how do you format a legal brief

• Include only facts relevant to the legal issues. For example, if you are writing a brief on a “Motion to Compel Discovery,” it would not be relevant to include information ...
• Organize the facts into columns of “pro” and “con” (either for or against your position).
• Place a star next to those facts that are especially good or especially bad for your case.
• For each fact on your list, take note of the source in which you found it so that you have the citation on hand if you use it in your ...

What is an example of a legal brief?

Legal Brief Example Template

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How to properly write a case brief?

• An answer to the legal question asked in the legal issue section as either "yes" or "no"
• The legal rules and rationales upon which the court's decision is based
• How exactly those rules apply to the facts of the case
• The court's conclusion (if applicable)
• The procedural action (for example, conviction, overturned conviction, remand)

How to write a legal summary?

• give key information early
• save tedious factual details for later
• prefer specifics to abstraction for legal issues

How to write a case brief for Law School?

• the names of the parties
• the court the opinion came from
• the judge
• the procedural history
• the facts
• the issues
• the holding
• the black-letter law (which might be different from the holding, in some cases)
• the legal reasoning
• why the case was included in your reading assignment (why was it important to read it)

More items...

How do you structure a brief?

Here are the general steps you should take to write a brief:Explain the goals and motivations. You should start your brief by writing about the project background and brand. ... Highlight specific objectives and challenges. ... Describe your target audience. ... Examine competitors. ... Ask for feedback.

What are the six elements of a legal brief?

Title and Citation. The title of the case shows who is opposing whom. ... Facts of the Case. A good student brief will include a summary of the pertinent facts and legal points raised in the case. ... Issues. ... Decisions. ... Reasoning. ... Separate Opinions. ... Analysis. ... A cautionary note.

How do you create a legal brief in Word?

1:2750:06Webinar: How to create a template for a legal brief - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipThe first thing we're going to do is save the template before we start building or modifying it thatMoreThe first thing we're going to do is save the template before we start building or modifying it that'll ensure that we're not overwriting a prior brief. And we're saving. Everything into our template.

How many pages should a legal brief be?

Try to keep your briefs to one page in length. This will make it easy for you to organize and reference them. Do not get discouraged. Learning to brief and figuring out exactly what to include will take time and practice.

What is a good legal brief?

A legal brief must have a clear objective, written logically and clearly so as to lay down the client's reason for filing the case, the end remedy clients seeks and why the court must favour the client's case. There are certain other things to be kept in mind while writing a legal brief.

How do you write a case brief example?

Template of a case briefName of case. Start by saying the name of the case at the top of your case brief—for example, Smith v. ... Parties. Identify the parties. ... Procedure. Identify the procedural posture of the case. ... Issue. Identify the legal issue that the opinion is addressing. ... Facts. ... Rule. ... Analysis/application. ... Holding.More items...

Does Word have a legal template?

The document generation process has been optimized in Legal One. Currently it is possible for the user to generate document templates through Microsoft Word, by using a pre-defined list of Legal One tags.

How do I change the legal format in Word?

Change the paper size for all pagesOn the Format menu, click Document.Click Page Setup.On the Paper Size pop-up menu, select a paper size.Click OK.On the Apply to pop-up menu, click Whole document, and then click OK.

What is a legal brief used for?

A brief is submitted to lay out the argument for various petitions and motions before the court (sometimes called "points and authorities"), to counter the arguments of opposing lawyers, and to provide the judge or judges with reasons to rule in favor of the party represented by the brief writer.

Should legal briefs be justified?

In favor of left-justified text Left-justified text looks less formal and “relaxes the page,” according to the legal-typography expert Matthew Butterick. In addition, many legal documents are left-justified, including most contracts, briefs, letters, and nearly all email messages.

Do you double space a case brief?

The brief must be on 8 1/2 by 11 inch paper. The text must be double-spaced, but quotations more than two lines long may be indented and single-spaced.

How do you write a good legal argument?

Eight Easy Rules for Persuasive Legal WritingKeep paragraphs within 2 to 7 sentences. ... Keep sentences under 60 words. ... Avoid unnecessary detail. ... Banish passive voice. ... Use key words to signify your argument. ... Define your opponent's argument. ... Edit as you go.

What is the most important element of a case brief?

The Reasoning: The most important component of your case brief is the court's reasoning, or its rationale, for the holding. To determine what the court's reasoning was, ask: “How did the court arrive at the holding?

What are the components of a legal case?

elements (of a case)The existence of a legal duty that the defendant owed to the plaintiff.The defendant's breach of that duty.The plaintiff's sufferance of an injury.Proof that defendant's breach caused the injury (typically defined through proximate cause)

What is a legal brief and what is its purpose?

