What is the difference between a Barrister, Lawyer or Solicitor?

First of all, we’ll start with the ‘blanket term’. A Lawyer is a generic term used to describe any qualified and regulated legal professional, such as your solicitor and barristers. 

 

 

A solicitor is a qualified person who can provide legal advice, generally on a specific area of law. All solicitors have to undertake a set period of training (normally for a period of 2 years, and this is called doing their articles) and pass certain exams. Solicitors can work in places such as law firms, or they may choose to work in places such as in Court, or in the Public Sector. 

Solicitors cover a wide range of legal matters, but your Solicitors in Lancaster, MG Legal, offer services in Family Law, Wills and Probate matters, drafting Lasting Powers of Attorney, Trusts, Property Law and “No Win, No Fee” Personal Injury Claims. 

A barrister is also a qualified legal person, who normally represent individuals, organisations and companies in Court. Quite often, solicitors will instruct a barrister on behalf of their client, to attend Court alongside the solicitor, or with another individual from the firm. 

 

Like solicitors, barristers usually specialise in one area of law, and are also experts in their chosen subject. Arguably, and the writer may receive criticism for this, a barristers court craft may often better that of their instructing solicitor. If you think of a barrister as a travelling solicitor, with an expertise in attending court, then you’re not far off the mark. 

 

 

As a first step, contact your Solicitors in Lancaster, here, for initial advice. You can discuss the costs involved with your legal matters, and any time scales with them during your initial consultation. You can also email enquiries@mglegal.co.uk. If you need to go to Court, or obtain a barrister’s opinion, our team can help you to arrange this.