A jurist is a person with expert knowledge of
law; someone who analyses and comments on law. This person is usually a specialist legal scholar, mostly (but not always) with a formal qualification in law and often a
legal practitioner. In the United Kingdom the term "jurist" is mostly used for legal academics, while in the United States the term may also be applied to a judge. With reference to
Roman law
Roman law is the legal system of ancient Rome, including the legal developments spanning over a thousand years of jurisprudence, from the Twelve Tables (c. 449 BC), to the '' Corpus Juris Civilis'' (AD 529) ordered by Eastern Roman emperor J ...
, a "jurist" (in English) is a jurisconsult (''iurisconsultus'').
The English term ''jurist'' is to be distinguished from similar terms in other European languages, where it may be synonymous with
legal professional, meaning anyone with a professional law degree that qualifies for admission to the legal profession, including such positions as judge or attorney. In
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
,
Scandinavia
Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and S ...
and a number of other countries ''jurist'' denotes someone with a professional law degree, and it may be a protected title, for example
in Norway. Thus the term can be applied to attorneys, judges and academics, provided that they hold a qualifying professional law degree.
In Germany the term "full jurist" (''Volljurist'') is sometimes used informally to denote someone who has completed the two state examinations in law that qualify for practising law, to distinguish from someone who may have only the first state examination or some other form of legal qualification that doesn't qualify for practising law.
Notable jurists
Some notable historical jurists include:
See also
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List of jurists
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History of the legal profession
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History of the American legal profession
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Legal profession
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Paralegal
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Islamic jurist
References
External links
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Legal professions
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