Since the 12th century, the legal profession has held a position of trust among the general public. When a lawyer appears in court, it is understood that he will represent his client to the best of his ability. The character of a lawyer is based on his analytical, critical and relational skills. Sometimes these skills may not be enough and his ability to act properly on behalf of his client will be called into question. The essay will detail the general concept of an attorney's competence, the disciplinary remedies in place to discourage this behavior, and what the paralegal can do to maintain the integration of the law firm. West's Encyclopedia of American defines competence as "possession of necessary reasoning skills or legal qualifications." ; qualified; able; sufficient." It is immediately presumed that an attorney has, at a minimum, received training in the law and has passed his or her state's bar examination in practice. The prospective attorney has been trained and tested on various aspects of general law , on the specialty he has chosen and possibly on the psychological effects that a trial, whatever it may be, could have on the mind as well as the body Training at this level is designed to reassure the student. about being ready to move forward and achieve greatness. This can be a big challenge for some aspiring lawyers. Instead of getting nervous, they should remember that they don't have to. 'invent the law, but simply apply it to their client's defense When a lawyer is confident in his or her ability to practice law, everyone wins. As the ABA states: “A lawyer must. providing competent representation to a client » A lawyer must recognize that the basis on which he relies on his... middle of paper ...... State of California, the State Bar's primary jurisdiction concerns regulation. lawyers. However, the law allows it to take limited action against non-lawyers in certain circumstances. The main difference between a paralegal and an attorney is that a paralegal does not hold a license to practice law. Under the supervision of an attorney, a paralegal may represent the client at a hearing and add value to the practice, but ultimately the attorney is responsible for the client and the product produced by the paralegal. The lawyer-paralegal relationship is a very important business relationship. Your paralegal is the manager of your office and should be treated as such. It takes a lot to manage chaos in a law firm and it can become very stressful at times. It is important to remember that the paralegal is not a lawyer and that time is money..