A brief is submitted to lay out the argument for various petitions and motions before the court (sometimes called "points and authorities"), to counter the arguments of opposing lawyers, and to provide the judge or judges with reasons to rule in favor of the party represented by the brief writer.

What are the elements of a court opinion?

The opinion usually contains the following elements: name of the judge who wrote the opinion, statement of facts, the legal issues implicated, the court's rationale and holding, and dicta.

What is a drafting assistant?

Drafting Assistant has great tools to help you proof your document, including Cite Formatting to help you check your citations for typos, and Document Formatting to help you make sure you’re complying with court guidelines on things like fonts, letter sizing, and margins. Make Westlaw a part of your practice.

What is the TOA section in a legal brief?

A Table of Authorities (TOA) section that describes all sources of legal authority used in the brief.

What is TOA in legal?

A Table of Authorities (TOA) section that describes all sources of legal authority used in the brief. While it used to be a tedious and time-consuming task to compile a TOA, the Table of Authorities Builder within Thomson Reuters Drafting Assistant software makes it a snap.

What is a conclusion in a brief?

A Conclusion that summarizes the key points of the brief and requests specific relief. You may even want to write this section first to help focus your thoughts. Forcing yourself to think of the whole of the case in concise terms early can help you concisely draft your Argument section.

What is an argument section?

An Argument section that sets forth your arguments of law. In this section, you’ll want to address each legal question denoting each one with a different label called a “point heading.”. Point headings should be clearly written to parse out the exact legal issue and should generally be limited to a single sentence.

Do you have to reinvent the wheel in a brief?

Although each brief should be tailored to your client’s case, there’s no need to reinvent the wheel if you don’t have to. It's relatively common for attorneys to reuse certain phrases or terms (or even entire sections) of briefs if the legal issues are the same across cases.

How to write a legal brief?

To write a legal brief, you'll need to tailor your approach to the kind of brief you’re writing, whether it's an appellate brief or a trial brief. For example, appellate briefs are longer and more formal than trial briefs. Additionally, while appellate briefs generally conform to a set format, trial briefs vary depending on the kind of motion they support and the court to which they're being submitted. Regardless of the type of brief you're writing, always refer to the procedural requirements of your particular court, and follow the rules completely. After you write your full argument, make sure to edit your brief for any mistakes. To learn how to write a table of contents for your brief, keep reading!

What is an appellate brief?

A trial brief is usually submitted during or before trial in support of or in opposition to a motion filed with the court. An appellate brief is submitted to a court of appeals in support or in opposition to an argument that a lower court's decision must be overturned.

How many testimonials does wikihow have?

wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. This article has 13 testimonials from our readers, earning it our reader-approved status.

How to organize facts in a letter?

Organize the facts into columns of “pro” and “con” (either for or against your position).

What is an issue in discovery?

For example, in the course of defending a lawsuit, an issue might arise during discovery, with the other party refusing to turn over important documents. In that case, the issue would be whether or not the other party is required to turn over those particular documents.

What is a court record?

The court record consists of the pleadings filed with the court including the original complaint, any answer to that complaint, cross-complaints, counterclaims, and any number of other types of pleadings or motions submitted to the court. Depending on the stage of proceedings of your case, there may not be a court record yet.

What is a brief in legal?

A brief is a written argument that a lawyer (or party to a case) submits to a court to persuade that court to rule in favor of his client’s position.

Why is vertical spacing important?

The entire point of horizontal and vertical text spacing is to make a document readable. To be clear: poor spacing doesn’t make your documents illegible, but it does force the brain to work a little harder in order to process the available information.

Why do we need margins and spacing?

The entire point of margins and spacing is to make the document more readable. And if you’re handing over a briefing to a judge with a couple hundred other briefings to deal with, readability should be your top priority.

What is incorrect formatting?

To be clear: incorrect formatting and document corruption are two different things. Incorrect formatting is when you make a mistake manually. Document corruption is a problem with the document itself. Document corruption is when a document contains data errors that prevent it from loading properly.

What is the beginning stage of a lawsuit?

Pleadings (the beginning stages of a lawsuit, when parties submit their claims and defenses)

Why is my document corrupted?

One of the most common culprits in document corruption is old, outdated files that haven’t been updated to be compatible with your new system.

What is the simplest part of a document?

Font seems like the simplest part of the whole document. But fonts can sometimes speak louder than words .

How big is a legal paper?

sizing standards. Rather than a regular sheet of paper (sized 8.5 x 11 inches), legal sizing is a bit longer ( 8.5 x 14 inches ), though there’s also junior legal sizing (5 x 8 inches).

What is an appellate brief?

A trial brief is something written in support for the court’s motion; the other one, the appellate brief, to support a case so as to overturn the court’s decision.

How to make a legal brief persuasive?

