DCHP-2

barrister and solicitor Barrister and Solicitor DCHP-2 (October 2016)

• n. — Law, Professional title

  standard qualification and professional title in Canada to practice law.

  Type: 3. Semantic Change — In the English legal system, the roles of barristers and solicitors are different. A barrister argues cases in court (before the bar), while solicitors “solicit” clients, assist them in matters out of court, and refer them to barristers when required. In Canada outside Quebec (which has a different legal system), the terms have undergone a semantic change from their origin and are currently used compounded as barrister and solicitor (see Image 1) to refer to all persons permitted to practice law in English Canada (see 1959 quote). The phrase thus references the qualification to practice law and is also used as a title or as a more formal term for lawyer. In other countries with legal traditions based in English law, these terms have evolved differently, as seen by the differences in usage indicated in Chart 1. Although the compound phrase is also widely used in New Zealand and Australia, the way lawyers qualify and practice in these countries differs from the system in English Canada.
  See also COD-2, s.v. "barrister and solicitor", which labels the term "Cdn".