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Case Briefs

Case Briefs. Objective: Students will learn how to research real-life court cases and create a written case brief based on the information. What is a case Brief?. A case brief is a short (1-2 page) typed document that gives a summary of a case Lawyers will prepare case briefs for judges

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Case Briefs

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  1. Case Briefs Objective: Students will learn how to research real-life court cases and create a written case brief based on the information

  2. What is a case Brief? • A case brief is a short (1-2 page) typed document that gives a summary of a case • Lawyers will prepare case briefs for judges Objective: Students will learn how to research real-life court cases and create a written case brief based on the information

  3. What are the Parts? Objective: Students will learn how to research real-life court cases and create a written case brief based on the information

  4. TiTLE And Citation • TITLE EXAMPLE: Commonwealth v. Snyder • Citation Example: 413 Mass. 521, 591 N.E. 2d 1363 (1962) Objective: Students will learn how to research real-life court cases and create a written case brief based on the information

  5. Facts of the Case • PUT IN BULLET FORM A good student brief will include a summary of the pertinent facts and legal points raised in the case. It will show the nature of the litigation, who sued whom, based on what occurrences, and what happened in the lower courts. Objective: Students will learn how to research real-life court cases and create a written case brief based on the information

  6. ISSUES • What question is the court answering for you? • State it in the form of a question. The issues or questions of law raised by the facts peculiar to the case are often stated explicitly by the court. Again, watch out for the occasional judge who misstates the questions raised by the lower court’s opinion, by the parties on appeal, or by the nature of the case Objective: Students will learn how to research real-life court cases and create a written case brief based on the information

  7. Decision • What was the decision of the court? The decision, or holding, is the court’s answer to a question presented to it for answer by the parties involved or raised by the court itself in its own reading of the case. Objective: Students will learn how to research real-life court cases and create a written case brief based on the information

  8. Holding/Rationale • Why did the court decide the way they did? Cite precedents. The reasoning, or rationale, is the chain of argument which led the judges in either a majority or a dissenting opinion to rule as they did. This should be outlined point by point in numbered sentences or paragraphs.

  9. Separate opinions • Only if your case was a Supreme Court case. • This is not your separate opinion, it is the opinion of the court. Both concurring and dissenting opinions should be subjected to the same depth of analysis to bring out the major points of agreement or disagreement with the majority opinion. Make a note of how each justice voted and how they lined up.

  10. Analysis • This is your time to speak your mind! Here the student should evaluate the significance of the case, its relationship to other cases, its place in history, and what is shows about the Court, its members, its decision-making processes, or the impact it has on litigants, government, or society. Objective: Students will learn how to research real-life court cases and create a written case brief based on the information

  11. What should the format be? • Cover page with picture, student names and title/citation of case • Case brief must be typewritten and well-researched • Use original documents, not articles about the case • It is acceptable to use a case that has been appealed • The case must have had a judgment, do not use one that is currently going on! • Objective: Students will learn how to research real-life court cases and create a written case brief based on the information

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