In England and Wales, a distinction is drawn between two sorts of lawyers – barristers and solicitors.

When people need legal advice, they contact a solicitor. Solicitors deal with people from a broad cross-section of the community and can offer skilled advice on all kinds of legal matters – from buying a home to selling a company. When people want to transfer a house, flat or piece of land from one person to another, they can also choose to consult a licensed conveyancer. This is a particular type of legal expert who is trained and qualified in property law and deals with the paperwork and finances involved in buying and selling property (in England and Wales).

Solicitors can also represent their clients in court – mostly in the lower courts, although some have advocacy rights in higher courts. Most solicitors are in private practice in firms that range from multinational City firms with hundreds of staff to high street offices as sole practitioners. Other solicitors have jobs in local government, law centres, the civil service, commerce and industry.

Barristers generally act on instruction from solicitors and usually have little or no contact with members of the public. Barristers perform two roles:

• When specialist expertise is needed, they give opinions on complex matters of law.
  
• When clients require representation in the higher courts (Crown Court, High Court, Court of Appeal and House of Lords), barristers provide a specialist advocacy service.