Instructions for Briefing a Case

   Be sure to label each section that is indicated below.

Sections for the case brief:

(Title)  Smith v. Jones, 1 U.S. 392 (2002)

1.     Procedure

     In this section you explain how the case has traveled through the court system. Specifically identify:

            a. who filed what type of document in what court to begin the case;

            b. what that court did in a very summary fashion; and,

            c. what happened next in terms of who appealed to what specific court.

If the case had gone through several courts, you’d keep going, ending with the court whose opinion you are briefing.

It’s crucial to specifically identify by name the courts involved in the case.

     For example a procedure section of a brief might look something like this:

     Mary Jones filled a complaint against XYZ, Inc. for wrongful discharge in the Court of Common Pleas for Philadelphia County. The jury found in favor of the defendant, XYZ, and Jones appealed to the Pennsylvania Superior Court. The Superior Court affirmed the lower Court and Jones filed a petition for allocateur to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, which agreed to hear the case.

Notice that from reading the procedure above, you don’t have much of an idea about the facts of the case and what happened to cause the plaintiff to bring the lawsuit. That information belongs in the “Facts” section. You also can’t tell the legal issues involved. That information belongs in the “Issues,” “Holdings” and “Rationale” sections described below.

2.     Facts

     In this section summarize, in paragraph form, the key facts of the case. What happened before the case was filled in the lowest court that caused this controversy?  Who did what to whom? Some facts that the court mentioned may not be essential to understanding the case and you can delete them.

3.     Issues

     The issues are the key to the case.  Once you have read the case several times, focus on identifying the issues.  Once the issues are identified, the key facts, holdings and rationale should fall into place.

Issues should be labeled “A,” “B,” “C” etc.  Each issue consists of question that the court resolved. If there are

questions in the case that are not resolved, they aren’t considered issues!  Remember that each issue consists of a question leading to a finding by the court. Identify only questions that the court identifies and resolves. Your issues should be in question format!  I need to say it more strongly:  Issues MUST be in a question form!

4.             Holdings

     Holdings simply answer the issues and likewise should be labeled to correspond to the issues. If you have three issues, for example you’ll have three holdings.  Do not explain in detail. If, for example, you issue is “Whether or not the sky is blue?’ You holding would simply be, “The court held that the sky is blue.”

5.     Rationale

In this section (which is in paragraph form) you completely and thoroughly explain why the court ruled the way the way it did. Do not quote extensively from the court’s opinion. Put it in your own words. If you do quote some of what the court said, be sure to introduce the quote (that means saying, “the court said or held…”) and be sure to enclose the quotation in quotation marks.

6.     Dissent / concurring opinions

      In these sections, summarize the dissenting and / or concurring opinions. Not every case will have these, but if the case does, summarize them!