What NOT to Say to a Judge

If you ever find yourself addressing a judge, you’re trying to influence that person. Perhaps influenced by “Judge Judy” and other media depictions of “tough judges,” real judges don’t want to hear your jokes and especially don’t want to hear your putdowns.

In that regard, when lawyer William P. Smith told a bankruptcy judge in Florida that the judge was "a few french fries short of a Happy Meal," he might have anticipated a less-than-enthusiastic response. And he got it.

After insulting bankruptcy judge Laurel Myerson Isicoff, Smith may lose the ability to practice in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida. He’s already lost his client—Miami Beach's Mount Sinai Medical Center & Miami Heart Institute.

By all accounts, Smith is a respected bankruptcy lawyer. But a single off-the-cuff remark before the judge seems certain to play havoc with his career. 

Don’t make the same mistake. If you ever find yourself in the unfortunate position of addressing a judge in his or her official capacity, there’s a right way and a wrong way to do it. It’s “your honor, this” or “your honor that.” No lawyer jokes, sexual innuendos or comments about the judge’s anatomy—whether justified or not!