An attorney is a lawyer, but a lawyer may not necessarily be an attorney.

On television, in advertisements, and from our friends, we often hear reference to

lawyers and attorneys. Despite the ease of categorizing these two words as
synonyms, they do in fact mean different things. The difference is only slight, but it
matters a great deal to state bar associations, particularly in the investigation and
prosecution of unauthorized practice of law cases. However, practically speaking, the
terms have become interchangeable in the United States.
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A lawyer is simply one who is trained in the law. They may or may not provide legal
guidance to another. Thus, anyone who has attended law school in the United States
can consider themselves a lawyer. However, until they pass the bar exam in the
jurisdiction in which they intend to work, the method by which they use their lawyering
skills is limited. For example, a policy advisor or consultant to the government, who
attended law school, is technically a lawyer and may offer his skills in the course of his
work, but he must not cross the fine line into providing legal representation.
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An attorney or attorney at law is also a lawyer. They have attended law school and
presumably practice the study of law as a career. However, attorneys by
definition have passed a bar examination and have been admitted to practice law in the
particular jurisdiction. They may go beyond the realm of lawyer and provide legal
representation to an individual. The relationship is more than merely providing the
factual state of the law and delves into providing strategy for the clients needs in
reference to the law. An attorney can also appear in court and other settings on behalf
of a client. An attorney is also a lawyer, but a lawyer may not necessarily be an attorney.
Want to complicate matters more? The term esquire is also a source of confusion in the
legal world, thanks in part to its use in the United Kingdom. In the UK, esquire is an
unofficial title of respect or honor. It is used not only for barristers and solicitors (two
other terms for lawyers/attorneys in Great Britain), but is also an honor bestowed upon
doctors and Ph.D. graduates. However, in the United States, esquire has become,

almost exclusively, a title used by attorneys. Some states, in the prosecution for
unauthorized practice cases, have used as evidence the fact that the a non-lawyer signed
documents with Esquire behind his/her name in order to hold themselves out to the
public as an attorney. However, no court in the United States has ever convicted an
individual for unauthorized practice of law merely for using esquire. In cases where the
party was guilty and esquire was a factor, he was doing other things that amounted to
unauthorized practice of law.