What is the difference between a solicitor and a lawyer?

Procurador y abogado: ¿Cuáles son sus diferencias fundamentales?

Aunque trabajan juntos y ambos son licenciados en Derecho, la figura del abogado y la del procurador cumplen roles muy distintos y no son intercambiables. Conocer sus diferencias es fundamental para entender el funcionamiento de nuestro sistema judicial. Analizamos las 7 claves que los distinguen.

Table of Contents

Representation and defence

The relationship with the client

The focus of their work

Involvement in the proceedings

Channels of communication

Remuneration

Entry into the profession

When do you need a solicitor and when do you need a barrister?

Summary

Within the complex Spanish legal system, there are two professional roles which, although they work closely together, are often confused: the procurator and the lawyer. Both hold a degree in law, but their roles, responsibilities and functions during legal proceedings are different and incompatible. Understanding what each does is essential for anyone facing litigation.

Whilst the role of a lawyer is universal, that of a procurator is unique to the Spanish legal system. If you’d like to find out more about their specific role, you can read our article on what a procurador is and what their functions are. In this guide, however, we will focus on analysing the seven key differences between these two professionals.

Representation and defence

The most important difference – and the one that defines everything else – lies between the functions of representation and defence.

The procurator is the client’s technical representative before the courts. They do not participate in strategy or defence, but act as the official link with the judicial system, ensuring that the proceedings are conducted correctly.
The solicitor is the defender and strategist. Their role is to provide legal advice to the client, establish the defence or prosecution strategy, draft the main legal documents (claim, defence, appeals) and present oral arguments at trial to persuade the judge. Their focus is on the substance of the case.

The relationship with the client

The nature of their legal relationship with the person they are assisting is also different.

The relationship with the solicitor is formalised by means of a power of attorney for legal proceedings (power of attorney on record or notarised power of attorney ). This document certifies that the solicitor has the authority to act on the client’s behalf, receive notifications on their behalf and file documents in their name.
The relationship with a solicitor is based on a contract for the provision of services. The client engages the solicitor to provide their expert knowledge and advice.

The focus of their work

One might say that the procurador deals with the ‘how’ and the ‘when’, whilst the lawyer deals with the ‘what’.

The solicitor is the expert in procedural law. Their day-to-day work involves managing deadlines, submitting documents via computer systems, receiving and processing notifications, and ensuring that every step of the process complies with the formal requirements laid down by law.
The solicitor focuses on the substance of the case: the facts, the evidence, the applicable laws and case law to build the case. Their job is to win the case through argument.

Involvement in the proceedings

The obligation to engage each professional (known as ‘ representation in proceedings ”) varies depending on the jurisdiction and the type of proceedings.

Civil proceedings: a solicitor and a legal representative are mandatory when the value of the claim exceeds €2,000.
Criminal proceedings: both are required, except in trials for minor offences, where the defence may be handled by a solicitor alone.
Administrative litigation: in collegiate bodies (such as the High Courts of Justice), both are mandatory. In single-judge courts, only a solicitor is mandatory, whilst a legal representative is optional.
Employment proceedings: this jurisdiction is the most flexible. The parties may represent themselves or choose to be represented by a lawyer, a solicitor or a labour relations specialist.

The channel of communication

The court clerk acts as the official channel of communication between the court and the legal team. All formal communications from the court (notifications, summonses, deadlines) are sent to the court clerk, who is responsible for forwarding them immediately to the solicitor.

The solicitor is the client’s direct and trusted point of contact. It is the solicitor with whom the client speaks, clarifies any queries and decides on the course of action to take.

Fees

The way in which they charge for their services is another significant difference.

Court clerks do not set their own fees. Their remuneration is fixed by law through an official fee scale. This ensures that their services have a pre-established and transparent cost.
Solicitors, on the other hand, agree their fees freely with their client, depending on the complexity of the case, the work to be carried out and their professional standing.

Entry to the profession

Here we find a similarity that often causes confusion. Since the legal reform, the academic route to becoming either is the same:

Bachelor’s degree in Law.
Master’s degree in Law and Legal Practice.
Professional aptitude test.

However, despite this common route, once the exam has been passed, the professional must decide which path to take and register with the bar either as a solicitor or as a barrister. The professions are incompatible and cannot be practised simultaneously.

Summary table

Characteristic	Legal Agent	Solicitor
Main role	Representation and handling of legal proceedings	Defence and advice
Relationship with the client	Power of attorney for litigation	Service agreement
Scope of work	Procedure and timeframes (the ‘how’)	Substance of the case (the ‘what’)
Communication	Official channel with the court	Direct point of contact for the client
Fees	Fees regulated by law	No fixed fees

When do you need a solicitor and when do you need a barrister?

Having analysed the differences, we can summarise the situations in which the involvement of each is crucial:

You mainly need a solicitor to:

Act as your official representative in court, signing and submitting documents on your behalf.
Receiving all notifications, summonses and deadlines sent by the court in a secure and certified manner.
Ensuring that all procedural requirements are met in a timely and proper manner, thereby avoiding formal errors.
To manage the payment of court fees and any other deposits required by the court.

You mainly need a solicitor to:

Receive legal advice on your rights and options before initiating any proceedings.
To define the strategy for your case, whether you are bringing a claim or defending yourself.
Draft the key documents for the trial (the claim, the defence, appeals, etc.).
To defend your interests and present arguments on your behalf during the oral hearing.

Summary

Ultimately, a solicitor and a barrister are two sides of the same legal coin. They are neither rivals nor the same; they form a team in which each plays a specialised and irreplaceable role. Whilst the barrister provides the strategy and the defence, the solicitor ensures that the wheels of the legal process never grind to a halt. Understanding the differences between them is the first step towards truly understanding how the justice system works.

Sources consulted