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“They had to think as if they were representing the “nothing matters but hitting the bumpers’ =there
Bad Man” – Holmes Jr. are specific things the professor is looking for
(when you write them, you score points)
Knowledge of the Law
-being able to predict if the accused with be
penalized/ sanctioned 3 Things that DON’T matter on Exams
-what are the chances that your client will go to jail,
pay damages, or be subject to injunction 1. how fast or slow you finish the exams
-it only matters how many bumpers they hit
B. Think in terms of arguments, not answers 2. how many words or pages you write
* the law evolves and deviates from the existing -yes, it is subject to word/page limits but it
doctrine to shape the rules that met the necessities always depends on how many bumpers you
of the times hit
-each side must make the best argument they can. 3. how brilliant your exam is in some abstract sense
Even if you’re on the side of the bad man -it can be full of insight but the other might
Judges VS Lawyers be mundane
-judges pronounce who the winner and the
loser is B. How hitting the bumpers (or not) affects grades
-you are graded based on a normality curve
C. Connecting the real world and the exam room -scoring a few more points can change your grade
Lawyers make real arguments out of clients’
stories III. IRAC: A framework for analysis
*fact pattern-clients stories
Irac is a framework for legal analysis
It divides legal analysis into 4 parts: -this comes from your course outline
issue, rule, application, conclusion
Follow IRAC’s steps to locate and B. List B (Issue list)
hit bumpers -comes from the fact pattern
-most of what you have covered in the course is the
1. Identify and frame the issues issues that will be hidden in the fact pattern
2. Identify the relevant rules that will govern the
resolution C. Scrolling
3. Argue about how the rules apply to the issue -do these facts address something that was taught in
4. accurately assess the likelihood of a given the course?
argument prevailing -Scroll List A and find them in List B
REMEMBER:
Answer the questions asked of you
State conclusions probabilistically but
clearly
Does your conclusion follow common
sense? It may be right but it doesn’t hurt to
refine or reconsider it
1. Facts
-story at the heart of a juridical opinion
2. Procedural Posture
-how did the case come to this court
ex. is it from the regional trial court which is
less binding or is it from the supreme court
which all laws must follow
3. Issue
-the heart of the case
-what did the parties ask the court to resolve
*note: easiest way to state is using
“whether”
4. Judgment
-who won?
5.Rule
-how did the court explain why the
prevailing party won?
6. Rationale
-how did the court come to this decision
CASE BRIEFS Supreme Court
(will only review the case if special cases apply)
I. Types of Case Briefs
3. “Appeals”: difference between appeals and
A. Appellate Brief petitions for certiorari
What-a legal argument presented to an
appellate court a. Writ of Certiorari
Purpose-persuade the higher court to uphold Petitioner (losing party in the
or reverse the trial court’s decision lower courts; and the one who
Perspective-presents the perspective of one appeals)
side only Respondent (the winner in
B. Student Brief/Digest the lower courts)
What-short summary and analysis of the b. Formal Appeal
case Appellant (loser; the one who
Purpose-classroom discussion appeals)
Perspective-both sides Appellee (winner;
respondent)
II. Parties
A. Types of Cases 4. Naming the cases
The party initiating the action in court at any
1. Civil Suits (complaints) level always appears first in the legal papers
Plaintiff (sues) Most criminal cases switch titles because the
Defendant (the one being sued) defendants appeal to the higher courts
b. Facts
-legally relevant situations where the question arises
*it is legally relevant if it has an impact on the
outcome