to specialise in advocacy and spend time in court

Key Terms

Overlap Of The Roles Of Barristers & Solicitors

  • Conveyancing: the legal side of building and selling houses and other land/buildings. Prior to 1985 only solicitors could practise conveyancing, this was changed by the Administration Of Justice Act 1985
  • Rights Of Audience: all solicitors have always been able to act as advocates in the magistrates court and rights of audience in higher court used to be limited. The Legal Services Act 1990 changes this so solicitors can apply for a certificate of advocacy
  • Alternative Business Structure (ABS): changed rules about types of business structures allowed in the legal profession and brought overlap of roles of solicitors and barristers.
  • -The Legal Services Act 2007 allows legal businesses to  include lawyers and non lawyers, barristers and solicitors, non-lawyers to own legal business and legal businesses to operate as companies
  • Until end of 20th century roles were very different
  • Since 2004 a person with a civil disputes can go directly to a barrister, which means they can do all the preparatory work which used to only be done by solicitors
  • There is no direct access in criminal and family work

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