Your draft hearing affidavit says more than you personally know

Read the statement as your own evidence

With a winding-up hearing approaching, you receive a draft affidavit describing company events. Some paragraphs sound certain even though you only heard about them from staff. Tell the lawyer before signing. The pressure of the hearing does not make an uncertain account accurate, and a polished draft should not replace your own understanding of what happened.

Mark the source of each uncertain point

Identify which events you personally observed, which figures come from records and which explanations another person supplied. Provide the underlying records and names to the lawyer. Do not silently convert an estimate into an actual receipt or a colleague's expectation into a confirmed agreement. Explain why you know something rather than merely saying it sounds right.

Use the drafting process properly

The Federal Court explains that a lawyer can help prepare an affidavit but it must be in the witness's own words. Ask about statements you do not understand and how the applicable evidence requirements should be met. This is a review of accuracy with your lawyer, not a suggested affidavit form or a rule about what evidence a particular court will admit.

Source: Federal Court: I am a witness

Consider a hypothetical funding statement

Imagine a draft saying the company has secured funding because a director recalls a broker's encouraging telephone call. The actual lender correspondence remains conditional. Give the lawyer that correspondence and explain the call accurately. The question is what can truthfully be stated and supported, not how to make the company's position sound stronger before tomorrow's hearing.

Correct the draft through the lawyer

Return clear comments and identify missing information promptly. Do not alter a signed or sworn document privately, backdate a correction or agree to language you cannot verify. If evidence already filed contains a problem, tell the lawyer immediately and follow advice on the proper correction process. Preserve earlier versions so the change can be understood.

Keep uncertainty visible

Confirm that the final statement reflects your knowledge and the records supplied. Ask any remaining questions before completing the required formalities. An honest limit on recollection is more useful to the legal team than an unsupported assurance. The aim is reliable evidence for the actual hearing, with appropriate attribution and no invented certainty introduced by last-minute drafting.