What Types of Lawyers Are There?

If you watch television or drive along the highway, some days it can seem like every other person in the world is a lawyer. Despite the proliferation of billboards and commercials for law offices, that isn’t the case. 

That said, there are thousands of lawyers in the United States practicing hundreds of types of law.

One of the things that we tell every client is that it is important to have the right type of lawyer representing you. The law is just too complex for any single attorney to practice every type of law. When we give that advice, clients often ask, “What types of lawyers are there?”

Below, we have compiled an overview of many of the types of lawyers who work at Morgan & Morgan. If you have more questions, contact us to schedule a free case evaluation and speak with an attorney who will answer all of your questions.

What Types of Lawyers Are There at Morgan and Morgan?

Every lawyer at our law firm practices civil law. But that doesn’t mean that every attorney can handle every case we get. There are many practice areas in civil law, and most lawyers only have experience with a few of them.

Car Accident Attorneys

Lawyers who practice car accident law need to be familiar with insurance companies, their policies, and the claims process. They also need to understand the rules for determining fault in the states where they practice. Because traffic and fault rules differ from state to state, most car accident lawyers only practice in a few states.

Furthermore, not all car accident attorneys can handle all accident cases. Truck, motorcycle, or pedestrian accident cases often require different skill sets from standard car accident cases. We have lawyers at our law firm who focus on these areas.

Medical Malpractice Lawyers

Attorneys who deal with medical malpractice often have backgrounds in medicine. These lawyers must understand the complex regulations that medical practitioners need to follow and the types of harm that can occur when those rules are broken.

Many medical malpractice lawyers focus on specific types of malpractice so that they don’t have to constantly learn about new drugs, procedures, or ailments. Learning about a new type of malpractice can easily take weeks or months.

Premises Liability Attorneys

This area of law is one where lawyers regularly interact with corporate attorneys and corporate insurance policies. Nearly every defendant in a premises liability case is a business of some type. This can be advantageous or challenging depending on the circumstances of the case.

Lawyers who deal with premises liability often have to work through a lot of red tape. However, they may have the opportunity to get a quick settlement when a business is trying to avoid bad press.

Workplace Law Attorneys

Typically, workplace law attorneys have clients who have been unfairly fired. Similar to attorneys who practice premises liability, these types of lawyers often deal with business lawyers and insurance companies.

By comparison, these cases tend to be more complex than premises liability cases. Labor laws differ by state, but there are also federal laws that apply regardless of location. Lawyers who handle these types of cases usually expect them to last longer due to complicated legal issues.

Business Litigation Lawyers

This area of law stands out because it is one of the few areas where our attorneys sometimes are corporate lawyers. Business litigation involves cases where at least one of the sides is a business. And sometimes both sides in a dispute are businesses.

Corporate law is easily as complex as any other practice area. And like some other practice areas, attorneys working in business litigation usually need to understand applicable state and federal laws to properly represent their clients.

Civil Rights Attorneys

At Morgan & Morgan, we are proud of our civil rights lawyers. These individuals fight to prevent the government from violating the rights of average people.

Civil rights attorneys must stay up to date with all rulings made across the country in civil rights cases. Interpretations of the Constitution change almost daily, and experienced lawyers need to be able to reference relevant past cases to protect their clients. It is a grueling practice area but very rewarding when it prevents persecution.

Class Action Lawyers

Almost any type of law can potentially end in a class action case. But not all attorneys have experience dealing with class action lawsuits. When a lawyer from another practice area is handling a case that has the potential to become a class action lawsuit, they consult with other attorneys in the law firm.

This is one of the reasons that our law firm is so large. Class action lawyers partner with attorneys who focus on specific areas of law. This partnership ensures that the class action lawsuit runs smoothly.

Data Breach Attorneys

Lawyers who handle data breach cases are relatively uncommon, only because this is a relatively new area of law. These attorneys need to have a strong understanding of the internet, digital assets, and the various means of digital intrusion.

It is also an area of the law that crosses over with criminal law. Since our lawyers don’t handle criminal cases, this means that they may need to cooperate with other attorneys or with law enforcement agencies.

Defective Product Lawyers

There are two different types of defective product cases: cases that involve products known to be defective and that have already harmed many people, or products that typically aren’t defective but nevertheless harmed someone.

The former type of case is similar to a medical malpractice case. Typically, one or two attorneys in our law firm who have studied the information available for the defective products handle those cases. This experience lets them work on these types of cases efficiently and effectively.

The latter type of case is handled by general defective product attorneys. These lawyers have experience dealing with corporations and often have contacts in several industries whom they can call on for expert testimony.

Arbitration Specialists

Technically, any attorney can deal with arbitration, but we prefer to include a specialist in most cases that go to arbitration. The rules of arbitration are similar to the rules that apply in a courtroom but different enough that they can cause trouble for anyone who isn’t familiar with them.

Arbitration lawyers generally work with attorneys who focus on other practice areas, so they don’t need to understand too much of the law that applies to the case. For the most part, they need to be skilled at negotiating and getting all sides to agree to a fair settlement.

Sexual Abuse Attorneys

If there is any area of law where it is critical to have a lawyer who is experienced with the practice area, it is sexual abuse. Sexual abuse attorneys need to be compassionate litigators who don’t cause more harm while handling a case. This is a difficult tightrope to walk, which is part of why this field has so few lawyers in it.

Often, the goals in a sexual abuse case are different from those in other personal injury cases. Getting money for a client may be a secondary consideration, depending on the circumstances and the mental health of the victim.

Sexual abuse lawyers also typically have some of the hardest cases of any attorneys in our law firm. Damages are almost entirely punitive, and evidence is often difficult to find. Most attorneys who practice this type of law do it because it is important to them, even though they know that the cases will be hard to win.

Social Security Disability Lawyers

Social Security disability cases are common enough and complicated enough that some attorneys practice this type of law exclusively. These cases combine many of the employment law issues that workplace lawyers face with the red tape that the federal government tends to create.

Lawyers who work in this type of law also need to have a good understanding of medical disabilities. It takes a lot of work for an attorney to become experienced in this discipline, but once they are, the work is usually plentiful.

Environmental Attorneys

One of the main perks of being an environmental lawyer is travel. Environmental attorneys need to see the damage personally to understand the extent of the case. These types of cases often involve large settlements and class action lawsuits, so an environmental attorney might work on only one case every few years.