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Advocate

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Advocate

An advocate is a professional in the field of law. Different countries and legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a barrister or a solicitor. However, in Scottish, Manx, South African, Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Scandinavian, Polish, Israeli, South Asian and South American jurisdictions, "advocate" indicates a lawyer of superior classification.

"Advocate" is in some languages an honorific for lawyers, such as "Adv. Sir Alberico Gentili". "Advocate" also has the everyday meaning of speaking out to help someone else, such as patient advocacy or the support expected from an elected politician; this article does not cover those senses.

In England and Wales, Advocates and proctors practiced civil law in the Admiralty Courts and also, but in England only, in the ecclesiastical courts of the Church of England, in a similar way to barristers, attorneys and solicitors in the common law and equity courts.

Advocates, who formed the senior branch of the legal profession in their field, were Doctors of Law of the University of Oxford, Cambridge, or Dublin and Fellows of the Society of Doctors' Commons.

Advocates lost their exclusive rights of audience in probate and divorce cases when the Crown took these matters over from the church in 1857, and in Admiralty cases in 1859. The Society of Advocates was never formally wound up, but its building was sold off in 1865 and the last advocate died in 1912.

Barristers were admitted to the Court of Arches of the Church of England in 1867. More recently, Solicitor Advocates have also been allowed to play this role.

Advocates are regulated by the Faculty of Advocates in Edinburgh. The Faculty of Advocates has about 750 members, of whom about 460 are in private practice. About 75 are King's Counsel. The Faculty is headed by the Dean of the Faculty who, along with the Vice-Dean, Treasurer, and Clerk are elected annually by secret ballot.

The Faculty has a service company, Faculty Services Ltd, to which almost all Advocates belong, which organized the stables (sets of Advocates or barristers' chambers) and fee collection. This gives a guarantee to all newly called Advocates of a place. Until the end of 2007, there was an agreement with the Law Society of Scotland, which is the professional body for Scottish solicitors, as to the payment of fees, but this has now been replaced by the Law Society. It remains the case that Advocates are not permitted to sue for their fees, as they have no contractual relationship with their instructing solicitor or with the client. Their fees are honoraria.

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