England and Wales[edit]
The term was also used in England and Wales for lawyers who practised in the common law courts. They were officers of the courts and were under judicial supervision.[1] Solicitors, those lawyers who practised in the courts of equity, were considered to be more respectable than attorneys and by the mid-19th century many attorneys were calling themselves solicitors.[1] In 1873, the Supreme Court of Judicature Act abolished the term "attorney", and attorneys were redesignated solicitors.[2] Attorneys did not generally actually appear as advocates in the higher courts, a role reserved (as it still usually is) for barristers.
In England and Wales,[3] references in any enactment to attorneys must be construed as references to solicitors of the Senior Courts.[4]