There is only one category of lawyer (Rechtsanwalt). A Rechtsanwalt is a private practice lawyer, advising clients on all legal matters and representing them before authorities and courts or other dispute resolution bodies. The Rechtsanwalt takes part in the administration of justice with the duty to abide by professional ethics principles, especially the principle of independence (section 1, Federal Lawyers' Act (Bundesrechtsanwaltsordnung)). An in-house lawyer (Syndikusrechtsanwalt) is also categorised as a Rechtsanwalt (section 46(2), Federal Lawyers' Act).

German law also recognises the patent lawyer (Patentanwalt). A Patentanwalt is not a fully qualified lawyer, but instead a scientist or engineer with special legal training. A Patentanwalt advises and represents clients in specific fields, especially in proceedings before the patent office or the patent court. Besides this specific area, a Patentanwalt has very limited powers (sections 3-4, Patent Lawyer's Act (Patentanwaltsordnung)).

Lawyers must pass two state exams. The first state exam concludes the academic education at university and the second concludes a subsequent two-year traineeship (Rechtsreferendariat). This requirement is the same for private practice and in-house lawyers.

Patent lawyers must complete a scientific or technical university degree, gain practical experience and undergo a 34-month legal traineeship.

In addition to the necessary qualifications, lawyers must have sufficient insurance coverage. When these requirements are met, the candidate is automatically admitted to the bar by receiving a written certificate. There is, currently, no requirement to renew the certificate or undergo any further education. While any lawyer is, in principle, obliged to continue their training throughout their professional career, there is no obligation to follow certain courses, a set number of training hours and no monitoring.

Lawyers are not limited in their capacity to advise or represent their clients, either geographically or regarding the area of practice.

The only exception is the representation of clients in civil proceedings before the Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof), Germany's highest court in civil and criminal matters. In this case, the litigating party must appoint a lawyer who is specifically admitted to the Federal Court of Justice.

A patent lawyer's field of practice is generally limited to intellectual and industrial property rights matters.

The general rights and duties of a lawyer are codified in the Federal Lawyers' Act (Bundesrechtsanwaltsordnung). This is supplemented by the Rules of Professional Practice (Berufsordnung für Rechtsanwälte), made by the Federal German Bar Association (Bundesrechtsanwaltskammer). Together, these regulations set out the basic rules of qualification as a lawyer, the general obligations of a lawyer and the disciplinary powers of the bar associations. Both sets of rules are accessible via the internet. The Federal German Bar Association, for example, makes both available for download in German and English at: www.brak.de/fuer-anwaelte/berufsrecht .

The key legislation is that set out in Question 5.

In principle, a lawyer is entitled to conduct all litigation before any court. The only exception is representing clients in civil proceedings before the Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof), Germany's highest court in civil and criminal matters. To conduct these proceedings, the lawyer has to be admitted to the Federal Court of Justice.

In a civil matter before a local district court, the parties are entitled to conduct the litigation themselves. However, this is only permitted in cases at first instance with an amount in dispute of EUR5,000 or less.

In other civil matters, the parties must be represented by a lawyer. In proceedings before the Federal Court of Justice (FCJ), the parties must be represented by a lawyer who has been specifically admitted to the FCJ.

Individuals accused in minor criminal matters are entitled to represent themselves. In major cases, such as capital crimes, or cases regarding national security, the accused must be defended by a lawyer (section 140, Code of Criminal Procedure (Strafprozessordnung)).

Parties to administrative law proceedings are entitled to conduct proceedings on their own behalf. If a party chooses to be represented, this does not necessarily have to be done by a lawyer. They may choose to be represented, for example, by a law professor, a tax adviser or a union representative (section 67, German Rules of the Administrative Courts (Verwaltungsgerichtsordnung)).

German law allows law firms to be organised in various forms. Law firms can be incorporated as a joint stock company or a corporation under foreign law (for example, as a limited liability partnership (LLP) under English law). However, the traditional and still most common forms of organisation are the:

Most LLPs apparently have converted into partnerships due to Brexit because it is evident that they lose their advantage, the limited liability of their partners, and are treated as civil law partnerships.

