Historically a lawyer is trained in and can advise you on
the law and represent your interests. An attorney is licensed to
practice law and argue before a court. The terms are synonymous
these days, but the licenses still say "attorney".
In the United States,
the practice of law is conditioned upon admission to practice of
law, and specifically admission to the bar of a particular state
or other territorial jurisdiction.
Attorney at Law is only for lawyers that go to court. All
attorneys are lawyers, but not all lawyers are attorneys. Many
lawyers never go to court.
Legal Counsel is a person employed by an
organization/corporation and works in-house. Legal Counsel will
only provide legal advice to their employer. A lawyer is
employed by a law firm and is engaged by various clients to
provide a range of legal services and advice.
Because a lawyer also conducts suits in court proceedings and
represents clients in various legal instances, the term has
expanded to overlap the definition of attorney. Technically one
can be a lawyer by graduating law school, even though they are
not licensed to practice law.
The J.D. stands for Juris Doctor. However, this is not a
doctorate. It is a professional degree. A JD is the minimum educational level for
lawyers and without it, they cannot practice. Degree levels,
from basic to most advanced, include: Juris Doctor (J.D.),
Master of Laws (L.L.M.), Doctor of Juridical Science
(S.J.D.). It is also not a legal degree, so a
holder cannot be called lawyer or attorney. A JD is not called
doctor, because it is not a terminal degree, there are others
above it. A PhD is a terminal degree, meaning there are no
higher degrees available.