The solicitor’s route is among the most well-known routes into the legal field But how exactly does a solicitor work? And what exactly is the role of a solicitor? Learn more about the role of a solicitor.
Solicitor Definition and Definition
In the UK lawyers are one who is an official of the profession known as law. They are who is qualified to deal with legal issues like conveyancing, drafting wills, and so on. A solicitor is able to provide advice to clients, as well as represent them in the lower court and even instruct attorneys to defend clients at UK higher Courts.
A solicitor’s job is to listen to the instructions of clients, which could be groups, individuals as well as private and public sector organizations and assist them with the best actions to consider from a legal perspective.
If there is an issue that requires the Court or tribunal the solicitor may instruct barristers to take action for a client. The responsibility of the solicitor is to prepare the barrister’s case. An advocate solicitor, who is granted Rights of Audience, can represent clients in the UK’s top Courts the same way as a barrister could.
Solicitors are very close with their clients, and are often the first source of contact for clients who require legal guidance. The work of a solicitor could be split into legal contentious work – for instance, a probate solicitor who is contentious would look into probate cases involving contentious probate in which the wishes of a deceased individual are in question in addition to non-contentious law work.
Legal work involving contentious issues involves resolving disagreements between different parties and typically involves Tribunal or court appearances.
Legal work that is not contentious concentrates upon the lawful aspects of commercial or personal issue – for instance, tackling the merger of a company or writing an estate plan.
Day-to-Day Solicitor Roles
On a daily basis the role of a solicitor London can be varied, with the following:
Interviewing, meeting and advising clients
The process of drafting and negotiating contract and legal documentation
Offering specialist legal and business advice in different areas of law.
Interpreting and analyzing complex issues of law
Preparing and instructing cases for barristers
What are the practice areas that solicitors Are Practicing in?
There are numerous types of solicitors that work across 24 different areas of practice in law. The type of work solicitors do is based on the specific area within which they are working. For instance the work of the family law solicitor will be different from the work performed by an environmental solicitor.
If you are planning to become solicitor, you’ll be required to give some serious consideration to the field of law you wish to specialize in as this will define the kind of work you will be doing.
Where are Solicitors Located?
Solicitors are either employed by the firm of solicitors or work in-house for either a public or private sector organization.
Law firm
The majority of solicitors begin their career with a legal firm, which provides a mix of on-the job training, as well as pursuing certifications. Most solicitors later specialize in a particular field of law, or work in multiple legal areas.
In-house
In-house solicitors are part of an organization’s legal department. For instance the BBC as well as a number of agencies and charitable organizations have departments for legal. Most in-house solicitors begin their careers in the law firm before transitioning to a position in a legal department within an organization.
Solicitor Working Hours
Most solicitors operate under the standard 9-5 working hours. However, solicitors are often working in a solitary environment, doing research and documents to be completely prepared, manage their workloads and adhere to deadlines.
In some instances – particularly people who represent multinational companies or clients from overseas – they have to work across time zones. Weekend and evening work is not unusual.
The hours of work of solicitors have to be flexible in order to meet clients’ needs. Therefore, the time a solicitor has to work may be unpredictable. The hours that a solicitor is working will depend on the company or organization they are employed by – some provide more regular hours, while others not so.
What is the difference between a Solicitor and a Lawyer?
The sole difference between a solicitor versus lawyer is the location from which the words come from. “Solicitor” is more an British word, whereas “lawyer” tends to be an American word.
In the UK”lawyer” in the UK is not a term used to describe an individual role within the legal system however, it is an general word to cover all those who work as an attorney. Actually, the term “lawyer” does not have a defined definition within UK law, as per the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) the governing body for solicitors.
How many Solicitors Are There In The UK?
The profession of solicitor is one of the most popular professions within the UK. Based on the SRA in May 2022, there were 156,055 solicitors currently working as solicitors. There are 215,567 solicitors in the rolls in England in both Wales.
Which Industry Body are Solicitors Indicated by?
Solicitors are overseen through The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). The SRA also regulates lawyers and other professionals who are not legal inside law companies. SRA is a governing body for solicitors. SRA has a particular code of conduct that solicitors must follow so that they can best serve the interests of their clients as well as the general public.
Legal firms or solicitors that are found to be in breach in the code conduct may be liable to disciplinary action. The SRA website contains more information.