Advocate
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![]() 19th century painting of advocates, by French artist Honoré Daumier | |
Occupation | |
---|---|
Names | advocate barrister |
Occupation type | profession |
Activity sectors | law |
Description | |
Competencies | Good memory, advocacy and interpersonal skills, analytical mind, critical thinking, commercial sense |
Fields of employment | court |
Related jobs | Lawyer, barrister, judge |
An advocate is a type of professional lawyer in several different legal systems. These include Scotland, Belgium, South Africa, India, Scandinavian jurisdictions, Israel, and the British Crown dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. The broad equivalent in many English law-based jurisdictions is "barrister".
Advocates in Scotland
Faculty of Advocates
Advocates are regulated by the Faculty of Advocates in Edinburgh. The Faculty of Advocates has about 750 members, of whom about 460 are in private practice. About 75 are Queen's Counsel. The Faculty is headed by the Dean of the Faculty who, along with the Vice-Dean, Treasurer, Clerk are elected annually by secret ballot.
The Faculty has a service company, Faculty Services Ltd, to which almost all advocates belong, that organises the stables and fee collection. This gives a guarantee to all newly-called advocates of a place. Until the end of 2007 there was an agreement with the Law Society of Scotland, which is the professional body for Scottish solicitors, as to the payment of fees, but this has now been abrogated by the Law Society. It remains the case that advocates are not permitted to sue for their fees, as they have no contractual relationship with their instructing solicitor or with the client [1]. Their fees are honoraria.
Advocates wear wigs, white bow-ties (or falls in the case of senior counsel), straps and gowns as dress in court.
Becoming an advocate
The process of becoming an advocate is referred to as devilling. All Intrants will hold an LL.B. (Bachelor of Laws) and the Diploma in Legal Practice qualifying them as solicitors or be members of the Bar in another common law jurisdiction.
Admission to the Faculty of Advocates
At the end of the devilling period, a devil's admission to the Faculty is dependent on certification by the principal devilmaster that the devil is a fit and proper person to be an advocate, and that the devil has been involved in a wide range of work in the course of devilling. A devil's competence in a number of aspects of written and oral advocacy is assessed during devilling, and if a devil is assessed as not to be competent, they will not be admitted to the Faculty. Further details of this process can be found in the assessment section.
Recent developments
In recent years, more advocates have come to the Scottish Bar after some time as solicitors, but it is possible to qualify with a law degree, after twenty one months traineeship in a solicitor's office and almost a year as a 'devil', or apprentice advocate. There are exceptions for lawyers who are qualified in other European jurisdictions, but all must take the training course as devils.
Until 2007, a number of young European lawyers were given a placement with advocates under the European Young Lawyers Scheme organised by the British Council. They are known as 'Eurodevils' in distinction to the Scottish 'devils'. This scheme was withdrawn by the British Council. In January 2009, a replacement scheme began.
Lawyers qualified in other EU states (but not England and Wales) may have limited rights of audience in the Scottish supreme courts if they appear with an advocate, and a few solicitors known as 'solicitor-advocates' have rights of audience, but for practical purposes advocates have almost exclusive rights of audience in the supreme courts - the High Court of Justiciary (criminal), and the Court of Session (civil). Advocates share right of audience with solicitors in the sheriff court and Justice of the Peace Court.
It used to be the case that Advocates were completely immune from suit etc. while conducting court cases and pre-trial work, as they had to act 'fearlessly and independently'; the rehearing of actions was considered contrary to public interest; and Advocates are required to accept clients, they cannot pick and choose. However, the seven-judge English ruling of Arthur J.S. Hall & Co. (a firm) v. Simons 2000 (House of Lords) declared that none of these reasons justified the immunity strongly enough to sustain it. This has been followed in Scotland in Wright v Paton Farrell (2006) obiter insofar as civil cases are concerned.
Advocates in the Channel Islands
The legal professions of Jersey and Guernsey are separate. In both jurisdictions, advocates—properly called Advocates of the Royal Court—are the only lawyers with general rights of audience in their courts.