MDPs are allowed in limited cases. Lawyers are permitted to form MDPs with patent lawyers, tax consultants, tax agents, accountants and certified auditors for the purpose of a common exercise of profession (section 59a, Federal Lawyers' Act). However, in a recent decision, the Federal Constitutional Court held that this limitation is in breach of the constitutional right to freely pursue professional activities (Bundesverfassungsgericht, decision of 12 January 2016, case no. 1 BvL 6/13). This means that the list of professionals with which lawyers can form MDPs has been widened to include engineers, architects and others.

Foreign lawyers can only practise in Germany in accordance with the principles explained in Question 3. Without permission, lawyers cannot advise, in particular on German law, and represent clients in German courts. Foreign law firms can establish a presence in Germany but to fully advise clients the lawyers must qualify in Germany. Foreign law firms enjoy less protection in Germany than German firms do. This was recently established with respect to the searching of premises by the German Federal Constitutional Court. The Court held that the premises of a foreign firm were lawfully searched by a prosecutor to obtain a memo produced for the client of the respective firm.

Traditionally, the provision of legal services is reserved for lawyers. However, legal services can be provided as a supplementary service to another main profession (section 5, Legal Services Act (Rechtsdienstleistungsgesetz)). This includes, for example, legal advice provided by insurance advisers related to legal aspects of insurance, or by banks related to investment management issues. In addition, section 2(2) of the Legal Services Act allows for the collection of debts (Inkasso) as legal services.

Law firms often offer pro bono services to charitable or non-profit organisations. Law students are also allowed to offer pro bono services, subject to certain restrictions.

There are no restrictions on self-employed lawyers to providing legal services on a freelance basis. In principle, any lawyer can advise clients on cases of every kind and scale.

Foreign lawyers from EU member states can work in private practice as a foreign lawyer in Germany. After practising in Germany for three years, an EU lawyer can apply to be admitted as a German lawyer (Directive 98/5/EC on qualifications of lawyers (Qualification of Lawyers Directive)).

Lawyers from member states of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) can apply for permission to practise in the law of their state of origin, as well as international law, in Germany (section 206, Federal Lawyers Act).

Lawyers from an EU member state, Switzerland or a country of the European Economic Area can be admitted as a European lawyer (German European Lawyer's Act) (Gesetz über die europäischer Rechtsanwälte in Deutschland).

Lawyers from countries that are not listed above, but that are members of the World Trade Organization (WTO), are allowed to advise on their domestic law and international law (section 206, Federal Lawyers' Act) (see Question 3).

Registration with the bar association is mandatory. In general, a foreign person may be registered with the bar association if they have worked in Germany for three consecutive years in the fields of German and European law. However, European lawyers who have not met this condition might still be registered if they can demonstrate sufficient knowledge of German law in a court hearing.

Admitted European lawyers do not need to pass further qualifying tests to practise in Germany.

European lawyers and foreign lawyers from a WTO member state must use the official title of their state of origin.

The regulatory authorities responsible for lawyers are the Federal German Bar Association and the regional bar associations (Rechtsanwaltskammern). The Federal German Bar Association consists of the 27 regional bar associations and the bar association of lawyers at the Federal Court of Justice (see www.brak.de/die-brak/regionale-kammern/adressen-der-regionalen-rechtsanwaltskammern/). The geographic areas covered by regional bar associations correspond to those of the higher regional court districts, or parts of them.

The German regulatory system is self-regulatory. The bar associations have disciplinary powers regarding breaches of the Federal Lawyers' Act or the Rules of Professional Practice (see Question 4).

The Federal German Bar Association offers an online register of all admitted lawyers in Germany. It includes a search option and can be accessed via www.rechtsanwaltsregister.org. In addition, some local bar associations offer an online register for the respective district with more specific search options (for example, allowing searches for lawyers who specialise in certain fields of law).

A lawyer must be a member of the regional bar association of their place of business (section 12, Federal Lawyers' Act). However, being registered with a regional bar association does not impose any geographical restrictions on a lawyer's work. The website of the Federal German Bar Association is accessible via www.brak.de.

The contact details are:

Section 92 of the Federal Lawyers' Act establishes the lawyer's court (Anwaltsgericht). The lawyer's court is an institutionalised form of self-regulation. It is organisationally linked to the specific regional bar association and is composed of lawyers only. It has jurisdiction over matters regarding the infringement of rules of professional conduct by lawyers.

The lawyer's court has the power to apply a range of disciplinary sanctions. These range from a warning for a first time and minor infringement that did not harm the interests of a client, to a fine up to EUR25,000 or exclusion from the bar.

