Last march, the Case Forensic has published a report which highlighted the difference that there is between the demand and supply law: in essence, in Italy there are more lawyers than those who wouldThis will have an unavoidable impact on the income of lawyers, which in recent years has dropped significantly because of a decline in prices due to too much competition. The problem is that for lawyers, there is not only competition from their colleagues, but also that of the experts in the law who give legal advice while not being registered in the register. A competition that may be unpleasant for the lawyers and to become such they have invested time, effort and money, but legitimate.
In fact, as reiterated by the Court of Cassation, in several judgments, even a non lawyer can give legal advice and not only that, it even has the right to a remuneration for the services provided.
Not always, however, this is possible, since there are cases in which legal advice is the exclusive lawyers. Before answering this question we must remember what are the conditions that a practitioner would to call himself a lawyer.
To become a lawyer today, it is necessary to have obtained a Law degree and have passed a State exam. Furthermore, you must be regularly enrolled to the professional Register and to the Cassa Forense and more is required to have their own VAT number. A long and difficult path, which is mandatory for all those who want to offer legal assistance The law establishes that the assistance of a lawyer is mandatory for the reasons above. one hundred euro before the Court, but also to the justice of the peace, a citizen can neither represent himself or to be assisted by a legal expert if you are not enrolled in the Register. Of course, the assistance of a lawyer is mandatory not only for the assistance and defence before the courts, but also for all the related activities, such as the drafting of the acts in question, which can not be performed by a practitioner, or assistance in a mediation (when this is obligatory). With the exception of these areas of exclusivity, however, legal advice can also be provided by a non-lawyer, as confirmed in a judgment by the Court of Cassation. Of course, in most cases, a lawyer has greater expertise on the legal aspects in respect to those who, despite having studied for years the right, is not. Yet there are people who prefer to ask for an opinion to other people rather than to a lawyer, usually because the compensation owed is lower. In this regard, we report on the judgment n° of the Court of Cassation, with which the judges of the Palace of Justice reaffirmed that: the performance of intellectual work in the field of legal assistance is reserved to those enrolled in the registers forensic only within the limits of the representation, assistance and defence of the parties and, in any case, the direct cooperation with the Court as part of the process. Outside these limits, the activity of legal advice and assistance may not be considered confidential to the members in the professions. For activities out of court, so lawyers do not have the exclusive For example, you can resort to a non-lawyer to seek legal advice, the important thing is that this is not intended for the subsequent defense in court. But a non-lawyer can offer his assistance for a claim to an insurance company for a claim, to respond to a cease and desist letter, or to the drafting of an agreement or a transaction. For these activities, therefore, who is not a lawyer is not likely to be convicted of the crime of illegal exercise of the profession, “be punished with imprisonment up to six months or with fine from one hundred and three euros to five independent euro” (article of the Criminal Code). On the other hand is the european Community itself to defend the principle of freedom of provision of services, for which a professional service can be delivered by anyone, for the exception of the limited circumstances expressly reserved by law to the members in the professions.
The Court of Cassation, with the above decision, has recognised that the non-lawyer, the right to remuneration for the consultancy provided.
On the other hand, as reiterated by the Supreme Court in the recent judgment n° in, also the professional advice expressed through e-mail has the right to be paid.
The important thing is not to become experts in the law who provides legal advice with a perception of a compensation must take their own responsibility and in the case of an error, compensate your customer.
When, however, the legal assistance relates to the edge cases expressed by the law there is no right to compensation, even when the action of the abusive was useful to the client. Indeed, the latter can ask back as much as eventually paid, without refund of the non-lawyer for the expenses incurred.