Lastly, for a legal brief to be persuasive, the writer should at least be convinced of what he or she is presenting. It is good to use citations , and some other sources . But without a heart, it will make the brief less convincing. Use your heart not too much that it becomes too personal and subjective, just enough so as to make it more humanly. For what is a legal brief if it does not serve the purpose of man, of humanity.

Why do you need citations in a legal brief?

Always use citations. If you fail to support what you write, the legal brief will be as good as nothing. And so, your legal brief might as well be reduced to a series of opinions rather than facts. And that is not a good thing. Citations can help your thoughts hold coherently because you have always a reference to hold on to. There is always something to go back to when something gets swayed and messy.

What is a legal brief?

Simply state, a legal brief is a document that is written to defend one side of the argument, that one client or party should prevail over the other for some legal reasons. In a proceeding or a case, this is what happens in a pre-trial motion. Generally, a legal brief has this pattern or format:

What is it called when you have plenty of notes in a composition?

If the case is clear in your head, the bigger the chance it will also be clearer to them. In music, it is called, motif . You have plenty of notes in a composition.

What is the keyword for organizing a presentation?

The keyword is organize. If you can’t organize your presentation, you can’t expect the court to be persuaded by you. Part of organization is, coherence. If you say this and that on the second page, you should maintain the said reasoning in the last page of your brief. Imagine, you are showing a map to the judge.

What is a title page?

Title Page. You have read this before. A Title Page identifies the case, and mentions the person filing the brief. The title of the case is where one shows who is arguing whom.

What font is used for legal briefs?

As far as the U.S. Supreme Court is concerned, legal briefs must be written in 12-point type, in Century Schoolbook font. This is referred to as the “Supreme Court font.”

What is an amicus brief?

Amicus briefs, however, are filed by people who are not parties to the case, but who have information to support one point of view or the other. These briefs focus on policy-related issues, and/or finer points of law. They can also explain why the case should be decided in favor of one party over the other when the law does not clearly apply to the issues at hand.

What is the last thing a legal brief should do?

The last thing a brief should do is anger or bore the judge reading it.

How to write a legal brief?

Before writing a legal brief, the person writing the brief should first consult the rules of the court to which the brief will be submitted. Different courts have different rules insofar as how to write a legal brief, such as the format of the brief, the number of pages that are permitted, and the presentation of citations. Court rules are normally published and, if the court has a website, the rules are usually posted there as well for easy reference.

What is the common mistake in drafting a brief?

Another common mistake is a failure to back up good arguments with good citations. Often, the person drafting a brief will cite case law and assume the judge is familiar with the facts of that case.

What is a memorandum of law?

An example of a legal brief that can be considered a memorandum of law is one that accompanies a motion for summary judgment. A motion for summary judgment explains to the court why it is impossible for the opposing party to win the case, and requests that it be dismissed. Upon the court’s granting of summary judgment, the case is then effectively over.

What is word count in a certificate?

The word count, which is given by the word processing system that is used to draft the brief, must be listed on the certificate. The word count refers only to the text of the document and its footnotes. It does not include the additional sections of the brief, which can include the table of contents, the table of cited authorities, and/or any appendix that may be affixed to it. Nor are block quotations detailing constitutional provisions, treaties, statutes, ordinances, and regulations involved in the case included in the word count.

Why is annotating important?

You might be wondering why annotating is important if you make an adequate, well-constructed brief. By their very nature briefs cannot cover everything in a case. Even with a thorough, well-constructed brief you may want to reference the original case in order to reread dicta that might not have seemed important at the time, to review the complete procedural history or set of facts, or to scour the rationale for a better understanding of the case; annotating makes these tasks easier. Whether you return to a case after a few hours or a few months, annotations will swiftly guide you to the pertinent parts of the case by providing a roadmap of the important sections. Your textual markings and margin notes will refresh your memory and restore specific thoughts you might have had about either the case in general or an individual passage.

Why do we annotate cases?

Annotations will also remind you of forgotten thoughts and random ideas by providing a medium for personal comments. In addition to making it easier to review an original case, annotating cases during the first review of a case makes the briefing process easier.

What is a case brief?

The case brief represents a final product after reading a case, rereading it, taking it apart, and putting it back together again. In addition to its function as a tool for self-instruction and referencing, the case brief also provides a valuable “cheat sheet” for class participation.

Why should a brief be short?

On the other hand, a brief that is too short will be equally unhelpful because it lacks sufficient information to refresh your memory. Try to keep your briefs to one page in length. This will make it easy for you to organize and reference them.

What facts should be included in a brief?

What facts are relevant to include in a brief? You should include the facts that are necessary to remind you of the story. If you forget the story, you will not remember how the law in the case was applied. You should also include the facts that are dispositive to the decision in the case. For instance, if the fact that a car is white is a determining factor in the case, the brief should note that the case involves a white car and not simply a car. To the extent that the procedural history either helps you to remember the case or plays an important role in the ultimate outcome, you should include these facts as well.

