Drafting an affidavit, faster: getting the format right every time

An affidavit is the kind of document you draft constantly and rarely think about — until a registry objection on the verification clause or the deponent's particulars sends it back. It's short, formulaic, and exactly because of that it's easy to get a detail wrong when you're moving fast across a dozen matters. Getting the format right, every time, without slowing down is the part I wanted Miss Lucy to take a first pass on.

This is written for practising advocates, not as a lecture on what an affidavit is. You know the document; the point here is the drafting workflow.

What an affidavit usually needs

Whatever it supports — a petition, an application, a reply, an undertaking — the structure is settled: the title and cause, the deponent's full particulars, numbered paragraphs of fact stated on personal knowledge or information and belief, and a verification clause that correctly distinguishes the two. The bones never change, which is why a small slip in the verification or the deponent block is what trips it up at filing.

Where the time actually goes

The slow part isn't the law — it's converting the facts of this particular matter into clean numbered paragraphs, keeping the "true to my knowledge" and "believe to be true" distinctions straight in the verification, and getting the formatting to the standard the registry expects. Multiply that across every matter and the small repetitive care adds up.

How Miss Lucy fits in

You tell her what the affidavit needs to depose to, in plain English. She comes back with a first draft in the right format — title, deponent particulars, numbered factual paragraphs, and a verification clause that tracks knowledge versus belief — that you read, correct, and make your own. You're editing a clean draft instead of rebuilding boilerplate from memory each time.

She is a tool, not a substitute for your judgment — the draft is a starting point you review and own. But for getting affidavits out correctly and quickly, it removes the repetitive friction.

Try it on a real matter

The honest test is your own file. There's a free trial, no card needed — take an affidavit you actually need to draft and see whether it saves you the fiddly part.

Try Miss Lucy free →