To be eligible to qualify as an advocate in Jersey, it is necessary first to have a law degree from a British university or a graduate diploma in law and to have qualified as a recognized legal professional in England and Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland.[1] Thereafter, a candidate must undertake two years of practical experience in a law office dealing with Jersey law, enroll on the Jersey Law Course provided by the Institute of Law, Jersey and pass examinations in six subjects. Alternatively, a person may apply to become a Jersey advocate two years after qualifying as a Jersey solicitor.
To become an advocate in Guernsey, one has to possess a valid law degree or diploma, plus a qualification as an English barrister or solicitor, or a French avocat. They must then study for the Guernsey Bar. Three months of study of Norman law at the Université de Caen is required; this is no longer the case in Jersey.
Guernsey Advocates dress in the same way as barristers, but substitute a black biretta-like toque for a wig, while those in Jersey go bare-headed. Advocates are entitled to prefix their names with 'Advocate'; e.g. Mr Tostevin is called to the Guernsey Bar and is henceforth known as Advocate Tostevin.
The head of the profession of advocate in each Bailiwick is called the Bâtonnier.
Advocates in the Isle of Man
Advocates are the only lawyers with rights of audience in the courts of the Isle of Man. An Advocate's role is to give advice on all matters of law: it may involve representing a client in the civil and criminal courts or advising a client on matters such as matrimonial and family law, trusts and estates, regulatory matters, property transactions and commercial and business law. In court, Advocates wear a horsehair wig, stiff collar, bands and a gown in the same way as barristers do elsewhere.
To become an Advocate, it is normally necessary to hold either a qualifying law degree with no less than lower second class (2:2) honours, or else a degree in another subject with no less than lower second class (2:2) honours complemented by the Common Professional Examination. It is then necessary to obtain a legal professional qualification such as the Bar Professional Training Course or the Legal Practice Course. It is not, however, necessary actually to be admitted as an English barrister or solicitor to train as an Advocate.
Trainee Advocates (as Articled Clerks are now more usually known) normally undertake a period of two years’ training articled to a senior Advocate; in the case of English barristers or solicitors who have been practising or admitted for three years this training period is reduced to one year. Foreign lawyers who have been registered as legal practitioners in the Isle of Man for a certain period of time may also undertake a shorter period of training and supervision. During their training, all Trainee Advocates are required to pass the Isle of Man bar examinations, which include papers on civil and criminal practice, constitutional and land law, and company law and taxation, as well as accounts. The examinations are rigorous and candidates are limited to three attempts to pass each paper.
Senior English barristers are occasionally licensed to appear as Advocates in cases expected to be unusually long or complex, without having to pass the bar examination or undertake further training: they are permitted only to act in relation to the matter for which they have been licensed. Similarly, barristers and solicitors employed as public prosecutors may be licensed to appear as Advocates without having to pass the bar examination or undertake further training: they are permitted only to act as such only for the duration of that employment.
The professional conduct of Advocates is regulated by the Isle of Man Law Society, which also maintains a library for its members in Douglas. While Advocates in the Isle of Man have not traditionally prefixed their names with 'Advocate' in the Channel Islands manner, some Advocates have now started to adopt this practice.
Advocates in Scandinavia (Denmark, Norway and Sweden) and Finland
The Scandinavian countries and Finland have a united legal profession, which means that they do not draw a distinction between lawyers who plead in court and those who do not. To get an official recognition with an advocates title, the candidate must have a legal degree, that is, completed ca. 5–6 years of legal studies, and in addition worked for some time (around 2 – 5 years) under the auspices of a qualified advocate and have some experience from court. When qualified, the candidate may obtain a license as an advocate, in all the Scandinavian languages: advokat. In Finland advokat is the Swedish title for such a qualified lawyer (the equivalent title in Finnish being asianajaja). However, one does not necessarily have to be an advocate to practice law. In Sweden, for example, any adult can practice law and represent a party in court without any prior approval, training, licence or advocate title.
In English, the Scandinavian title of advokat is interchangeably also translated as barrister, lawyer or attorney-at-law.