Do you need to highlight all sections?

Not all of these sections demand a separate color. You may find that combining Facts and Procedural History or Issues and Holdings works best. Furthermore, as mentioned above, some sections may not warrant highlighting in every case (e.g., dicta probably do not need to be highlighted unless they are particularly important). If you decide that a single color is all that you need, then stick to one, but if you find yourself highlighting lots of text from many different sections, reconsider the use of at least a few different colors. Highlighters make text stand out, but only when used appropriately. The use of many colors enables you to highlight more text without reducing the highlighter’s effectiveness. Three to four colors provides decent color variation without the cumbersomeness of handling too many markers.

What information is important to include under each element?

So now that you know the basic elements of a brief, what information is important to include under each element? The simple answer is: whatever is relevant. But what parts of a case are relevant? When you read your first few cases, you may think that everything that the judge said was relevant to his ultimate conclusion. Even if this were true, what is relevant for the judge to make his decision is not always relevant for you to include in your brief. Remember, the reason to make a brief is not to persuade the world that the ultimate decision in the case is a sound one, but rather to aid in refreshing your memory concerning the most important parts of the case.

Do You Need Help Writing Your Case Brief?

Writing case briefs can turn out to be pleasant and engaging work, but not everybody has the time or taste for it. If you need help summarizing a case into a court-worthy brief, the experts at Help for Assessment are here for you.

Why is the Creac method used in law?

Also, this method requires that you don't pad your answers with unnecessary information. The CREAC method is preferred in law because it enforces the take-away facts of the case.

How many words should a legal brief be?

There are few rules about how long your legal brief should be, but it should be brief as the name suggests. In many cases, it should not exceed 825 words excluding the concurrences, dissents, dicta, and other considerations. To maintain such a restrictive word count, include only the operative facts of the case.

What is an appellate brief?

An appellate brief, on the other hand, refers to an argument drafted based on the law to be presented before judges in a court. Unlike a student's case brief, an appellate brief is premised on persuading a higher to reverse or uphold a ruling by junior court or the court that tried a case initially.

How to write a case brief?

When getting ready to write out your case brief, it helps to approach the process professionally. Start by reading through the case two times, annotating and highlighting the important facts and sections as you go. It helps to do this on the margin of the casebook for easier reference when you get to writing.

Why is the word "brief" misleading?

The word ‘brief’ in case brief is misleading because a brief is actually a persuasive formal argument submitted to a court in support of a client/defendant. You can also think of a case brief as a legal brief or case summary to understand what it is.

What is a student brief?

A student brief incorporates a precise examination and summary of a case developed for deliberations in law classes. The summary incorporates notes presented systematically to identify case issues, parties, determine the jury’s decision, and, most importantly, examine the reasoning behind the judges’ decision.

How Long Should My Case Brief Be?

A brief should be exactly that: brief. It’s easy to get carried away, but you need to exercise restraint in deciding what to include in your brief. For example, you should include only the operative facts of the case. And when writing your holding and reasoning section, focus on fleshing out CREAC; you can typically exclude dicta or those portions of the opinion that don’t bear on the topic being emphasized by your casebook. Our advice: Your brief shouldn’t exceed 600 words, excluding concurrences and dissents.

How to pretreat a casebook excerpt?

While you’re reading the casebook excerpt, make sure to pretreat the excerpt by identifying the parts that you plan to use later in your case brief, such as by highlighting or annotating in the margins. Once you’ve pretreated the casebook excerpt, you’re ready to brief the case.

Why does Quimbee prefer CREAC to IRAC?

Quimbee prefers CREAC to IRAC for several reasons. The repetition of the conclusion in the beginning and the end of a CREAC reinforces the major takeaway of the case. Also, by having an explicit explanation section, CREAC ensures that the rule of a case is both stated and properly interpreted.

What is the cause of action in a case?

the cause of action ( g., a suit for replevin, breach of contract, and so forth), an identification of the plaintiff and the defendant in the case by party name, the operative facts of the case that led to the dispute between the parties, the trial court/jury’s holding, and. the appellate court’s holding.

How many words should a brief include?

Your brief should not exceed 600 words, excluding concurrences and dissents.

What is the legal issue section in a case?

In the facts section of your case brief, you described the cause of action, the factual circumstances leading up to that cause of action, and the procedural history of the case. The issue section is the next logical step. You should identify the legal issue being emphasized in the casebook.

How is 100% of law school grade determined?

In the vast majority of law school courses, 100% of your grade will be determined by your performance on the final exam. The final exam will almost never test you on case law. And case briefs aren’t handed in for a grade.