Jurist
A Jurist (from Latin jur-, jus) is a person with expert knowledge of law; he is usually a specialist legal scholar with a formal qualification in law and often a legal practitioner.
History
In the UK, the degree of Doctor of Laws is a somewhat higher doctorate, ranking above the PhD, awarded upon submission of a portfolio of advanced research. It is also often awarded honoris causa to public figures (typically those associated with politics or the law) whom the university wishes to honour. In most British universities, the degree is styled "Doctor of Laws" and abbreviated LLD; however, some universities award instead the degree of Doctor of Civil Law, abbreviated DCL, or Doctor of Law, still abbreviated LLD.
In Canada, there are several academic law-related doctorates: the Doctor of Laws (LL.D.); Doctor of Juridical Science or Doctor of Legal Science (J.S.D./S.J.D); Doctor of Civil Law (D.C.L.); and the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.). The Doctor of Jurisprudence (Juris Doctor or J.D.) is the professional doctorate degree that is usually required for admissions to post-graduate studies in law.
In Germany, Scandinavia and a number of other countries jurist denotes someone with a professional law degree, and it may be a protected title. A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD / J.D.) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. The JD was proposed in the United States at the end of the 19th century as the equivalent of the German J.U.D. (juris utriesque doctor; doctor of both laws, secular and ecclesiastical), to reflect the advanced study required to be an effective lawyer.
Germany
The Doctor of Law(s) (German: Doktor der Rechte) is the terminal degree in law, abbreviated as Dr. iur. (Doctor iuris) or Dr. jur. (Doctor juris). In the later Middle Ages and in the early modern period of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation, the degree of Doctor of both laws (Iuris Utriusque Doctor, Dr. iur. utr.) was the highest possible qualification for a jurist. In German-speaking countries, it was and is common to add a subject to the title if two courses of study with doctorate are combined. One example is Dr. iur. et rer. pol. (Doctor of Law and Political Science), another is Dr. jur. et phil. (Doctor of Law and Philosophy), other examples can be found in the humanities and economics. The doctoral work itself consists of the dissertation, which is published and represents an independent scientific work, as well as an oral examination. This examination can be structured as a rigorosum or a defense of the work (disputation). If the degree of Doctor of both Laws (Dr. iur. utr.) is to be acquired, an examination in canon law or the history of canon law is also required.
Some doctorates in law from other countries are not considered equivalent to a higher-ranking doctorate in Germany and Austria. In some countries, for example, legal doctorates are awarded as professional doctorates that are acquired at the end of a course of study and not on the basis of an academic doctorate, for example the Juris Doctor (J.D.) in the USA. In these countries, there are usually further research doctorates, such as the Doctor of Juridical Science, Doctor of the Science of Law (J.S.D. or S.J.D). In the Czech Republic and Slovakia, on the other hand, there are the so-called small doctorates JUDr. and ICDr. in the field of law, as well as the Ph.D. or PhD, which is, with certain deductions, comparable, although not an equivalent to the German doctorate.
