Case Briefing
Case Name, Judge, and Citation
Tips
Adjust it based on professors' style and expectations - long, short, detail oriented ...
Read it with a purpose in mind
Read it 2x before class and adjust case briefing afterwards
Focus only on information which is relevant/critical to the case/ruling
Facts
Procedural History
Issue
Holding
Rule
Reasoning
Disposition
Critique + Different Points of View
Notes
Author and Number Opinions
Relief Sought
One-page should be enough
Who is the plaintiff/ Who is the defendant or / Appellant v Appellee / Petitioner v Respondent ?
Who wrote the legal opinion? Each court level?
Date & Location
Where you can find it? (page, volume and each report)
Any definitions
Any specific points to the case
Anything else which you did not consider above but is still relevant
Who aggress with the legal opinion?
Who does not agree with it? Why?
Majority Opinion, Concurring Opinion and Dissent Opinion
Do you agree with the ruling? Why?
Challenge the arguments used form both sides and the different opinions
Wear different hats (advocate, critic, judge, system design)
What types of arguments are used? (policy argument, legal argument)
Strong or weak?
Action to be taken - what next?
Usually the last two sentences under the majority opinion section
Courts of Appeal: Affirm, Reverse, Vacate and Remand
Trial Courts: Dismissed, Denied, Granted and Jugdement Entered
A legal rule formulated by the case that can be used for similar future cases
Important to separate main facts than ordinary
What is critical to the ruling?
If I change this data/fact would it affect the rulling?
Better stated in bullet points
While reading ask yourself: what, who, when where and why
Compare the facts with future cases' facts
What is the main question that the current court wants to solve/answer?
What do the parties want?
Money damages, Injunctive relief (court order to do or refrain from some action), Attorney’s fee, Declaratory judgment – the statement of what the law is
Affirmations and Objections from the jugde's side
How the case ended up before the appellate court?
What is the error of law? Appeal?
How the case began, the outcome of the previous trials/appeal
Most of time at the end of the legal case
Procedures used: trial, motion to dismiss, witness testemony, jury verdict...
Law principles that were used to reach the holding. Ex: Agente & Servant rules, and the cases.
What are the principles of law that the court used to decide the case?
How the facts of the case were linked back to the rules (principles of law) and their subelements? and why.
This rule needs to respond the legal issue raised in the case.
Criticize the reasoning!
What was the court's decision on the question raised? - the holding provides an answer to the legal question associated with an explanation.
It needs to satisfy the elements of the rule (elements of a cause of action)