It looks very exciting on TV, but success in the legal profession is often a matter of being really good at paperwork.
Proof-reading and getting the details right are essential….
But what makes great lawyers really great is the knowledge and foresight to know which details to include.
On TV, cases tend to end after a passionate closing argument, and the lawyer and client walk out of the courthouse victorious. In reality, most of my cases end with me pouring over the details of a single document–the Order that the Judge will sign–and victoriously e-filing it with the Court Clerk.
When I prepare an order for a Judge’s signature, I try to think through every possible scenario where I’d enforce the terms. When I type the judgment debtor’s name, I make sure I’ve spelled the name the same way it’s spelled on the debtor’s old checks or property deed. If there’s some special request or relief I’ve asked for in my motion, I make sure to recite that in the order and have the order expressly grant it.
A trend I’m noticing lately is that lawyers leave out critical details in their orders, and the omissions hurt their cases.
A good example relates to post-judgment sheriff sales. Sheriff’s sales confuse courts, clerks, lawyers, and sheriffs. The law is tricky and draws on 2-3 separate statutory bases (Tenn. R. Civ. P. 69.07 ; Tenn. Code Ann. § 26-5-101, Tenn. Code Ann. § 35-5-101). County sheriffs are good at a lot of things, but they really dislike having to navigate confusing Tennessee statutes on their own.
A good creditor attorney will think through the entire process, starting at the end (i.e. what will the title company need to insure title on this sale), anticipate all the questions, and have the Order address any possible question that could arise.
Who owns the real property? (Look at the Order.)
What are the liens that are impacted by this Sheriff’s Sale? (Look at the Order.)
Who will prepare and publish the Notice of Sheriff’s Sale? (Look at the Order.)
What’s the minimum price pursuant to Tenn. Code Ann. § 26-5-115? (Id.)
Will there be a deposit? What happens after the sale? When does the buyer get a deed? Will there be a sale contract? What happens with the redemption rights? And so on…
I recently saw an Order Authorizing Sheriff’s Sale that said, basically, “the relief granted in the Motion is GRANTED.”
And that was it. The Order had no specific reference to relief described in the Motion and provided no guidance to the sheriff. Instead, to enforce the Order, the lawyer had to also send a copy of the Motion and hope that the sheriff would connect the dots between the two pleadings.
The lawyer’s job is make the process run as smooth as possible, and that includes anticipating issues and preventing them. One strategy to make the process work is to think through all the issues in advance and, before the Judge signs the order, include it all in the document the Judge signs.
Creditors Rights 101 