Jeremy Cochrane stresses the importance of court decorum and argues that sound dress sense is a key element to good advocacy

Advocacy is performed in district judges' rooms all over the country, not just in the formalised atmosphere of courtrooms with many high-flown words and phrases.

Speaking on behalf of a client in something perceived as mundane - a mortgage possession claim, perhaps - is as important as arguing any other case.

It will certainly not be considered to be prosaic by the dejected person who may soon lose the roof over his head.

Therefore, the advocate should be well prepared, having read the rules that may apply, and know what is being sought.

Being an advocate is a considerable responsibility, for while a primary duty is to the court, the client follows close behind.

The adversarial system is to some extent trial by advocacy, but eloquence - silver-tongued or barbed - has no place in most county court advocacy trials where the search should be for truth or, where there is no absolute truth, justice.

It tends not to get off to a good start if the solicitor or representative enters, and when asked whether there is an opponent responds, 'yuh, they'll be along in a minute'.

Parties and advocates should come in together, and if one side is elsewhere when the case is called, the party already outside the door should wait.

If not thought too daring, perhaps the advocate could fetch the opponent.

In family cases, advocates - who are aware that a large number of people, perhaps as many as a dozen, is going to attend, and know the room contains only eight chairs - still come in, shuffle about and giggle, and then call the usher to fetch more chairs.

Had the usher been informed this would have been dealt with in advance of the hearing.

Be thoughtful.

Not infrequently, male solicitors attend hearings with the top button of their shirt undone, and tie at 'half mast'.

Comfortable when working in the office, but client and court are entitled to an advocate with tie fully knotted, and dishevelment and disorder are often an indication of disorganisation.

Lapel badges or broaches signifying a belief or membership of an organisation are generally inappropriate, and neither should a judge sport one.

The reason is, or should be, obvious.

Were the other party to sense that judge and advocate belong to the same 'club' a perception of unfairness would be immediate.

Similarly, if a lay client displayed a badge demonstrating membership of the same organisation as the opposing advocate that could dishearten one's own client.

And the current vogue of swigging from a bottle of water during a hearing, and using it as a baton to make points, lacks sophistication.

Responding, 'OK, yah, fine, I'll look', when a judge asks for some data or figures is less attractive than having the information to hand, written on a sheet of paper that the advocate can read from, and gives the impression of being efficient.

Spending a few minutes before a hearing writing out the basic details can save time and stress.

At the conclusion of a hearing, if the judge asks 'anything else?' think.

The judge may be reminding you of something possibly overlooked, costs perhaps.

With the client paying out a couple of pounds or more for every minute of even the most uninspired advocacy, he generally considers it pretty important that some of his outlay is recovered.

District Judge Jeremy Cochrane is the president of the Association of District Judges.

He sits at Derby Combined Court Centre