Microsoft recommended using the object_id() function, like so:
IF EXISTS (select * from dbo.sysobjects where id = object_id(N'[dbo].[YourProcedure]') and OBJECTPROPERTY(id, N'IsProcedure') = 1)
DROP PROCEDURE [dbo].[YourProcedure]
GO
.
object_id() helps resolve owner conflicts. If you do
SELECT name FROM sysobjects WHERE name="my_procedure"
, you may see many different procedures with the same name — all for different owners.
But, SELECT * FROM sysobjects WHERE id = object_id(N'[my_procedure]') will only show you the one for the current owner/user, if more than one procedure by that name exists.
Still, always specify the object owner (default is dbo). Not only does this avoid nasty side-effects, it’s a little faster too.