When you’re going to court, do you need and attorney or a lawyer?

That all depends…if whoever you’re writing for is a real stickler for accuracy.

Technically, an attorney conducts business for someone else. A good synonym is agent. One type of attorney is a lawyer.

A lawyer practices law. The lawyer does so by representing plaintiffs and defendants in a court of law. The lawyer also can provide legal advice to clients.

Given this, you may use the word attorney whenever referring to a lawyer. But an attorney isn’t always a lawyer.

Some lawyers prefer to use the term attorney when referring to themselves. This largely is because some believe the word lawyer carries the negative connotation of being dishonest.

If using the term attorney to refer to a lawyer, always make clear that the type of work the attorney is doing is involves legal matters.