Definition of a Civil Lawyer

A civil lawyer, by definition, is a lawyer who specializes in civil law. This may seem painfully elementary, but given the number of legal specializations, it can be confusing. Criminal lawyers are generally the type of lawyers the public is most familiar with--they are the lawyers commonly portrayed on television and in films. The civil lawyer specializes in arbitrating and representing individuals against one another. If we say criminal law is public law, that is, it deals with individuals versus the penal system, then civil law, by contrast, is private law. It negotiates quarrels between private citizens in noncriminal situations.

History of Civil Law

The oldest surviving code of civil law, the Code of Ur-Nammu, was written in Sumeria sometime between 2100 and 2050 B.C. It is a rudimentary form of civil law, but it does set the precedent for a form of reciprocal law. The reciprocity is still at the heart of the modern American legal system, though the severity of that reciprocity has greatly diminished. Rather than demand an eye for an eye literally, modern civil litigants sue for financial compensation. Of course, it is important to realize the Code of Ur-Nammu, indeed all the ancient law codes, including the Code of Hammurabi and the Roman Corpus Juris Civilis of Justinian, all granted legal rights to citizens of the same social caste. Slaves, of course, could not sue members of the free class, and freemen could seldom exact recompense from nobles. This was in order until the development of English common law, especially with the drafting of the Magna Carta and ultimately with the constitution of the United States.

Types

Civil lawyers have a number of subspecializations they can choose from. The most widely practiced form of civil law is contract law. This subspecialization deals exclusively with the issuance and violation of contracts, which are essentially legally biding agreements between two or more people. It is a highly lucrative subspecialization, hence its popularity with civil lawyers. Equally lucrative and popular is family law, which deals with domestic issues that include marriages, child custody and divorces. The least popular but very influential subspecialization is tort law. Tort law establishes how liable an individual can be for the injury, whether intentionally or not, of another individual. It is a very complicated and mercurial specialization of civil law and as such does not tend to be very popular.

Schooling

Civil lawyers must undergo the same basic training all lawyers are required to endure. This requires scoring in the upper 70th percentile for the Legal Scholastic Aptitude Test (LSAT) and acceptance into a law school recognized by the United States Bar Association. Law students must endure the grueling first year, which consists of core classes that familiarize students with legal terminology, mannerisms and codes. The second year finds the law student exploring a chosen specialization, while the third year hones the student's specialization and prepares him for gainful employment.

Misconceptions

The most common misconception with regard to civil lawyers is that they are synonymous with criminal lawyers. Indeed, the entire idea of legal specialization is baffling to many people. Civil lawyers cannot prosecute criminal offenses; they cannot file criminal suits or defend anyone accused of committing a crime. A civil lawyer can file suits, file for injunctions against corporations, petition the court for custody of a child on behalf of a client and defend individuals accordingly. A prominent example is the trial of O.J. Simpson. During the criminal proceedings, Simpson was not defended by civil lawyers but by criminal lawyers.

Civil Rights Movement

The civil rights movement was a direct result of the fundamental precepts of civil law. The tenant that every individual has the right to reciprocity was at the core of this pivotal movement, and civil lawyers were at the forefront of the fight. Though leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr. valiantly led the march into the public's consciousness, it was lawyers like William Kunstler or Ron Kuby who fought the battle in the courts. It can be argued that the eventual passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was the culmination of an undeniable reality. As the NAACP and ACLU began to win one civil rights case after another, battling against desegregation became an embarrassing and untenable position.

Notable Civil Lawyers

The halls of notable civil lawyers are filled with a host of distinguished practitioners of the law. Among the most celebrated and honored are David Boies, who represented Democratic presidential candidate Al Gore during the contested 2000 presidential election; Clarence Darrow, a legendary defender of civil rights; and Geoffrey Fieger, who successfully and repeatedly defended Dr. Jack Kevorkian. Other notable civil lawyers include Barry Scheck, Mickey Sherman and Sarah Weddington, the latter of Roe vs. Wade fame.

Career Prospects

The career prospects for a civil lawyer are always good. Despite economic downturns, there seems to be a perpetual market for qualified civil lawyers. Indeed, as the economy worsens, there tends to be a spike in employment opportunities for civil lawyers, especially those who specialize in contract law. The U.S. Department of Labor Statistics says that as of 2009, "Graduates with superior academic records from highly regarded law schools will have the best job opportunities."

Resources

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