select so.name, sc.name from sysobjects AS SO inner join syscolumns AS SC ON so.id = sc.id where SO.xtype = 'u' and so.name = 'PortfolioDtl' /* your table name */ and sc.name = 'ClosingDate' /* your field name */>Is there a way to check for the existence of a particular field in a table without having to do a SQL select on that table?