What’s the Difference Between a Lawyer, Solicitor and Barrister in Australia?

Author: Ian Aldridge, Progressive Legal

You’ve likely come across the terms lawyer, solicitor, and barrister, but what do they mean? More importantly, what’s the real difference between a solicitor vs lawyer, and where does a barrister fit in? And how does the term attorney apply in Australia?

Whether you’re seeking legal help for your business or exploring a legal career, understanding these roles is essential. This guide breaks down the unique responsibilities of each profession, so you know exactly who to turn to for the right legal support.

What is a Lawyer? 

The term lawyer is a broad and inclusive one. In Australia, a lawyer is any legal professional who has completed a law degree—typically a Bachelor of Laws or Juris Doctor—and obtained a license to practise law. Lawyers are qualified to give legal advice, represent clients, and handle a wide range of legal matters.

Think of a lawyer as an umbrella term that includes both solicitors and barristers. When comparing a solicitor vs lawyer, it’s important to remember that all solicitors and barristers are lawyers, but not all lawyers are solicitors or barristers.

Lawyers can specialise in different fields, depending on their interests and client needs. For instance:

• Criminal lawyers handle offences such as theft, assault, or drug-related crimes.
• Commercial lawyers assist businesses with contracts, transactions, and regulatory compliance.

Understanding the general role of a lawyer helps clarify where solicitors and barristers fit in, and when you might need one over the other.

What is a Solicitor? 

A solicitor is a legal professional who provides legal advice, prepares documentation, manages legal matters from start to finish, and represents clients in situations that typically occur outside of court. In the discussion of solicitor vs lawyer, it’s important to understand that while all solicitors are lawyers, not all lawyers are solicitors. Solicitors are a specific type of legal practitioner with distinct responsibilities and qualifications.

Solicitors usually work directly with clients, offering support on a broad range of legal issues such as intellectual property, commercial law, contracts, and regulatory matters. They are commonly employed by law firms or operate within in-house legal teams in companies and organisations. Their role involves everything from drafting legal documents and advising clients to managing negotiations and handling alternative dispute resolution processes like mediation or tribunals.

They usually work in law firms or in-house legal departments of businesses and organisations. They handle legal matters from start to finish, including drafting legal documents, negotiating settlements, and representing clients in tribunals or alternative dispute resolution processes. 

The definition of a solicitor under the Legal Profession Uniform Law (NSW), is a legal practitioner who has completed a law degree and holds a practising certificate. This certificate is attained after undergoing Practical Legal Training (PLT) and being admitted to legal practice. Afterwards, solicitors must complete 18-24 months of supervised practice before receiving a practising certificate.  

Solicitors are often the first point of contact for individuals seeking legal assistance. They provide guidance, assess the merits of a case, and determine appropriate legal strategies. Solicitors also collaborate with barristers when necessary, engaging their expertise for courtroom representation. 

Typically, a solicitor is the first professional a client will approach when legal advice is needed. They assess the merits of a case, recommend strategies, and may involve other legal specialists if required. If a matter progresses to court, the solicitor will often engage a barrister, a lawyer who specialises in courtroom advocacy, to represent the client. While clients occasionally brief barristers directly, this is uncommon and usually only done in specific circumstances.

Roles of a Solicitor

Solicitors play numerous important roles within the legal system. Here are some examples: 

Drafting Legal Documents

Solicitors are responsible for drafting legal documents such as contracts, agreements, wills, powers of attorney, and other legal instruments. Their job is to ensure that the documents are accurate, comply with relevant laws, and protect their clients’ interests. This requires studying laws, legal precedents, and evidence to prepare for cases.  

Case Management

Solicitors handle case management tasks, including conducting legal research, gathering evidence, interviewing witnesses, and preparing witnesses for court appearances. They examine the legal prospects of a case, assess risks, and develop strategies to achieve the best possible outcomes for their clients. 

Interacting with law enforcement agencies 

Solicitors are expected to liaise with law enforcement agencies for several reasons. These include plea bargaining, issuing subpoenas, applying for court orders, making bail applications, communicating with clients in incarceration, and more.  

Legal Transactions

Solicitors assist clients in legal transactions. These include property transactions, business mergers and acquisitions, commercial leases, and more. They review contracts, negotiate terms, and ensure that the transaction complies with relevant laws and regulations. 

Compliance and Regulatory Matters  

Solicitors advise clients on compliance with laws and regulations specific to their industry or area of law. They assist with regulatory filings, licensing requirements, and ensure their clients’ activities align with legal obligations. 

Dispute Resolution  

Solicitors play a crucial role in alternative dispute resolution methods, such as mediation and arbitration. They help clients resolve conflicts outside of court, promoting cost-effective and efficient solutions. 

Representing Clients 

Solicitors represent their clients in negotiations, mediations, and settlement discussions. They can also appear on behalf of clients in various legal proceedings such as Court hearings, Tribunals, and administrative hearings. Solicitors will usually, however, collaborate with barristers for representation in higher courts and on more complex issues.  

What is a Barrister? 

