brief 2 page

Format: Are all of the following headings present, and are they all bolded and underlined?

Title, complete with citation? (The case name and the numbers and letters that indicate where to find the case. Just copy this from the assignment sheet.)

Yes No

Facts?

Yes No

Procedural History?

Yes No

Issue?

Yes No

Result/Holding?

Yes No

Reasoning?

Yes No

Procedural Consequences?

Yes No

Facts: (10 points)

Do the facts tell the story behind the lawsuit? The lawsuit should NOT be mentioned here. This should be the background story that caused the lawsuit. Tell it chronologically. If in doubt, make it more detailed rather than less detailed. Again, do not include any court stuff here.

Yes No

Comments:

Did the author forget anything?

Yes No

Comments:

Are the facts clearly written so that you can understand them?

Yes No

Comments:

Procedural History: (10 points) All of these questions should be answered “Yes.”

Does this section mention relevant motions, if any?

Yes No

Procedural History should start when the case enters the court system (the plaintiff sues the defendant or the criminal defendant is charged with a crime). Does it?

Yes No

Does this section mention the initial hearing or trial, if any?

Yes No

Does it mention who won that hearing/trial?

Yes No

If the plaintiff won any money at trial, does it specify how much was awarded?

Yes No

If this is a criminal case, does the brief specify whether the defendant was convicted by a jury, or did s/he plead guilty or no contest?

Yes No

Does it mention who is appealing?

Yes No

Does it mention why that person/entity is appealing?

Yes No

Is this section written chronologically?

Yes No

Do not include the outcome of the appeal here. This section should end with the arrival of this case at this appeals court. Does this include the appellate outcome? If so, remove it.

Yes No

Issue: (15 points)

Has the author found the question(s) that this appeals court is trying to answer? Look for the appellant's (the person who's appealing) arguments on appeal. The issues are often based on these arguments. Try writing each argument as a question.

Yes No

Comments:

Do you think the author phrased the question(s) clearly?

Yes No

Comments:

Does the issue end with a question mark? It doesn't have to end in a question mark, but issues are often phrased as questions.

Yes No

Try to make the issues as specific as possible. One way to do this is to try to include the following elements in each issue.

· Does the issue mention the governing law (case name, statute, or amendment)? Y/N

· Does the issue quote the relevant language from that law? Y/N

· Does the issue mention any relevant facts from our case? Y/N

If there is more than one issue, is each issue numbered, and contained in a separate paragraph?

Yes No

This section should be questions only, no background and no answers. Just questions. Does this section contain questions only? If not, remove everything except the questions/issues.

Yes No

Result/Holding: (15 points)

Does this section answer the issue? The result/holding should be more than simply “Yes,” “No,” or “Maybe.” There should be a Result/Holding for each Issue, so if there are two Issues, there will be two Results/Holdings. Number each Result/Holding, and put each in a separate short paragraph. This is a good part of the case to quote.

Yes No

Comments:

Please help the author find and phrase the answer:

Does this section contain any of the words “affirmed,” “reversed,” or “remanded”? If so, this section is probably incorrect. Those words should appear in the Procedural Consequences.

Yes No

The Result/Holding should be an answer that is specific to this case. It should not be just a general statement of law. Is the Result/Holding specific to our specific case?

Yes No

Comments:

Reasoning: (25 points)

Please make sure that the author has not simply listed the cases and sources that the judge used to decide the case. The author must discuss the sources (cases, statutes) and explain how they apply to our case.

Has the author focused on the appeals court’s decision here? S/he should. The trial court’s decision can be mentioned here because the appeal is usually based on the trial court’s decision, but the details of the trial court’s decision belong in Procedural History.

Yes No

IRAC: You stated the I/issues above already. The author should start by quoting the overall rule/law (usually a code section, part of the Constitution, or case) and then should apply it to the parties in our case, reaching a conclusion. Do this for each issue. Has this been done? Don’t actually type the words “Rule,” “Application,” “Conclusion.” Just use RAC as your structure for writing the Reasoning.

Yes No

Has the author explained how the judge decided the case?

Yes No

Comments:

After reading this section, do you feel as if you understand how the judge decided, or do you feel more confused?

Understand Confused

Explain.

Has the author discussed the legal authorities (cases, statutes, constitution) and the facts together?

Yes No

Has the author used paragraphs as appropriate? Each issue should have at least one paragraph devoted to it.

Yes No

Comments:

How might the author improve this section?

Procedural Consequences: (5 points)

Does this section mention the word “affirmed,” or “reversed,” “modified,” or “remanded”? It should.

Yes No

This section should be only 1 – 2 sentences long. Is it?

Yes No

Overall/Miscellaneous:

Has the author used paragraphs as appropriate (for example, there should be no paragraphs over one page long)?

Yes No

Is the first line of each paragraph indented?

Yes No

Has the author used quotation marks when quoting? You MUST use quotation marks if quoting. Otherwise it’s plagiarism.

Yes No

Has the author copied and pasted anything from the case? The answer here should be NO since this is plagiarism.

Yes No

Has the author checked his/her spelling?

Yes No

Has the author used proper grammar?

Yes No

Has the author avoided using contractions or abbreviations?

Yes No

Is the brief double-spaced and typed?

Yes No

Did the author use an 11- or 12-size font?

Yes No

The author should refer to everyone by their last names, not their first names.

Yes No

Has the author used past tense instead of present tense?

Yes No

Has the author used names rather than party designations (defendant, plaintiff, appellant, appellee, etc.)

Yes No

Are all case names italicized?

Yes No

Did the author avoid leaving any headings by themselves at the bottom of the page?

Yes No

For online BUSL 18: Did the author name/save his/her document in the following format: Last name, first name – brief # __, CRN (5 points – online classes only)

Yes No

Did the author include his/her name on the brief?

Yes No

Is there any other constructive comment you would like to make?