A lesson learned in court

[Cal C.]

I recently had a court date in Fulton County, GA, probably one of the most tenant friendly jurisdictions in a landlord friendly state. Obviously, that is all relative.

My tenant's lawyer was a few hours late and I was able to witness several eviction (disp.) cases. I won't get into the nitty gritty details of any of those cases, but I had one huge take away. Come prepared.

Have your paperwork in order. Make extra copies for the judge and the opposing side.

Present your case in a coherent and concise way. Stick to the point.

Invariably, the person who was the most prepared won their cases, even when it seemed as though the losing side had valid, but undocumented, arguments.

Fortunately I was prepared, but observing those cases underscored the importance of preparedness.