What can a Lawyer Do?

For instance, Steve Jobs visits a school and hire some talented person to work for him to change the
world; what can you guarantee him that you can help him do that?

He hires some programmer, software engineer, aesthetic artist, accountant and marketing major. He
then looks at the law department and accidentally found you because nobody is there. He asks you what
a lawyer can do to change the world.

Make an intellectual answer that will make the law industry proud. 20%

For the general question of what a lawyer can do to change the world to a better one. Lawyers
study eight subjects in general, namely: Political Law, Labor Law, Civil Law, Criminal Law, Remedial Law,
Ethics, Mercantile Law and Taxation.

Political Law which is the study of the organization and operations of the governmental bodies of the
State and defines the relations of the State with the inhabitants of its territory. There are certain laws
that affect the private business world. If a business can really help a small town, the local government in
that town may, upon its power of appropriation, take it by paying just compensation. A lawyer can
protect the business industry from the power of appropriation of that local government by appealing to
the higher court reasons why it will affect the economy at large by way of discouraging businesses. In
simple words, lawyers may also be involved in promoting business growth in every country in this kind
of unreasonable appropriation.

Labor Law means the code that governs employment practices and relationship between employer and
employee. This law makes sure that employer and employee has equal rights so that a boss may not
abuse an employee, and vice versa, an employee may not make unreasonable demand to his employer.
A programmer in a company may not demand unreasonable loans when such practice is not permitted
by the companys policy. A boss may not demand an overtime work when there will be no compensation
for such grind.

Civil Law is that branch of Law that focuses on the personal and family relations of a person, his property
and successional rights, and the effects of obligation and contracts. Possession, Modes of Acquiring
Ownership, Obligation, Contracts and Partnership are all part of Civil Law that is also part of business.
Usually, criminal law punishes those who committed crimes by locking them up in jail until they get old
there and die. Those who violated civil law are penalize by way of compensation and forfeiture of
properties. Civil Law may serve as a warning to those who plans to make some illegal deed against Apple
Company, because the consequences constitute all the properties that they possess.

Criminal Law is that law that expressly defines a crime and provide for its penalties. Imagine if there is
no penalty for murder, rape and robbery. Every property that you have and will be getting will be
robbed by the most violent criminals. Your mother, sister and daughter are at the mercy of rapist. Every
person that has more powerful weapon and army will be the most authoritative people, and we will live
like animals in the jungle without food chain pyramid cycle. Lawyers can make this world better by
prohibiting violence to govern.

Remedial Law is that branch of law which prescribes the method of enforcing rights or obtaining redress.
If there are or no certain procedure to obtain accurate evidence, then, miscarriage of justice should be
expected to be the result of every litigation. For instance hearsay will be allowed as evidence; the
malefactor may just pay a fictitious witness and make a false statement that may convince the court
that it is true. Remedial law makes a certain guidelines to filter all testimonies and evidences to arrive at
the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

Legal Ethics is a branch of moral science, which treats of the duties which an attorney owes to the court,
to the client, to his colleagues in the profession and to the public as embodied in the Constitution, Rules
of Court, the Code of Professional Responsibility, Canons of Professional Ethics, jurisprudence, moral
laws and special laws. Lawyers know the rules, and they also know the exception on these rules. In one
case, a lawyer advertises his expertise on annulling marriage. When such doing is allowed, there will be
a lot of marriages that will not be truthful. Some men will just marry woman for sex and when they get
all what they want; such person will call the said lawyer who mastered the annulment case and find
another one. Legal Ethics will prevent lawyers to break the law which they are bound to protect. It is
very painful as a lawyer to be disbarred after all the sacrifices that he had in law school.

Commercial Law is that branch of private law which regulates the juridical relations arising from
commercial acts. This law deals with the business. Lawyers of this expertise are the one that Steve Jobs
needed. This part of law provides the rules on making a corporation, making loans, insurance, copy
rights, patents and trade mark. It is also the law that prevents foreign corporation to be established here
in the Philippines. If there is no commercial law, we may be a country called Philippines but run by
foreigners. Lawyers will be the hero of local Filipino businessman because they prevent foreigners from
bringing their product here that may suppress and destroy the local commerce industry. There are lots
of cases where a product is counterfeited by other competitors. The law, specifically in Intellectual
Property Code, protects products and services by giving a penalty to those who make the same product
which appears to be identical twin of the first one who made it. Copy rights, Patents and Trademark are
some of the ways to prevent someone from stealing said original work.

Taxation law. This law is the life blood of the government. It includes all contributions imposed by the
government upon individuals for the service of the state. If there is no tax, there will be no government
and the businessmen will be the one who will control the country. We will run by the private sectors
who have interest of their own. Taxation law makes a government represented by public officials that
are elected by the people. This elected people are expected to advance the interest of the general public
by way of tax.

In terms of helping Steve Jobs to change this world, I can help him by making sure that everything that
Apple does and done with it is in accordance with the law. It may involve one of the laws mentioned
above as the circumstances requires.
In my response to changing the world, I will say that, if everyone just follows the law, we will make a
better world. In that way a lawyer can change the world like what you (Steve Jobs) envision.