I'm looking for a word that describes a person who has to fight against a powerful opponent on a regular basis. This does not involve a competition, like some kind of sport.
Example :
Lawyers willing to take on powerful companies are hard to find, however James from the law firm Crane & Schmidt, regularly lock horns against major companies.
So in the above example what would someone like James be called, who has to regularly fight against companies/entities that are much more powerful than him?
Best Answer
Giant-slayer would work, especially in your requested context. It works well because it casts a positive spin on the firm's niche place in the market.
(I mean, which would you rather hire if you were up against a huge corporation's lawyers?)
For added panache, perhaps James would be willing to go by Jack? This practice is not uncommon according to Wikipedia and in 2013, a movie came out called Jack the Giant Slayer which would mean many people will already associate the name with the label.
Also, OED has a reference to the term from the 19th century:
Plus, the moniker giant killer is already taken by another lawyer! Attorney Willie E. Gary, according to his website,