'On the 12 days after Christmas'

On the first day after Christmas, our solicitors came to court… And courteously introduced themselves and their opponents and other persons present in court to the judge, even if an attendance form had been completed and handed to an usher. It doesn't always reach the judge.

On the second day after Christmas, our solicitors came to court… And did not say 'This is not my file'. This is discourteous to the client who is paying for representation at court and will always cause annoyance to a judge.

On the third day after Christmas, our solicitors came to court… And did not say, 'You will recall this case'. If the judge does, it won't necessarily help your client and the likelihood is the judge won't recall it. Open the case properly as you were trained.

On the fourth day after Christmas, our solicitors came to court… And produced a draft of the proposed order on opening the case and had already given a copy to the other party.

On the fifth day after Christmas, our solicitors came to court… And didn't assume that the judge had received the skeleton argument, which authorities posted to the court office a few days before to be produced upon opening the case and a copy to be given to the other party.

On the sixth day after Christmas, our solicitors came to court… And didn't open the case by saying, 'This is a small claim.' There is no such thing as a 'small claim'; claims can be allocated to the small claims track. It insults a client by saying this is a small claim.

On the seventh day after Christmas, our solicitors came to court… And had their file with them, and not just an electronic file. Solicitors have a responsibility to hand copies of pleadings and documents to a judge if they are not on a court file, and they often aren't on the file. Handing over a tablet or laptop for the judge to read a document is not good enough.

On the eighth day after Christmas, our solicitors came
to court… And did not openly insult their opponents, and did not try to take advantage of a young trainee solicitor who had not been fully trained or fully prepared: do remember, you are officers of the court, above all.

On the ninth day after Christmas, our solicitors came to court… By telephone and had complied with the telephone hearing protocol.
It is in the Civil Procedure Rules - do read it and follow it. Do remember your time estimate has to err on the generous side. It is a far more difficult hearing for a judge to undertake than one when the solicitors are present. Do not shout over another party on the phone - you wouldn't do it in court, would you?

On the tenth day after Christmas, our solicitors came to court… On an infant approval hearing and had ensured that the application specified the amount agreed, and had discussed with the client the investment of the monies and had already persuaded them that an immediate payment used to cover the whole family going on holiday is unlikely to succeed.

On the eleventh day after Christmas, our solicitors came to court… And let the judge speak and/or hand down an extempore judgment without interrupting. There is always time for a solicitor to respond thereafter to clarify an issue that might have been misunderstood.

On the twelfth day after Christmas, our solicitors came to court… And did not say, in the hearing of the judge, to either their opponent or their client,
'It's only a deputy'. Remember, you are an officer of the court.

A Happy Christmas to all solicitors, from the officers and committee of the Association of  Her Majesty’s District Judges