Any dispute would have two parties, and proper justice requires that the arbitrating agency hear out both sides. For such ‘hearing’ to take place, both parties or their representatives must be present to argue their case and present their views. However, the parties themselves may not be able to argue their case for a variety of reasons. They might be ignorant of relevant laws, short of arguing ability, subjective in their viewpoint or physically incapable to be present for the hearing. It is here that the lawyer comes in. A lawyer is a representative of the party who argues their case, and with his special knowledge makes a committed and efficient protestation.

In most jurisdictions, the lawyer to practice law must have a proper recognized degree and registration from local authorities within the jurisdiction he wants to practice in. A law firm is an institution wherein more than one lawyer come together to offer their services from a common platform. This has many advantages: they get institutional recognition, attract better and more clients, pool their specialization, or specialize in a specific area (say, company law).

Unfortunately, for various reasons lawyers have had a bad reputation. Often lawyers have misled their clients, charged overwhelmingly, or acted in concert with others who had an interest in stretching the litigation. This has given a bad name not just to the lawyers but the distribution of law in general, and made people reluctant to take legal recourse even when there is scope for such action. However, law is a necessity, and often one must deal with law, even if against one’s wishes. Being a very specialized activity not everyone can everyone specialize in law, and hence lawyers and law firms become our indispensable friends during our troubles.

In this section of the webdirectory, we provide links to various legal resources, lawyers and law firms.