16 Different Types of Lawyers
If you need to find legal assistance, it’s important to understand the different types of lawyers and which ones can help you. When reviewing the legal resources available, you must first identify the type of case you’re involved in and how legal representation is beneficial to your situation. By learning about the types of law that various attorneys specialize in, you can better find the right legal representation for your case.
Personal Injury Lawyer
A personal injury lawyer helps a party who is pursuing legal action due to a physical or psychological injury. Common personal injury cases may include truck accidents, slip-and-fall incidents, auto accidents, or other civil cases. These lawyers are tort law experts and focus on getting their clients financial compensation for the pain or damage they’ve experienced.
Estate Planning Lawyer
Estate planning lawyers are also commonly referred to as probate lawyers and they can help you or a loved one plan for proceedings after death. Depending on what you need, a probate lawyer may assist you in creating a last will and testament or signing a power of attorney for your estate. These attorneys are well-versed in preparing legal documents to ensure your loved ones can access your assets after you pass away.
Bankruptcy Lawyer
If you’re in debt and facing bankruptcy, a bankruptcy lawyer may help you prevent filing bankruptcy proceedings with the court. These lawyers understand how to mitigate medical or credit card debt by working with these creditors. A bankruptcy lawyer may contact your creditors to negotiate realistic repayment plans. If negotiations don’t go as planned, they can represent you throughout the bankruptcy process.
Intellectual Property Lawyer
Creative and scientific property and inventions are protected under copyright and patent laws. Intellectual property lawyers represent inventors and creators who feel these laws have been broken. These types of lawyers may also advise their clients on the best ways to protect their intellectual property to prevent it from being stolen or misused.
Employment Lawyer
An employment lawyer is educated in labor laws and may represent either an employer or employee in a case. Disputes over employee benefits, discrimination, or pay are common for employment lawyers to get involved in. If you feel you were wrongfully terminated or paid incorrectly, you may hire an employment lawyer to represent you when pursuing legal action against your employer.
Corporate Lawyer
Corporate lawyers are also referred to as business lawyers and their education and experience are focused on business issues, such as disputes, employment contracts, dissolutions, mergers, or acquisitions. Business owners may hire corporate lawyers to help create legally binding contracts that transfer business ownership or negotiate the sale of a company.
Immigration Lawyer
Immigration lawyers specialize in immigration law and help their clients gain U.S. citizenship. These lawyers assist clients as they navigate the process toward citizenship to ensure it’s completed quickly and correctly. An immigration lawyer may also be hired to represent clients who are facing deportation.
Criminal Lawyer
Criminal lawyers assist with criminal defense when a client is accused of committing a crime, such as a burglary or car theft. These lawyers help counsel clients from the time they are arrested and throughout the trial, including with the investigation and arraignment. Criminal lawyers may help criminals file appeals or negotiate plea deals for lighter sentencing.
Malpractice Lawyer
Professionals that are legally held to a set of standards, such as doctors, lawyers, accountants, and government officials, may have legal action taken against them if they don’t perform their job duties correctly. Malpractice lawyers represent these professionals in court and specialize in investigating these claims and providing evidence that their clients performed their jobs properly. Some attorneys only specialize in medical malpractice while others cover an array of different types of malpractice.
Tax Lawyer
Tax lawyers help business owners or individuals with Internal Revenue Service (IRS) disputes. Business owners or individuals who have complicated tax situations may enlist the help of tax lawyers in addition to accountants to help file taxes. These lawyers are well versed in taxable assets, tax laws, and estates.
Family Lawyer
Family lawyers specialize in family law, which includes domestic disputes, divorces, or child custody cases. Legal separations, alimony, and adoption are also cases a family lawyer may take on. In some cases, these lawyers may need to work together with criminal lawyers to help clients resolve both legal and domestic issues.
Contract Lawyer
Contract lawyers specialize in drafting and executing contracts and may also be hired to resolve conflicts that involve contracts. A contract lawyer must be educated in contract law and be able to clearly interpret the terms outlined in the document.
Social Security Disability Lawyer
Individuals who are pursuing Social Security benefits may need to hire a Social Security disability lawyer if they have issues with their claims. These types of lawyers help clients who were denied benefits, who are facing fraud charges, or who need to dispute the benefit amounts they received.
General Practice Lawyer
General practice lawyers don’t specialize in one specific field and may represent a broad range of clients in legal situations. These lawyers may assist with juvenile justice issues, personal injuries, or other disputes that require legal action.
Civil Litigation Lawyer
Civil litigation lawyers may also be considered general practice lawyers since they take on a variety of cases. These types of lawyers have generalized knowledge of the law and may help with property disputes, domestic issues, or other legal actions. In many cases, civil litigation lawyers deal with contracts and disputes over breaches of these contracts.
Constitutional Lawyer
Constitutional lawyers protect minorities from violations of their constitutional rights. In most cases, advocacy groups hire these lawyers to represent members who want to pursue legal action against individuals or businesses that performed discriminatory actions.
If you need strong defense for a lawsuit that’s been filed against you, it’s important to choose a lawyer who specializes in your type of case. There are many types of attorneys that have education and experience in specific types of law. By identifying and hiring the right lawyer for your case, it’s more likely that you’ll experience a favorable outcome.