This is where the distinction between a solicitor and barrister becomes most apparent. A barrister (or barrister-at-law) is a legal professional who specialises in courtroom advocacy. While solicitors handle the preparation and client interaction, barristers are usually engaged for complex legal matters that proceed to higher courts. Their main responsibilities include representing clients before a judge or jury, cross-examining witnesses, and presenting legal arguments.

In the barrister vs solicitor comparison, a key difference lies in courtroom presence. Barristers are typically called upon by solicitors to appear in court and provide expert legal opinions. They focus on specific areas of law such as constitutional law, commercial disputes, construction litigation, intellectual property cases, tax law, insolvency, and criminal defence, among others.

Barristers are generally self-employed and operate independently, though they often work out of shared offices known as chambers. Chambers are collaborative environments where individual barristers maintain their rooms but share administrative support, meeting spaces, and legal research resources.

To become a barrister, you must: 

• Firstly, obtain a law degree like a lawyer does; then 
• Pass an exam set by the Australian Bar Association; 
• Complete the Bar Readers’ Course, and finally 
• Work under the supervision of an approved senior barrister during a readership period of at least 12 months.  

Roles of a Barrister

Barristers play numerous important roles within the legal system. Here are some examples: 

Courtroom Advocacy

The main role of a barrister is to provide courtroom advocacy and advice to clients in relation to prospects of success for a litigation matter. They represent clients in Court proceedings, including trials, hearings, and appeals. Barristers present legal arguments, cross-examine witnesses, and make submissions to judges or juries to advance their client’s case. 

Legal Advice  

Barristers are valued for their depth of expertise and legal knowledge. They provide specialised legal advice to solicitors, organisations, businesses, and individuals on complex legal issues. Barristers assess legal issues, research case law, statutes, and other legal authorities. They offer guidance on the strengths and weaknesses of a case. 

Case Preparation

Barristers engage in extensive case preparation to effectively represent their clients. This involves drafting initiating proceedings such as statements of claims and summons, drafting defences and cross-claims or defences to cross-claims, reviewing evidence, interviewing witnesses, researching legal precedents, drafting legal documents, and formulating legal strategies. Appearing at Court and any pre-trial skirmishes, pre-trial reviews or Court appearances, and at return of subpoena. They work closely with solicitors to gather applicable information and develop the best approach for a case. They drive the case to prepare the matter for ultimate hearing at Court.  

Opinion Writing 

Barristers may be called upon to provide written opinions on legal matters. These opinions examine complex legal issues, assess the strengths and weaknesses of a case, and provide legal guidance to clients and solicitors. These written opinions are important due to their highly valued expertise in specific areas of law.  

Mediation and Arbitration

Barristers may act as mediators or arbitrators, and help parties resolve disputes outside of Court. They facilitate negotiations, encourage settlement discussions, and make impartial decisions in arbitration proceedings. They can draft and advise in relation to offers of settlement or offers of compromise.  

Professional Ethics

Barristers are bound by professional codes of ethics and conduct. They must uphold the highest standards of integrity, confidentiality, and professionalism in their interactions with clients, solicitors, judges, and other legal professionals. Some barristers may be part of ethics committees to provide ethical advice to other lawyers.  

What is an attorney?

In Australia, the term attorney is not commonly used to refer to legal practitioners in the same way it is in the United States. Instead, legal professionals are more often called solicitors, barristers, or simply lawyers. The word “attorney” is typically reserved for specific roles such as patent attorneys or trade mark attorneys. This distinction is important when exploring the differences between legal titles like solicitor vs lawyer or barrister vs solicitor.

In Australia, a patent attorney is a legal professional with additional technical qualifications in a field of science or engineering. They specialise in securing and protecting patents for inventions and innovations, often in high-tech or research-focused industries.

Similarly, trade mark attorneys have a distinct role. Unlike solicitors and barristers, they do not represent clients in court. Instead, they focus on intellectual property matters such as trade mark applications, brand protection, and opposition proceedings. They operate under a separate regulatory framework from lawyers and are governed by a unique professional code of conduct. It’s important to note that the confidentiality shared between a client and a trade mark attorney is not always protected in court the way it is with a lawyer or solicitor.

This illustrates the diversity of legal professionals in Australia and why it’s essential to understand which type of legal expert is appropriate for your specific needs, whether that’s a solicitor, barrister, or a specialised attorney.

Key Takeaways 

In Australia, the terms lawyer, solicitor, and barrister are often used interchangeably, but they refer to distinct legal roles. The term lawyer is a broad category that includes both solicitors and barristers.

A solicitor typically manages the early stages of a legal matter, handling client consultations, providing legal advice, preparing documents, and coordinating the case. When courtroom representation is required, the solicitor will engage a barrister, whose role is focused on advocacy and complex legal argument in higher courts. This division of responsibilities highlights the core difference between solicitor and barrister, and helps clarify the broader solicitor vs lawyer comparison.

Regardless of their specific title, all legal professionals, solicitors, barristers, and lawyers share a fundamental duty to the Court. Their responsibility to uphold justice outweighs even their obligation to their clients, making them officers of the Court in the truest sense.

If you have further questions or are in need of legal representation, do not hesitate to contact our team at Progressive Legal on 1800 820 083 or fill out the form on this page.