GETTING ORGANIZED AND STAYING ORGANIZED

I was recently talking to a friend of mine who is involved in a high conflict divorce and she was complaining that an agreement or rather a stipulation as it is called that she signed a few months ago didn't give her the rights she felt entitled to. 

I responded, "Fine, let me take a look at the stipulation and perhaps we can do something about it." "But I don't have a copy." she answered.  My lower jaw clattered to the floor and tap danced with the tiles, "What," I said, "You have a stipulation you hate and you don't have a copy of it?  What is the matter with you?" 

Of course, "What is the matter with you!" is a remark I make often because people fail to do the simplest things, even in the face of a calamity such as a high conflict divorce, that would absolutely save them.  It defies common sense sometimes. 

This is the news you all have to hear and hear well.  Always make sure that you have a copy of every last one of the documents in your court file--always. 

Here is another scenario I just love.  Fortunately, or rather unfortunately, I have a cousin who does the filing for my case.  Sometimes, and this has happened too often for my comfort, I'll be writing up a motion and I'll go, "Cousin J. do you have a copy of the bank statement from January 2006 that indicated my ex committed fraud, because I just need to add some information from it into this motion."  And my Cousin J. will say, "Bank statement, bank statement? I don't know anything about no bank statement."  Cousin J., by the way, is lucky to be alive. 

Again, let me tell you something.  You cannot afford to lose vital evidence in your case because of some file mixup or because you and your helper blanked out.  Every item of documentation needs to be available at your fingertips within a matter of minutes, or else. 

That is what it means to conduct a vital and effective legal case.  That means, nothing in loose folders, nothing strewn on your kitchen table, nothing stuck in piles around the house, nothing coffee stained or strewn with crumbs. 

Do not fill your living room and dining room with random boxes of stuff, purchase a great big filing cabinet.  Heck, if you are lucky enough that your legal papers don't fill it all up, then I'm sure you can find a good purpose for the extra drawers. 

In the filing cabinet, use one bit of space for your exact copy of your court file, use another bit of space for all correspondence in your case, to the opposing attorney, to the judge, to the GAL, to the custody evaluator, and to the experts in your case such as the forensic accountant and also your letters. 

Never lose or misplace a single piece of correspondence in your case. 

Staple the envelope for the letters you receive to the correspondence or else there is no legal proof when and if the letter was sent to you.  Also, staple the certified mail documents or receipts from the post office onto the correspondence you send out so you have evidence of mailing. 

Keep another bit of space in your filing cabinet for all of the exhibits in the case that you intend to file with the court, and also include any evidence you think might eventually make its way to the court.  Keep another bit of space available for copies of all the transcripts of the depositions and hearings held in your case.  Cluster Stipulations and Agreements and Judges Orders together in one place. 

Make sure you have a location for articles you download from the internet regarding the law in your case as well as all booklets, library materials, and pamphlets you pick up along the way.  Also make sure you have a location for your list of contacts in the case along with any associated information as to the background of these people.  Sometimes connections, who you know, can be half of your case and you don't want to lose that advantage because you lost someone's phone number. 

Label everything you have and put it all in either chronological or alphabetical order so it won't be hard for you to find anything you need. 

When it comes to information that is vital to the case or that you are constantly pulling out of the file to use, put together a "hot box" with all that material so it is readily accessible.  Always keep in mind that your legal case will be no better than how you maintain your filing cabinet and the system you use to keep track of your paperwork.  Sometimes it all comes down to which party has the right document. 

So don't make a mistake and fumble this part of your case, or else you will live to regret it.