what exactly is an attorney?

Question

what exactly do they do?

Answer 1

Attorneys are legal advocates. They are, essentially, problem solvers. Most of what an attorney does actually does not involve litigation! It involves working with a client to solve the client's problem in the best way possible for the client. Sometimes that does indeed mean that the client will pay some damages, or even allow themself to be sued. Sometimes that means nothing more than writing a polite letter, or making a phone call on the client's behalf. Rarely, it means going to trial.
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Answer 2

Attorney (planting attorney): Non-resident proprietors hired someone to whom they gave a 'power of attorney' to manager their properties. This 'attorney' might be a resident proprietor, a merchant, a lawyer, or an old experienced overseer.

Generally speaking, an attorney, or attorney-at-law, is a person who is a member of the legal profession. An attorney is qualified and licensed to represent a client in court. By most definitions, an attorney may act on the client’s behalf and plead or defend a case in legal proceedings. The English word attorney has French origins, where it meant “a person acting for another as an agent or deputy.”

Answer 3

An attorney and a paralegal are very similar.

An attorney and paralegal do work in substantive areas of the law to represent clients in the most zealous manner possible. The attorney and paralegal differ in that:

1) A paralegal can't appear independently in court.
2) A paralegal can't set legal fees.
3) A paralegal can't establish an attorney-client relationship.

To become an attorney, you'll need to get a 4 year college degree, then go to law school for three years for a J.D. -- you'll then need to pass the bar exam.

Answer 4

An attorney at law (also known simply as an attorney or lawyer) in the United States is a person licensed to practice law by the highest court of a state or other jurisdiction.

Once admitted to practice by the highest court of a state (a function sometimes administered by the state's bar association), an American attorney may file legal pleadings and argue cases in any court of that state (federal courts, usually require a separate admission), provide legal advice to clients, and draft important legal documents such as wills, trusts, deeds, and contracts.