A criminal defense lawyer is a lawyer specializes in the defense of persons and companies charged with illegal behavior.
Criminal defense lawyers contract with the issues surrounding the apprehension, searches of client or property, and arrest of his or her client as well as any statements the client may have made. Criminal defense lawyers also deal with the substantive issues of the offense with which his or her clients are charged. In the United States criminal defendants are allowed to the presumption of innocence until prosecutors prove each essential element of a crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Serious crimes (e.g. felonies) in the United States are tried to juries of twelve people and the jury must be unanimous in its verdict to either convict or acquit the defendant. A split in the jury is often called a "hung jury" and may result in a retrial of the defendant. Criminal defense lawyers actively pursue their client's cause through all stages of a criminal prosecution.
Criminal defense lawyers in the United States who are employed by governmental entities such as counties, states, and the federal government are often referred to as public defenders. These are often fresh law school graduates seeking to gain quick courtroom experience, but there are many older, extremely well experienced lawyers who have made public defending a lifetime vocation. There are also private defense lawyers who are retained by individual clients on a case by case basis.
Criminal defense work can be intimidating to some lawyers as the specter of a client going to jail for long periods of time or even being subjected to capital punishment looms over some defendants.
A rules lawyer is a participant in a rules-based environment who attempts to use the letter of the law without reference to the spirit, usually in order to gain an advantage within that environment.Often this term is used pejoratively, as the "rules lawyer" is seen as an impediment to moving the game forward. The use of this term is common in war gaming and role playing games. The term may have originated in military service, with sea lawyer (in the Navy).and "barracks lawyer" in the United States Army. Nevertheless, the habit of players to argue in a legal fashion over rule implementation was noted early on in the history of Dungeons and Dragons. Rules lawyers are one of the "player styles" covered in Dungeon Master for Dummies. The rules of the game Munchkin include various parodies of rules lawyer behavior.
A personal injury lawyer is a lawyer who provides
legal services & illustration to those who claim to have been injured, physically or psychologically, as a result of the carelessness or bad behavior of another person, company, government agency, or other entity. Thus, personal injury lawyers tend to be especially knowledgeable and have more experience with regard to the area of law known as tort law, which includes civil wrongs and economic or non-economic damages to a persons property, reputation, or rights.
Even though personal injury lawyers are qualified and licensed to practice virtually any field of law, they generally only handle cases that fall under tort law including, but not limited to: work injuries, automobile and other accidents, defective products, medical mistakes, slip and fall accidents, and more.
The expression "trial lawyers" can refer to personal injury lawyers,[citation needed] even though most cases handled by personal injury lawyers settle rather than going to trial and other types of lawyers, such as defendants' lawyers and criminal prosecutors, also appear in trials.
A corporate lawyer is a lawyer who specializes in corporations law. The role of a corporate lawyer is to ensure the legality of commercial transactions, advising corporations on their legal rights and duties, including the duties and responsibilities of corporate officers. In order to do this, they must have knowledge of aspects of contract law, tax law, accounting, securities law, bankruptcy, intellectual property rights, licensing, zoning laws, and the laws specific to the business of the corporations that they work for.