The jurisdiction of the lawyer's court is not exclusive. Depending on details of the misconduct, the lawyer can also be sued before an ordinary civil court or prosecuted in a criminal court.

Indemnity insurance is required to be registered with the bar association and admitted to work as a lawyer. The minimum level of coverage is EUR250,000 per insurance case.

Under German law, the mandatory insurance for lawyers is considered regular pecuniary damage liability insurance. It is therefore only subject to the specific rules of German insurance law, which includes a general obligation on the insured party to immediately inform the insurance company about an insurance case.

German lawyers are not allowed to act for one party if they have advised another party with a conflicting interest in the same case. A conflicting interest is not limited to a legal interest, but also extends to economic interests.

This restriction also applies to all lawyers who are organisationally connected to the conflicted lawyer, especially colleagues in the same law firm (section 43a, Federal Lawyers' Act and section 3, Rules of Professional Practice). However, under certain circumstances (for example, in an extrajudicial case, or with the clients' consent), the firm may act if informational barriers are in place.

When a lawyer becomes aware of a conflict of interest, the lawyer must resign all mandates concerned. Continuing to act while conflicted will result in the loss of the lawyer's right to remuneration, as the retainer contract will be considered void. Acting under a conflict of interest might also be a criminal offence, with sanctions of up to five years' imprisonment (section 356, German Criminal Code). The lawyer can also be sanctioned by the bar association, with sanctions including exclusion from the bar.

One lawyer cannot represent more than one party in a transaction because this usually entails conflicting interests. The only exception is a case where the parties have already agreed on everything and only appoint the lawyer to formalise their agreement.

The laws on the conflict of interest require the lawyer to resign all mandates concerned. Once a conflict of interest arises, it is not sufficient to resign only one mandate. Therefore, it is important for German lawyers to maintain a working system designed to avoid any appearance of a conflict of interest from the beginning of any mandate.

In general, complaints should be addressed to the respective regional bar association where the lawyer is registered. The relevant bar association can be found using the online register (www.rechtsanwaltsregister.org).

A lawyer can refuse to hand over client files until they are fully paid. This only extends to documents which the lawyer received from the client or on behalf of the client for their professional purposes (section 50(3), Federal Lawyers' Act).

The situation regarding client money is more complex. Lawyers must immediately forward client or third party funds to the authorised beneficiary or hold them in a separate trust account on behalf of the beneficiary (section 43a(5), Federal Lawyers' Act and section 4(2), Rules of Professional Practice). Any other use of client or third-party money may be considered embezzlement, which under German criminal law can be sanctioned with a fine or imprisonment for a period of up to five years (section 266, German Criminal Code).

However, as these provisions establish a general civil law claim for the client money, the lawyer may set off against it their own civil law claim against the client for payment of fees. This does not extend to client or third-party-money intended for a specific use, for example, court fees or alimonies (section 4(3), Rules of Professional Practice).

An agreement between a lawyer and their client is considered an agency agreement, and therefore falls within the scope of the general rules on agency agreements under German civil law (section 675, Civil Code). However, it is common to contractually define the scope of the lawyer's mandate and their rights and duties, and also to include clauses regarding the lawyer's fees and any limitation of liability. The length and detail of client engagement communications can vary from three-line notes to comprehensive contractual definitions of various aspects including, for example, dispute resolution clauses.

Lawyers must advise their clients as comprehensively and exhaustively as possible. The lawyer must constantly assess any information they receive about the client's case or project and instruct the client about the possibilities and risks of certain undertakings. In particular, a lawyer must advise their client on ways to mitigate legal risks. However, these obligations end when a case is finished.

A lawyer is under no obligation to accept a mandate and may resign a mandate if certain conditions are met. One condition is that the resignation must not be untimely, meaning that the client will not be able to retain another lawyer in due time.

There are no formal barriers to accessing any lawyer.

All knowledge about a client gained by the lawyer during the course of their professional activity is confidential (section 43a(2), Federal Lawyers' Act and section 2, Rules of Professional Practice). An unlawful breach of confidentiality is a criminal offence and may be sanctioned with a fine or imprisonment for a period of up to two years (section 203, German Criminal Code).

A lawyer must breach confidentiality if they obtain knowledge that the client is planning to commit certain capital crimes. A failure to notify the authorities would constitute a criminal offence by the lawyer (section 138, German Criminal Code).

