The lawyer represents and defends before the courts or the courts of individuals, companies or communities. These can be civil cases (divorces, successions, disputes ...) or criminal (contraventions, misdemeanors, crimes ...). It can also be requested by companies as advice.
Business description
Lawyers are more and more specialized. Local lawyers, who solve the problems of daily life (family law, labor law, etc.), remain by far the most numerous. But it is business law and business consulting that are the most promising niches today.
Companies that do not have a legal department regularly hire outside lawyers to handle day-to-day legal, business or financial matters. Even if they have in-house lawyers, they can also hire a lawyer to resolve more complex issues.
The lawyer often performs several functions (legal advice and defense).
Legal advice is given mainly to companies (multinationals, banks, insurance companies). The objective is often to avoid the risk of lawsuits detrimental to the company. In the event of a dispute, the lawyer acts as a mediator, seeking to reconcile the opposing parties.
The criminal lawyer is specialized in the treatment of crimes and misdemeanors. He can serve both the victim and the perpetrator. In the service of the alleged offender, he represents his client during immediate appearances, police custody, pre-trial detention, investigation and then trial. He meets his client several times before the trial, puts together his file and drafts the documents necessary for the defense. He assists the accused before the examining magistrate to ensure that their rights are respected, as well as the hearing of witnesses and expert opinions. During the trial, he supports the cause of his client by his interventions and a final argument. As part of the victim's defense, his role will be to obtain compensation for the damage caused.
To practice, the lawyer must be registered with a bar (all the lawyers attached to a high court).
Whatever his specialization, the lawyer is a dossier man. With a great capacity for work, he has a spirit of synthesis and analysis and a capacity for logical reasoning. Oratory and editorial skills are essential assets for exercising this profession.
The lawyer is subject to the rules of ethics of his profession.
Studies / Training to become a lawyer
To become a lawyer, you must have:
an M1 or M2 in law (criminal law or criminal sciences, social law, tax law, etc.)
CAPA - certificate of aptitude for the profession of lawyer
Future lawyers prepare for their profession in one of the regional professional training centers for lawyers (CRFPA) commonly known as the law school. There are a dozen of them (list available on the website of the National Bar Council).
The CRFPAs are accessible by very selective examination (35% admitted) to law students at master's 1 level (or holders of an equivalent degree) of French nationality or a member of the European Union. But most of the candidates hold an M2. Possibility of preparing for the entrance exam to the CRFPA via the institutes of judicial studies (IEJ) or a private preparation. The entrance exam to a CRFPA can only be attempted three times.
The training lasts 18 months and is organized according to 3 modules:
6 months training in CRFPA,
6 to 8 month module devoted to a specialized educational project,
6-month internship in a law firm at the end of which one passes the CAPA, certificate of aptitude for the legal profession.
The lawyer takes an oath and registers with the bar of his choice.
Note: obtaining a mention of specialization (business law, community law, etc.) is often necessary due to the complexity of the laws, the increased importance of contracts, the enlargement of the European area and the the appearance of new rights (consumer, IT, environmental law, etc.).
Wages
At the start of their career, a lawyer earns between € 1,800 and € 2,700 gross per month.
The hours of a lawyer are freely agreed (fees calculated on the basis of time spent, fixed price or result)
Then, the remuneration varies according to each situation (reputation, activity, location of the firm). The average monthly income in the profession would be around 5,000 €. But there are obviously very strong disparities.
Career developments
At the end of their internship, three options are available to young graduates: to be recruited as an employee, to become a collaborator of a firm (with the possibility of developing their own clientele) or immediately opening their own law firm. (uncommon case).
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