Advocates in England and Wales
In England and Wales Advocates and Proctors practiced civil law in the admiralty and ecclesiastical courts in a similar way to Barristers and Attorneys or Solicitors in the common law and equity courts.
Advocates, who formed the senior branch of the legal profession in their field, were Doctors of Law of Oxford or Cambridge and Fellows of the Society of Doctors' Commons.
Advocates lost their exclusive rights of audience in probate and divorce cases when the crown took these matters over from the church in 1857, and in admiralty cases in 1859. The society was never formally wound up, but their building was sold off in 1865 and the last advocate died in 1912.
Barristers were admitted to the Court of Arches of the Church of England in 1867. More recently, Solicitor Advocates have also been allowed to play this role.
Advocates in India
In India, the law relating to the Advocates is the Advocates Act, 1961 introduced and thought up by Ashoke Kumar Sen, the then law minister of India, which is a law passed by the Parliament and is administered and enforced by the Bar Council of India. Under the Act, the Bar Council of India is the supreme regulatory body to regulate the legal profession in India and also to ensure the compliance of the laws and maintenance of professional standards by the legal profession in the country. For this purpose, the Bar Council of India is authorized to pass regulations and make orders in individual cases and also generally.
Each State has a Bar Council of its own whose function is to enroll the Advocates willing to practice predominately within the territorial confines of that State and to perform the functions of the Bar Council of India within the territory assigned to them. Therefore each law degree holder must be enrolled with a (single) State Bar Council to practice in India. However, enrollment with any State Bar Council does not restrict the Advocate from appearing before any court in India, even though it is beyond the territorial jurisdiction of the State Bar Council which he is enrolled in.
The advantage with having the State Bar Councils is that the work load of the Bar Council of India can be divided into these various State Bar Councils and also that matters can be dealt with locally and in an expedited manner. However for all practical and legal purposes, the Bar Council of India retains with it the final power to take decisions in any and all matters related to the legal profession on the whole or with respect to any Advocate individually, as so provided under the Advocates Act, 1961.
The process for being entitled to practice in India is twofold. First, the applicant must be a holder of a law degree from a recognized institution in India (or from one of the four recognised Universities in the United Kingdom) and second, must pass the enrollment qualifications of the Bar Council of the state where he/she seeks to be enrolled. For this purpose, the Bar Council of India has an internal Committee whose function is to supervise and examine the various institutions conferring law degrees and to grant recognition to these institutions once they meet the required standards. In this manner the Bar Council of India also ensures the standard of education required for practicing in India are met with. As regards the qualification for enrollment with the State Bar Council, while the actual formalities may vary from one State to another, yet predominately they ensure that the application has not been a bankrupt /criminal and is generally fit to practice before courts of India.
Enrollment with a Bar Council also means that the law degree holder is recognized as an Advocate and is required to maintain a standards of conduct and professional demeanor at all times, both on and off the profession. The Bar Council of India also prescribes "Rules of Conduct" to be observed the Advocates in the courts, while interacting with clients and even otherwise.
All Advocates in India are at the same level and are recognized as such. Any distinction, if any, is made only on the basis of seniority, which implies the length of practice at the Bar. As a recognition of law practice and specialization in an area of law, there is a concept of conferral of Senior Advocate status. An Advocate may be recognized by the Judges of the High Court (in case of an Advocate practicing before that High Court) or by the Supreme Court (in case of the Advocate practicing before the Supreme Court). While the conferral of Senior Advocate status not only implies distinction and fame of the Advocate, it also requires the Senior Advocate to follow higher standards of conduct and some distinct rules. Also, a Senior Advocate is not allowed to interact directly with the clients. He can only take briefs from other Advocates and argue on the basis of the details given by them.From the year 2010 onwards a mandatory rule is made for lawyers passing out from the year 2009-10 to sit for a evaluation test named AIBE ( All India Bar Exam ) for one to qualify as an advocate and practice in the courts
Further, under the Constitutional structure, there is a provision for elevation of Advocates as judges of High Courts and Supreme Court. The only requirement is the Advocate must have a ten years standing before the High Court(/s) or before the Supreme Court to be eligible for such. (Article 217 and 124 of the Constitution of India for High Courts and Supreme Court respectively)
Advocates in Pakistan
Four levels of Advocate exist in Pakistan:
Advocate
The first level is the Advocate, who is eligible to practice in the district courts or lower courts in respective province. One can qualify as an Advocate after completion of a law degree (LL.B of three years),six months pupillage/apprenticeship under a senior Advocate in his/her chambers and thereafter to go for Bar admission test,the Bar Council of the relevant province examine him/her that he is fit or not to become as an Advocate and is not convicted. After passing the multiple choice question examination and interview conducted by provincial Bar Council, the Bar Council will issue him/her the license for appearing before the Courts.
