Using the services of lawyers
Legal professions
Trust is the most important thing in the relationship between a principal and an attorney-in-fact. When choosing a candidate for an attorney-in-fact, one should be thorough and keep in mind the risk of an attorney’s careless actions.
As mentioned above, there is no obligation to use a professional attorney-in-fact in administrative proceedings. However, by appointing a competent attorney-in-fact, a party protects itself from the consequences of their ignorance of the law.
Professional attorneys are lawyers or legal counsels – very similar jobs which involve providing legal aid. Only persons practicing these professions are authorised to provide legal aid. However, a professional attorney-in-fact may not be the best candidate because he may specialise in a different branch of law.
Each of the above mentioned jobs:
- is regulated by law (act on the legal profession - ustawa prawo o adwokaturze - and act on legal counsels - ustawa o radcach prawnych)
- is organised according to the rules of professional self-government;
- is treated as a public trust position;
- this involves, among other things, the necessity of possessing specialist knowledge, acquired, as a rule, during legal training (a 4-year-long post-graduate specialisation), and confirmed by a state exam;
- the practice of such a profession is described in the above mentioned corporate acts, and, additionally, in the professional code of ethics, the text of the pledge, or corporate traditions.
Lawyers and legal counsels are authorised to practice their profession after they have been entered into the register and have taken the pledge (art. 65 of the new act on the legal profession and 23 of the act on legal counsel).
Disbarment may follow from, e.g. disciplinary prosecution.
Whether or not our chosen lawyer or legal counsel has the right to practice his profession can be checked on appropriate web pages:
National Register of Lawyers and Legal Counsels (Krajowy Rejestr Adwokatów i Aplikantów Adwokackich)
National Chamber of Legal Counsels (Krajowa Izba Radców Prawnych)
Lawyers and legal counsels are obliged to observe ethics (regulated accordingly in the Lawyer’s Code ofEthicsEthics - Kodeks Etyki Adwokackiej and in the Legal Counsel’s Code of Ethics - Kodeks Etyki Radcy Prawnego) and they cannot depart from them in order to please the client.
Disciplinary proceedings against lawyers and legal counsels may be started if they act against the law, ethics or the dignity of the profession, or for a breach of professional duty - among other things. A disciplinary penalty, apart from an admonition or fine, may also be disbarment and removal from the above mentioned list. Lawyers and legal counsels are obliged to keep confidential all information which they have learned in the course of providing legal aid.
A legal counsel may refuse to provide legal aid only for important reasons, but even if he terminates the power of attorney, gives notice of a mandatory contract, or a contract of employment, he is obliged to perform all necessary actions to make sure that the case is not adversely affected.
In court lawyers and legal counsels wear court dress – gowns (a lawyer's gown has a green ruffle while a legal counsel's - blue).
Lawyers and legal counsels are obliged to have liability insurance to cover for damages done while providing legal aid.
In court lawyers and legal counsels wear court dress – gowns (a lawyer's gown has a green ruffle while a legal counsel's - blue).
Lawyers and legal counsels are obliged to have liability insurance to cover for damages done while providing legal aid.