Does a legal advisor working for a company have to be an attorney or lawyer?

"Advise" is the defining word. A person who is not a certified attorney can assist in preparing legal documents for someone else, but they cannot tell a person or a company how to proceed with a legal course of action. Only a person who is legally certified by that state can advise people or companies how to proceed legally.

In almost all states, it is against the law for anyone other than a licesened attorney to provide legal advice. And in all states, only a licensed attorney can represent a corporation.

So, somone can be a legal advisor to a company without being a lawyer. But the advisor would be violating the law doing so, and would be subject to civil and criminal penalties.

Also, in some states, the lawyer can be licensed in a different jurisdiction, as long as the company is their only client. In many states, however, the lawyer must be licensed in that state.

How can a company hire a Joker to be it's legal adviser? Has to be a person very well versed in the legal profession and laws.

Wouldn't you need to know the law as well as a lawyer to advise a company on law? Might be able to work if you were a law professor, but I'd think you'd pretty much have to be licensed to practice law.