Advocate High Court
Advocate High Court is the second level, and is eligible to practice in the High Courts of Pakistan and below. A license is obtained after successful completion of two year's practice in the lower courts by applicant, which is reviewed by a body of the relevant provincial Bar Council. Most applications after successful completion of the requirement, are accepted.
Advocate Supreme Court
Advocate Supreme Court is the third level. After successful completion of ten years of practice in the High Courts by applicant,the panel of members of Pakistan Bar Council and one judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan,review the application.(Before 1985 the requirement was successful completion of five years practice in the High Courts of Pakistan.) Over fifty percent of applications are accepted, after successful completion of the requirement. An unsuccessful application in one year, does not bar the candidate from re-applying in the next judicial year.
Senior Advocate of Supreme Court of Pakistan
The highest level is the Senior Advocate Supreme Court. It is Pakistan's title equivalent to Queen's Counsel in the United Kingdom. After at least fifteen years of practice, by invitation or by an application to a panel of Supreme Court Judges headed by the Chief Justice of Pakistan, one can become Senior Advocate of Supreme Court of Pakistan. Very few applications are accepted and even fewer invitations are made. Attorneys General are usually invited by the Supreme Court on appointment, to the office. So are some notable High Court judges who upon retirement choose to practice before the Supreme Court, where they are still eligible to do so.
Advocates in South Africa
In South Africa,[2] there are two main branches of legal practitioner: attorneys, who do legal work of all kinds, and advocates, who are specialists; see Attorneys in South Africa. In general, advocates (also called 'counsel') are 'briefed' by attorneys when a specialist skill in court based litigation, or in research into the law is required; advocates have no direct contact with clients, and are said to be in a 'referral' profession. See split profession.
The key formal distinction, however, is the different rights with regard to the courts in which they may appear. Advocates have the right to appear in any court, while attorneys have the right to appear only in the lower courts. (And, under certain conditions, can acquire the right of appearance in the superior courts, by applying to the registrar of the provincial division of the relevant High Court.) [3] A further distinction is that while attorneys practice in partnership, advocates are individual practitioners and never form partnerships; practice in "Chambers" and / or "Groups" is standard.[4]
The requirements to enter private practice as advocates (Junior Counsel) are to hold the LL.B. degree, and to become a member of a Bar Association by undergoing a period of training (pupilage) for one year with a practicing Advocate, and to sit an admission examination. On the recommendation of the Bar Councils, an advocate "of proven experience and skill" with at least ten years experience, may be appointed by the President of South Africa as a Senior Counsel (SC; also referred to as a "silk"). See Legal education in South Africa.
Advocates in Sri Lanka
In Sri Lanka (formally Ceylon) till 1973 Advocate was a practitioner in a court of law who is legally qualified to prosecute and defend actions in such court on the retainer of clients. Advocates had to pass the HSC exam and enter the Sri Lanka Law College and follow the relevant course. Following changers in 1973 the title was replaced with Attorney at law. The current equivalent to an advocate is a counsel who is a trial lawyer distinguished from an instructing attorney.
See also
- Advokat
- Advocatus
- Barrister
- Lawspeaker
- Jurist
- Ombudsman
- Solicitor
- Solicitor-Advocate
- Advocate General
References
- ^ Advocates and Solicitors (Jersey) Law 1997
- ^ sabar.co.za
- ^ "LAW PROFESSIONALS", Department of Labour South Africa
- ^ johannesburgbar.co.za
External links
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