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It's complex. One cannot legally practice law without a license. The definition of that varies by jurisdiction. Fortunately, in my jurisdiction, "practicing law" generally implies taking money, and it's very hard to get in trouble for practicing law without a license. However, my jurisdiction is a bit of an outlier here. Yours might differ. In general, the line is drawn at the difference between providing legal information and legal advice. Generic legal discussions, like this one, are generally not considered practicing law. Legal information is also okay. If I say "the definition of manslaughter is ...," or "USC ___ says ___," I'm generally in the clear. Where the line is crossed is in interpreting law for a specific context. If I say "You committed manslaughter and not murder because of ____, which implies ____," or "You'd be breaking contract ____ because clause 5 says ____, and what you're doing is ____," that's legal advice. The reasons cited for this are multifold, but include non-obvious ones, such as that clients will generally present their case from their perspective. A non-lawyer will be unlikely to have experience with what questions to ask to get a more objective view (or even if the client is objective, what information they might need to make a determination). Even if you are an expert in the law, it's very easy to accidentally give incorrect advice, which can have severe consequences. In practice, most of this is protectionism. Bar associations act like a guild. Lawyers are mostly incompetent crooks, and most are not very qualified to provide legal advice either, but c'est la vie. If you've worked with corporate lawyers, this statement might come off as misguided, but the vast majority of lawyers are two-bit operations handling hit-and-runs, divorces, and similar. In either case, it's helpful to give the disclaimer so you know I'm not a lawyer, and don't rely on anything I say. It's fine for casual conversation, but if tomorrow you want to start a startup which helps people with legal problems, talk to a qualified lawyer, and don't rely on a random internet post like this one. |