Lawyer in Austria

Any lawyer in Austria must be a member in the Austrian Bar Association. The Bar Association also supervises disciplinary issues. The compensation of an attorney in Austria is determined according to the Lawyers’ Tariffs Act, but lawyers in Austria may as well be free to set their fees. Austrian attorneys can be recommended by the directory of lawyers of the Austrian Bar Association. The local Chamber of Lawyers selects a disciplinary council that supervises the professional work of the Austrian attorneys.

Admission

In order for a lawyer in Austria to be admitted in the Bar Association, he must graduate a law school and then fulfill a period of extensive training consisting of several years of court clerkship and employment as a trainee lawyer. In total, a person who wants to become a lawyer in Austria must make proof of at least five years of legal professional work. Nevertheless, a candidate for the Austrian Bar Association must pass a bar exam. Candidate attorneys in Austria should also attend training courses at the Chamber of Lawyers prior to examination. If a foreign lawyer wants to practice in Austria, he must make proof of his professional admission in his home country, provided that he comes from a EU member state. In addition to that, he must practice for at least three years in Austria before he applies for full admission.

Forms of practice

Austrian Bar Associations have set up information centers where people can come and ask for legal advice for free. This is one option of legal practice in Austria, since this type of advice can only be provided by attorneys who are members in a Bar Association in Austria. Lawyers can also work in Austrian municipal courts. Nevertheless, Austrian lawyers usually prefer to practice the legal profession in their own law office or as employees at a law firm in Austria.

Activities

The main activity of a lawyer in Austria is to provide legal advice to whoever needs it. The proper help of an attorney in Austria can be required when setting up a business in Austria, selling or buying properties, marrying or divorcing, writing wills or defending rights. Austrian attorneys also represent their clients in courts. 

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