{"id":2867,"date":"2011-06-02T15:10:05","date_gmt":"2011-06-02T19:10:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sidebarforplaintiffs.naomifein.net\/?p=2867"},"modified":"2012-03-19T15:01:52","modified_gmt":"2012-03-19T19:01:52","slug":"before-finding-a-lawyer-how-to-make-your-time-line-and-get-exercise-too","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sidebarforplaintiffs.naomifein.net\/?p=2867","title":{"rendered":"Making a record: How to make your time line (and get exercise, too)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"padding-left: 60px;\"><span style=\"color: #993300;\">Time will bring to light whatever is hidden&#8230; \u2014 Horace<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s what you need to make a time line and discover hidden truth:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>a computer<\/li>\n<li>a three-ring binder (the cheapest)<\/li>\n<li>a three-hole punch<\/li>\n<li>your own Mess of Papers (see my 5\/23\/2011 post, &#8216;Gathering documents for your time line.&#8217;)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>You\u2019ve now accumulated a MOP which is currently on your floor.<\/p>\n<p>The floor is my favorite file-organization surface: it\u2019s large enough  so that if you sit in the middle, you can distribute your MOP into annual, monthly and\/or daily piles. Do so and then consolidate into one chronological pile.<\/p>\n<p>Simultaneously\u2013since the best filing on the floor position is in a  semi-ballet sprawl, with one leg out and one leg bent at the knee\u2013you\u2019ll  be stretching muscles at the same time you\u2019re organizing. (Wouldn&#8217;t  hurt to squeeze in some sit-ups, too.)<\/p>\n<p>So. Sit down at the computer. Lay out a three-column table or chart. Call the document <strong>Time Line<\/strong>. Label your columns:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Date\/time\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 What happened\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Document(s)<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Create a second new document on your computer. Call it <strong>People Involved.<\/strong> Make two columns:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Person\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Role<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Now make a third document, called <strong>Case List<\/strong>. You\u2019ll be switching among your <strong>Time Line<\/strong>, <strong>People Involved<\/strong> and <strong>Case List <\/strong>documents as you compile your time line.<\/p>\n<p>Pile your MOP next to your computer. Start entering information into  your time line chart in chronological order. Be detailed, even if some  of the details seem irrelevant or silly, but be clear and simple\u2013no need  to be literary or express emotions. As you enter information from your  MOP, you\u2019ll probably remember other incidents. Put them in.<\/p>\n<p>Whenever you name someone who is part of or knowledgeable about your story, switch to the <strong>People Involved<\/strong> document and put him in, with a brief note of his role (witness, friend  you talked to, supervisor, guy who rolled his car into you, et al.).<\/p>\n<p>If it\u2019s someone who might be involved in your case\u2013a witness, a  guilty party, etc.\u2013and you have specific contact information such as  addresses, phone numbers, e-mails, etc., switch to your <strong>Case List<\/strong> document and enter this information with as much detail as you possess.<\/p>\n<p>You\u2019ll be giving a copy of this case list to your lawyer, so he\u2019ll be  able to refer to it when he needs to contact anybody on your behalf, or  enter certain specific information into the lawsuit. This will save her  a lot of time\u2013she won\u2019t have to call you or scrounge through the files  whenever she needs this information\u2013and saving her time means saving you  money (if yours is not a contingency case).<\/p>\n<p>You yourself will love having a case list. Rather than having to search for a friend\u2019s vacation house phone  number, it\u2019ll be right there in your case binder.<\/p>\n<p>Depending on the size of your MOP and your memory, compiling a complete time line may take you hours or several days. When you\u2019re finished, print these  documents out, read and edit them. Make sure they make sense and are a  full and true report of the facts as you remember them.<\/p>\n<p>I believe this is the most important work you will do on your case. Everything else springs from it. <em>Everything.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Punch all the papers. Put them into the binder in chronological order. If you&#8217;re really compulsive and have a lot of paper covering a period of time, tab the pages. Now read through all of them and realize that any of these bits of paper could become valuable discovery that you&#8217;ll turn over to the opposition.<\/p>\n<p>Also realize that if the opposition already has some of these documents, you could be embarrassed by things you might have said. I was: when the Skush-O&#8217;Briens produced their initial, suspiciously meager discovery, they included some of my e-mail exchanges with the Griggsby management company, e-mails I hadn&#8217;t kept. They were snarky. Truthful, factual but definitely snarky.<\/p>\n<p>So from now on, your statements about your problem must be honest,   unexaggerated and devoid of unexploded or exploded emotional devices.   You&#8217;ll be leaving all the public dramatics for your lawyer.<\/p>\n<p>Stick your Time Line, People Involved and Case List somewhere in the front of the binder and put the binder in an easily reachable place.<\/p>\n<p>Now you&#8217;re ready to &#8230; Oh, you think now you&#8217;re going to look for a lawyer? Not yet. First you&#8217;ll need to do a little research on the type of case you have.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Time will bring to light whatever is hidden&#8230; \u2014 Horace Here\u2019s what you need to make a time line and discover hidden truth: a computer a three-ring binder (the cheapest) a three-hole punch your own Mess of Papers (see my &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/sidebarforplaintiffs.naomifein.net\/?p=2867\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1175],"tags":[375,374,376,369],"class_list":["post-2867","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-facts-of-life","tag-assembling-legal-documents","tag-case-list","tag-potential-discovery-documents","tag-time-lines"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t<!-- All in One SEO 4.9.10 - aioseo.com -->\n\t<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The tools, the details of composing a time line on your computer.\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"max-image-preview:large\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Naomi\"\/>\n\t<meta name=\"keywords\" content=\"making a time line,time lines &amp; 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