Esquire

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This article is about the title. For alternative meanings, see: Esquire (disambiguation)

Esquire (abbreviated Esq.) was originally a social rank above that of mere gentleman, allowed, for example, to the sons of nobles and gentry who did not possess any other title. A gentleman, on this basis, was designated Mr (before his name) whereas an Esquire was so designated (with no prefix before the name) after his name. A very late example of this distinction can be seen in the list of subscribers to The History of Elton by the Rev. Rose Fuller Whistler, published in 1882, which clearly distinguishes between subscribers designated "Mr" and those, of higher social position, designated "Esquire". Although somewhat old-fashioned, "Esq." is still widely used in upper class circles.

In the United States, there are no native titled gentry or nobility. The suffix "Esq." has no legal meaning, and may in theory be adopted by anyone (at least, given the meaning, any male). In practice, it is used almost exclusively by lawyers (of both sexes), and so it may generally be assumed when it appears on business cards or stationery that it indicates that the person is a member of the bar.

That "esquire" may be used to indicate that an individual is a lawyer is a remnant of the British practice, in which barristers claimed the status of Esquire and solicitors used the term "gentleman". In the United States, though a lawyer may choose to specialize in litigation or other types of law, there are no licensing or bar membership distinctions between the equivalent roles of barrister and solicitor.

[edit] United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom (and, before the Act of Union, in England), tables of precedence were from time to time drawn up and they invariably ended, for men, with the ranks of Esquire and Gentleman in that order.

From time to time, attempts were made formally to define those entitled to the rank of Esquire, as opposed to Gentleman. A typical definition is as follows:

• The eldest sons of knights and their eldest sons in perpetual succession
• The eldest sons of younger sons of peers and their eldest sons in perpetual succession
• Those who bear special office in the Royal Household
• Sheriffs while in office.
• Justices of the Peace while in commission
• Commissioners of the Court of Bankruptcy
• Masters of the Supreme Court
• Deputy Lieutenants and Commissioners of Lieutenancy
• Queen's Counsel
• Serjeants-at-law (of whom none have been appointed since the 19th century)
• Royal Academicians
• Officers of the Royal Navy with rank of Lieutenant or higher, of the Army with rank of Captain or higher, or of the Royal Air Force with rank of Flight Lieutenant or higher
• Bachelors of Divinity, Law, or Physic, and others (note that these were all traditionally post-graduate degrees, not first degrees).
• Persons to whom the title is granted by the Monarch

However, formal definitions such as these were proposed because there was, in reality, no fixed criterion distinguishing those designated "Esquire": it was essentially a matter of impression as to whether a person qualified for this status. William Segar, Garter King of Arms (the senior officer of arms at the College of Arms), wrote in 1602: "And who so can make proofe, that his Ancestors or himselfe, haue had Armes, or can procure them by purchase, may be called Armiger or Esquier." Honor military, and ciuill (1602; lib. 4, cap. 15, p. 228).

The use of Esquire (as Esq.) had become ubiquitous in the United Kingdom by the late 20th century, for example being applied by banks to all men who did not have a grander title. Although the College of Arms continues to restrict use of the word Esquire in official grants of arms to some (not even all) of those in the table above, it uses the term Esquire in all its correspondence, even to those who do not fall within any of the definitions in the table. Many people in the United Kingdom no longer appreciate that there is any distinction between "Mr" and "Esquire" at all and so, for practical purposes and in everyday usage, there is no such distinction.

[edit] United States

When the title "Esq." is used as a suffix in the United States, it is usually used to designate individuals who are licensed to practice law in at least one United States jurisdiction. It is used less commonly for individuals who have earned law degrees—such as a Juris Doctor (J.D.) or Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.)—but who do not currently practise law or who have never been licensed to practise law, and for students who are still pursuing their law degrees (as they are considered members of the legal profession). It may also be used by when addressing naval officers in formal correspondence.

Though commonly misunderstood to be the right solely of lawyers, the title "esquire" after the name may actually be used by anyone. There is no formal meaning associated with the use of this suffix, and there is no official body that polices the use of this title by American lawyers or anyone else. It has been used historically, and still is seen occasionally, as merely a more formal honorific than "mister".

As a matter of custom, the suffix "Esq." is not used when referring to sitting judges, who are "members of the bench" rather than "members of the bar", and are prohibited from practicing law in most United States jurisdictions. Conversely, practicing lawyers frequently act as judges pro tem in various United States jurisdictions, and when said lawyers are not sitting as judicial officers, there is no reason why they would not be referred to using the "Esq." suffix.

The suffix "Esq." originally applied only to men. However, since the 1970s it has been adopted by attorneys at law of both sexes in the United States.

According to legal usage expert Bryan Garner (A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage, 2d ed.), "Esq." is to be placed after an attorney's name by another person, but never to be appended by the attorney himself or herself. Thus, one attorney writing to another would address the letter's recipient as "Jane Brown, Esq." but would sign himself as "John Doe".