Do you know what areas big-firm lawyers do not touch?

Big-firm lawyers don’t touch divorces and working with one-shot clients (including victims of car crashes, people arrested for drunk driving)

Are all lawyers wealthy people in the USA? Why?

No, because some lawyers who work with one-shot clients struggle to make ends meet.

Who mostly gets legal education in the USA?

People from wealthy families who can afford legal education in the USA.

What do law schools have in common and what differs them?

They are similar in curriculum and method, impose the same requirements (a college degree and the LSAT). They differ from each other in prestige, money and power – and in quality of faculty and students.

What is the ABA?

American Bar Association is the organization of American lawyers.

Can all people afford a service of a lawyer?

No, because service of lawyers is expensive.

In what case does a state provide a lawyer free of charge?

If a person is accused of a serious crime and can’t afford lawyer’s service.

Can a lawyer be provided in civil cases free of charge?

In some cases yes (some lawyers specializing in civil cases provide services free of charge).

How were circuit judges called before the Courts Act 1971?

County court judges

Who assigns a judge in each district?

They are assigned on appointment to a particular circuit and may sit at any of the county courts or district registries of the High Court on that circuit. And at least one is assigned to each district by the Lord Chancellor.

What is a full-time District judge barred from?

A full-time District judge is barred from legal practice.

How were District judges formerly called?

District judges were formerly called registrars: the change of title reflected the fact that their functions are now judicial.

What are District judges responsible for?

They are responsible for procedural steps in court proceedings.

Who were administrative functions of District judges transferred to?

Their administrative functions have now been transferred to substantial staffs of clerks and bailiffs.

Why are judges themselves not a separate profession?

Judges themselves are not a separate profession because they are barristers who have demonstrated competence in litigation and have been elevated to the bench, itself a name derived from the part of the Court where they sit.

In what case can a barrister be elevated to the Bench?

Barrister should show his competence in litigation and then a barrister enters the judiciary at the lower trial level. He is thereafter promoted, if he proves successful in the initial judicial post

At what level does a barrister enter the judiciary?

A barrister always enters the judiciary at the lower trial level.

What are traditional functions of judges?

The traditional function of judges is to apply existing rules of law to the case before them. The judge decides the interpretation of the law. After all the evidence has been given the judge summarizes the case, both law and facts, for the jury. This is called his summing up. Judges are capable of ―making law both through the interpretation of statutes and the doctrine of precedent. When an Act of Parliament makes no provision for the case in question and there is no existing precedent, the judge must, if necessity, create a new law.

What is the fundamental principle of constitutional law?

Judges are not under the control of Parliament, or the Civil Service. The independence of the judiciary is a fundamental principle of constitutional law. Closely related to judicial independence is the doctrine of judicial immunity.

Are all judges paid?

No, there are unpaid judges alongside with the professional judges. They are called ―Magistrates or ―Justices of the Peace. They are ordinary citizens who are selected not because they have any legal training but because they have ―sound common sense and understanding of their fellow human beings.

42. How are Magistrates selected?

Magistrates are selected by special committees in every town and district.

Do JPs have legal training?

They are ordinary citizens who are selected not because they have any legal training but because they have sound common sense.