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Original poster

Do judges/solicitors ever think 'ffs...'?

33 replies

StrongerThanIThought76 · 04/08/2019 11:17

Thinking back to all the shit my ex put me through and one event keeps making me think this.

He refused to allow me to take the kids abroad for a summer holiday - absolutely no reason why not other than control - and told me to take it to court. By this point I'd had enough of his bullshit so I called his bluff, completed the forms myself and got a court date. Got there and his solicitor had been in touch to give me permission. Judge gave me a residency order anyway, I was there for 15 minutes at the most.

So, how often do you guys think 'ffs...' in cases like this? Or any time really?

OP posts:
Jobsearch · 04/08/2019 12:00

Keen to know too. My ex is also a control freak!

Pipandmum · 04/08/2019 12:06

I’m sure they do all the time. But they have to follow the law.

AuntieAvocado · 04/08/2019 12:14

I did family law for a while and pretty often I thought “what a twat” or similar - often about our own clients - it is just something you get used to. The job as a lawyer is to represent what your client wants even if you disagree with it.

IAmNotAWitch · 04/08/2019 13:35

All the time.

Judges are often very very good writers who say exactly how they feel about a situation without a single inappropriate word. 😁

2stepsonthewater · 04/08/2019 13:38

IAmNotAWitch
Fascinating! Please give an example of the sort of thing you mean.

Racmactac · 04/08/2019 13:41

Hell yes. I get clients that I often think Christ I'm not surprised she dumped you. I often feel sorry for the other side.

Particularly when they are giving ridiculous instructions and being awkward for the sake of it.

All you can do is advice them of the consequences but ultimately you have to follow their instructions.

I do regularly tell them they are being dicks tho!

IsAStormApporaching · 04/08/2019 13:50

In my situation, we had been back and forward to court countless times.
We agreed on an order so neither of us had to attend court, just our lawyers on our behalf.
He then changed his mind and tried to change the order again.
We all ended up taken back to court by the judge 3 days later. He and his lawyer where severely spoken to by the judge and the judge took time off the agreed order due to their difficult behaviour.
The judge definalty was at the end of her rope.
We have not been back since and that was 4 years ago. I think the dressing down helped the other side see they where not putting the child first.

HeronLanyon · 04/08/2019 13:53

I’m at the bar. After around a year in practice you tend often to not really think anything at all. Clients are never behaving at their best and frequently in crime and family especially their best would not be great. Literally act on instructions and give good sometimes very strong advice. As long as advice has been given we have to act on instructions (sometimes very rarely have to withdraw). Some cases are a nightmare as a result and you can see judge saying internally to you ‘surely you've spoken to them properly etc’ and is saying to judge internally ‘yes, we are where we are’.
9/10 Times if impeccably prepared and you’re good and have confidence of client and solicitor and give full proper advice the case resolved itself properly.
I’ve run many hopeless defences. Ludicrous defences. Unattractive cases. Etc. As long as clients eyes are open I tend just them to think ‘ok difficult week here’. Never really judge them - not at all my job.

thejudgesaidhewasatitandIagree · 04/08/2019 14:44

My ex has had judges give him a piece of their minds before. He thinks he's smarter than the judge and extremely entitled so he always has it coming. He got jailed once and was arguing his rights and part of that was that he needed to be able to see his dc. The judge let rip that he was a danger and he was sure his ex (me Grin) would rather he didn't actually have access! I smiled at that.

Hoppinggreen · 04/08/2019 17:05

When my parents got divorced ( I was in my 20s) my Narc father had done everything possible to be obstructive just for the sake of it.
When he finally turned up for the final hearing the judge gave him an absolute bollocking and said he was granting my mum everything she had asked for and didn’t even want to hear from him! Even her solicitor was surprised and how much the judge tore into my father and he said that my fathers solicitor “should know better too”. It was absolutely brilliant that someone finally saw through him to the real arsehole we knew he was

MrsBertBibby · 06/08/2019 06:56

Every. Bloody. Day.

Meckity1 · 06/08/2019 08:31

I worked at a court, many, many, many years ago, and one man told a judge to his fact that he thought the judge was incompetent, stupid and corrupt. He was then surprised when he got sent down for contempt.

Meckity1 · 06/08/2019 08:32

*face

MorrisZapp · 06/08/2019 08:36

I was in our local sheriff court when a guy came in and demanded to be given official papers but didn't have the required ID on him. He ranted, raved, slagged off the staff and was an embarrassing bellend. Turns out he was being divorced.

When he left the entire office rolled their eyes and I lip read one staff member on the far side of the huge office saying 'what a fucking prick'.

Solicitors and legal staff see it all, like you wouldn't imagine.

Grasspigeons · 06/08/2019 08:37

I was a legal secretary for a matrimonial lawyer. I lasted one summer and had to switch departments. It really brought the worst out in people and there was a lot of ffs running through my head. Particularly when it was using the children to score points.

Montypontypine · 06/08/2019 08:42

Yup, all the time

DramaRamaLlama · 06/08/2019 08:46

Yep all the time

testingtesting111 · 06/08/2019 08:55

Not a familiar solicitor. But I think it at least once a day!

ChampagneCommunist · 06/08/2019 08:55

All the time.

I constantly wonder why people pay for my advice then ignore it.

Then they complain when it goes tits up

ChampagneCommunist · 06/08/2019 08:56

All the time.

I constantly wonder why people pay for my advice then ignore it.

Then they complain when it goes tits up

ChampagneCommunist · 06/08/2019 08:56

All the time.

I constantly wonder why people pay for my advice then ignore it.

Then they complain when it goes tits up

ChampagneCommunist · 06/08/2019 08:56

All the time.

I constantly wonder why people pay for my advice then ignore it.

Then they complain when it goes tits up

Dollywilde · 06/08/2019 08:57

There was a really interesting judgment published fairly recently as it got to the high court iirc, the judge absolutely slammed the guy who’d brought it and praised the children for having the confidence to testify against their father. It went viral on Twitter, but I can’t for the life of me find it now. Will keep searching. The judge was entirely appropriate in the language used but ripped the guy to shreds.

Plar · 06/08/2019 09:02

This reply has been withdrawn

Message from MNHQ: This post has been withdrawn

WishMyNameWasWittyNotShitty · 06/08/2019 09:09

I am now an expert at rolling my eyes, without physically moving them!
Court really does make you great at not expressing emotions/reactions!