In South Africa, the terms attorney, advocate, and legal practitioner are often used in legal contexts, but they refer to distinct roles, qualifications, and responsibilities.
What is a legal practitioner?
Legal Practitioner is a general term used to refer to any legal professional authorised to practise law in South Africa. This includes attorneys, advocates, notaries and conveyancers (notaries and conveyancers are specialised attorneys who have additional qualifications).
In South Africa, a legal practitioner must be admitted to the High Court of South Africa after following certain qualifications and requirements.
What is an attorney?
Definition: An attorney is a legal practitioner who offers general legal services to clients, such as providing legal advice, drafting legal documents, and representing clients generally in lower courts. They manage cases and have direct relationships with clients.
Role: Attorneys primarily work in law firms, assisting clients with day-to-day legal matters such as contracts, family law, criminal defence, and civil litigation. Historically, attorneys were limited to appearing in lower courts (Magistrates Courts) but subject to certain requirements (application to appear before the higher courts), they may appear in lower and higher courts.
Notaries and conveyancers are specialised attorneys (having undergone further training, passed specific exams related to their field and been admitted as these specialised attorneys). Conveyancers focus on property law and property transactions, while notaries have a broader scope of practice, including property law, commercial law, and family law. Notaries also authenticate and notarise legal documents.
Attorneys instruct an advocate for representation in higher courts unless the attorneys have rights of appearance in higher courts and are willing to appear in those courts.
Historically, attorneys with sufficient years of experience could become magistrates but not judges of the higher courts. This is no longer the case.
Qualifications: To become an attorney in South Africa, one must complete an LLB degree, undergo two years of articles of clerkship (a form of practical training), and pass the attorney’s exam.
What is an advocate?
Definition: An advocate is a legal practitioner who specialises in representing clients in higher courts such as the High Court, the Supreme Court of Appeal, and the Constitutional Court). Advocates are often referred to as specialised trial lawyers or litigators .
Role: Advocates provide expert legal opinions, prepare cases for trial, and argue cases in court. Attorneys typically instruct them to represent clients in complex litigation. Advocates act on instructions from attorneys and attorneys act for their clients – the relationship between the advocates and attorneys is therefore direct while the relationship between the advocate and the client is indirect.
Historically, advocates with sufficient years of experience were the only ones who could go on to become judges of the high court (and later, with some years of experience as judges, become judges of the Supreme Court of Appeal, the Constitutional Court or specialised high courts) – this is no longer the case as attorney and advocates can be elevated to these high courts now.
Qualifications: To become an advocate, a person must complete an LLB degree, undergo a one-year pupillage (an apprenticeship under the guidance of an experienced advocate), and pass the Bar exam.
Conclusion
In short, while attorneys and advocates are types of legal practitioners, they differ in their roles, qualifications, and areas of expertise. Attorneys focus more on client relations and general legal services, while advocates are expert litigators who handle cases in higher courts. When a matter turns litigious, or a client requires expert opinion on a complex subject, the attorney will instruct an advocate to handle the matter. It is important to understand that the attorney and the advocate will both be involved in the matter but they fulfil different roles.
All legal practitioners are regulated by the Legal Practice Council and must adhere to the Legal Practice Act.
The information provided is for information purposes and does not constitute legal advice. Contact a lawyer should you require assistance. Legal Dynamix is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice on the subject matter contained herein.
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