Confidentiality is not breached if the lawyer acts with the client's consent, to safeguard legitimate interests or in a socially adequate way (section 2(3), Rules of Professional Practice).

The confidentiality of communications between a lawyer and their client is protected by the right to refuse to testify (section 383(1), paragraph 6 and section 53(1), paragraphs 2 and 3, Code of Criminal Procedure).

In general, in-house lawyers have the same rights and privileges as other lawyers (section 46(2), Federal Lawyers' Act). With respect to civil law procedures, the privileges are the same. In criminal proceedings, an in-house lawyer is generally not entitled to refuse to testify (section 53(1), paragraph 3, Code of Criminal Procedure).

The Lawyer's Fees Act (Rechtsanwaltsvergütungsgesetz) provides for a regulated tariff system which calculates the fees due for the lawyer's services in a certain case according to the amount in dispute or the value of the matter. However, it also allows for individual fee agreements, such as the agreement of hourly rates (section 3a, Lawyer's Fees Act).

While a fee agreement may provide for fees that exceed the statutory framework, the fees for a litigation mandate may not be less than the statutory fees (section 49b, Federal Lawyers' Act and section 4, Lawyer's Fees Act). German law allows the winning party in litigation to recover its lawyer's fees from the losing party. However, this claim for reimbursement is generally limited to the amount calculated in accordance with the tariff system of the Lawyer's Fees Act.

Contingency fees are generally inadmissible, unless the client would otherwise be barred from pursuing their rights due to their financial circumstances (section 4a, Lawyer's Fees Act).

The Lawyer's Fees Act tariff system is still frequently used to calculate lawyers' fees, as it is the traditional form for fee agreements, especially for litigation mandates. Time based fees or project related lump sum agreements are also regularly agreed between lawyer and client. They are commonly used by major law firms.

A fee agreement must be made in writing, labelled as a fee agreement and clearly separated from other agreements (section 3, Lawyer's Fee Act). A fee agreement for a litigation matter must also inform the client that in case of a successful outcome, the claim for reimbursement of the lawyer's fees is limited to the amount of the statutory tariff fees, regardless of the actual costs.

Client and third party money must be kept in a separate trust account or forwarded immediately to the beneficiary (section 43a(5), Federal Lawyers' Act and section 4(2), Rules of Professional Practice). There is no supervisory authority apart from the bar associations.

The German Money Laundering Act applies to lawyers if they contribute to (section 2(1), paragraph 7, Money Laundering Act (Geldwäschegesetz)):

The Act also applies if they act on behalf of the client in financial or real estate transactions In these cases, lawyers must meet certain due diligence requirements, such as the identification of the client and, if applicable, the actual beneficiary of a transaction, as well as some book keeping obligations. The German Money Laundering Act also imposes a disclosure obligation on lawyers if there is evidence that a certain transaction might be a money laundering act.

The Federal German Bar Association requires law firms with more than ten lawyers to appoint a special anti-money laundering officer, if the law firm regularly deals with cases to which the German Money Laundering Act applies.

An infringement of the obligations imposed by the German Money Laundering Act can be sanctioned by a fine of up to EUR100,000. Money laundering is a criminal offence and may result in imprisonment for a period of up to ten years (section 261, German Criminal Code).

Notaries are independent holders of a public office and must be neutral, impartial and discreet. Notaries must be used for real estate purchases (section 311b, Civil Code).

Notarial certification of leases is only necessary if they include other obligations that require the involvement of a notary, for example, a lease including an option for the tenant to purchase the real estate. A notary is also required:

The Court and Notary Fees Act (Gerichts- und Notarkostengesetz) provides for a fee tariff system comparable to the Rechtsanwaltsvergütungsgesetz tariff system applicable to lawyers' fees. Tariffs are generally calculated according to the value of the matter.

Notaries in several federal states may only hold the public office of the notary and are not allowed to join law firms. These states are:

In all other federal states, a notary is allowed to work as a lawyer-notary and may join a law firm.

Regional notary bar associations (section 65, Federal Act on Notaries (Bundesnotarordnung)) and a federal notary bar association (section 76, Federal Act on Notaries) are self-regulatory bodies for the notarial profession.

The President of the Regional Court and the Higher Regional Court are the supervisory authorities of the notaries in their respective districts, and the state justice administration is the supervisory authority for notaries in the respective federal state (section 96, Federal Act on Notaries).