This note has been particularly prepared for and presented to high school students in Turkey. It has been shared here considering that it may be of help for English-speakers as well who are interested in Turkish law system and law practice in Turkey.
Attorney-at-law in general
Attorney – who is legally appointed to transact business on another’s behalf; lawyer. (Merriam Webster’s Dictionary Online)
Attorney-At-Law - a practitioner in a court of law who is legally qualified to prosecute and defend actions in such court on the retainer of the clients.
Counselor-At-Law – One that gives advice in law and manages cases for clients in court.
Lawyer is the general word that we could use for law practitioners who act on behalf of the client before the courts and who gives services on law/legal issues.
In order to be an attorney at law in Turkey, one has to finish the law school after high school.
After finishing the law school, you have to go through a period of apprentice which is one year. This period is a kind of acquaintance period of the student with the law practice if he or she hasn’t experienced the practice before. For the first six months you go to the courts, see how the secretariats of the courts work, how the judge manages with the court files. You mainly concentrate on the judges’ awards and conducts. You can see almost all instances of courts including the criminal courts and execution courts. In the next six months, you are at the office under the guidance of the lawyers who will introduce you to the Bar. At this time you mainly have the opportunity to read the files at the office and see how the file has been carried on by the experienced lawyers. You pay visits to state authorities to get the info you need for the files, you make translations of the contracts you are given, etc. At the end of the year, you submit your documents to the Bar where you plan to practice law and you are given by the TBB Bar Union of Turkey a “Ruhsatname” which is the license to practice law as a lawyer. You are introduced to the Bar by the lawyers that guide you through this period of apprentice.
All lawyers are entitled to be registered at the bar where they are resident.
All lawyers are entitled to keep to the Code of Conduct for Lawyers issued by Bar Union of Turkey. That’s what we call “Avukatlık Meslek Kuralları” and they are used as the criteria for conduct among the lawyers(http://www.barobirlik.org.tr/mevzuat/avukata_ozel/meslek_kurallari/tbb_meslek_kurallari.pdf).
In general when you graduate from the law school, you have a plenty of areas that you can choose from. You can choose to practice as a law practitioner such as a lawyer or a judge or a Notary Public or you can choose to be a journalist or you can choose to work for the government in many levels for the state for example as an ambassador. My point is law covers a huge area of social sciences.
Studying law has many advantages and disadvantages. As you might know, law comes into being through accumulation of the practices of regulations in society, regulations that are practiced among the people, how they interact with each other without harming any others’ rights.
As it is accumulated knowledge of regulations and it is impossible to know every single act, the teachings at the faculty of law mainly focus on the vision and notion of law: Seeing the problem in the discipline of law and reach for the solution as per regulations and laws pending. With this ability you receive at the law school, you learn to “think” in a way, think thoroughly and to question.
What do lawyers do at work?
Our work at the office mostly depends on thinking, writing, listening, researching and learning. Law is such an area of social sciences that you never have the opportunity to know the law totally, the exceptions, and the amendments in laws. What you know at the time may have already been amended by National Assembly through a new law or cancelled by the Constitutional Court. So many renewals, law is like a living creature, needs researching and therefore updating.
During the day sometimes you get visits from the clients or people who can be a client in the future asking for counseling related to their legal problem, looking for solutions.
You write petitions. The court system in Turkey mainly depends on writing. For the pending cases, you write petitions laying your requests from the courts particularly on your case. For writing a petition you must already be prepared mentally or you make up your mind sometimes as you write it.
The abilities and skills the profession requires
Highly related to communication i.e Conveying your ideas on the specific case. Communication of your ideas, the position of your client to the counterparty or to the judge to any authority required.
You should be ready to deal with any kind of people, from people from village to presidents, from illiterate to highly intellectual people. You must know to be able to be flexible to interact with people. Socialization is important.
You need to be prepared for all your tasks. This preparation does not have a specific way. It can be gathering all the information required for judgment; such as visiting the land registry, traveling to other places to find some information.
You need to be open to new ideas and practices – To reach the goal, there may be several ways, and you prefer the easiest and less troublesome way generally.
You need to “know” – You need to use all proper ways of reaching the info i.e. learning. Internet, law books, Supreme Court awards, all the updated information. You never leave your work to chances or you are either ready to take the chances. You need to be ready for all possibilities and that needs rational and analytical thinking.
You need to improve your way of writing and talking skills in the languages you are practicing law. You have to have full command on them both in speaking and talking. Because sometimes you have to deal very small but very important details.
Personal Requirements
Hard work - keep yourself updated
Enjoying what you are doing otherwise it will be a burden on your shoulders because the responsibility is heavy most of the time.
Being both flexible and strict – Strict in your liabilities, flexible in communication.
Being clear of what you want – Making up your mind before you move for the goal.
Being assertive – Pushy about what you want to achieve
Being open to new information, open to hear new occurrences, keep yourself updated
Working conditions – Time and Colleagues
You can
-Work as an independent lawyer; establish an office of your own, collaborate with colleagues on an independent basis
-work as an independent lawyer with partners, establish a partnership and collaborate with colleagues
-work as a lawyer for a group of lawyers, here you are not as independent as it is in working for yourself.
-work for a company as an in-house lawyer; here you are bound to the interests of the company.
- work for the state offices.
In cases which need multiple tasks to be achieved or in cases where there is heavy work, a group of lawyers come together at the same office.
Work environment
You need all means of communication, internet, fax, scanner, etc. Your office is the base for all your conducts. It should be available to have meetings with your client in a private room as what you share with client is subject to confidentiality.
It should be at an available place to reach the courts, where your clients can find it easily, where you can park your car :)
In this profession you should be ready to get to work anytime of the day. Working time is not limited with usual working times, mostly not between 800 -17 00. It will ask for more of your time as the responsibility you take gets bigger. The number and the nature of responsibilities is a fact influencing your working time.
Collaboration is important in order to share your tasks to submit it on the deadline.
What you should improve the most in you
Your dedication and motivation in general and specifically for reaching the goal for the conclusion of the case.
Language skills – Have full command of the language you are practicing law with. Ability to communicate exactly what is in your mind both in writing and speaking.
Speed of reading and processing in your mind – Increases in time as you meet a lot of cases and solve them
Ability to listen to people well and understand their needs.
Detecting your deficiencies and improve them, ability to express yourself and ask necessary questions to help others to express themselves.
The most important criteria to be successful in the profession
To bring together all the above-counted. Respect your profession, respect your client, respect the counterparty. Never underestimate yourself, liabilities and the judge.
Never forget your humanly sides. Keep close to your inner world.
Keys for success: Hard work, high motivation, updating your knowledge, renewing yourself.
