Stacey Leigh Callaway

Associates Capstone in Paralegal Studies – PA

299

A Few Reminders…Seminar: Mondays, 8 p.m. ESTOffice Hours: Mondays, 6-8 p.m. ESTAIM sign-in: CallawayKaplanEmail: SCallaway@kaplan.edu

ASSOCIATES CAPSTONE IN PARALEGAL STUDIES – Unit V

Unit V– Seminar (graded) - This week's Seminar will concern professional issues, such as how to take adequate notes, avoid giving legal advice, and remain impartial about cases and clients.

Unit V – Discussion Board Postings (graded) – There are two discussion threads this week, access the drop down box under the Unit IV discussion link to make your comments.

Unit V Case brief(graded) – You will be writing a case briefs of one of the cases you found.. It is due at the end of Unit V.

IRAC / FIRAC

Facts IssueRule

ApplicationConclusion

Briefing a CaseCitationProcedural HistoryFactsIssueAnswer/ HoldingReasoningDisposition

Differences between a Case Brief and IRAC

Case Brief – A summary of a published appellate court opinion broken down in your own words as to the facts, issues, holdings, reasoning’s, decisions, and references.

Irac – Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion

6

IRAC

THE LEGAL ANALYSIS PROCESS—IRAC

PRESENT A BRIEF SYNOPSIS OR EXPLANATION OF THE FACTS SET OUT BY THE COURT

FACTS

HISTORY OF THE CASE FOR CASE BRIEFS, SET OUT THE JUDICIAL

HISTORY OF THE CASE. WHAT ACTION DID THE LOWER COURT TAKE? WAS THE CASE HEARD BY THE JUDGE OR A JURY? WAS THE CASE RESOLVED BY TRIAL, MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT OR SOME OTHER METHOD?

WHAT COURT AUTHORED THE OPINION YOU ARE BRIEFING?

PROCEDURAL HISTORY

IDENTIFY THE ISSUE RAISED BY THE FACTS OF THE CASE

THERE IS TYPICALLY ONLY ONE LEGAL ISSUE, BUT MORE COMPLEX CASES MAY HAVE MORE THAN ONE PRIMARY LEGAL ISSUE. IN OTHER WORDS, WHAT IS THE LEGAL DISPUTE BETWEEN THE PARTIES?

ISSUE

IDENTIFY THE LAW THAT GOVERNS THE ISSUE:

STATUTORY LAWCASE LAWADMINISTRATIVE REGULATION

RULE

DETERMINE HOW THE LAW APPLIES TO THE ISSUE

IDENTIFY ELEMENTS OF LAWAPPLY FACTS TO ELEMENTS

ANALYSIS/APPLICATION

SUMMARIZE THE RESULTS OF THE LEGAL ANALYSIS

WHAT WAS THE FINAL OUTCOME OF THE CASE ON APPEAL?

CONCLUSION

IRAC: Another organizing method

IssueRuleApplication/AnalysisConclusion

CASE Example:Little Miss Muffet sat

on a tuffet eating her curds and whey, Along came a spider, Who sat down beside her And frightened Miss Muffet away.

Broad and General

Narrow and Specific

IRAC cont.

ISSUE:

DEFINITION OF NEGLIGENCE:

The elements of a negligence claim are familiar: existence of a duty to conform to a standard of conduct to protect others, failure to conform to that standard, proximate cause, and damages.

Was there Negligence on the part of the Spider against Little Miss Muffet?

IRAC cont.

Rule: To Determine if an Negligence was present

1. Did the Spider owe Miss Muffet a duty?

2. Was there a failure to conform to that duty?

3. Did such failure cause Miss Muffett any harm and damages?

IRAC cont.

Rule Application / Analysis

1. What duty was Miss Muffet owed? Test against facts.

2. What failure to conform to that duty existed? Test against facts.

(See next slide for example.)

3. What caused the harm and what were the damages? Test against facts.

IRAC cont.

Rule Application/Analysis: Sub-Issue - Failure

c. Did the negligence cause the harm?

Was there a failure to conform?

Fact/case for Fact/case for Fact/case for

Yes No

a. Were the Spider

negligent?

b. Was Miss Muffet at fault at all?

Yes No Yes No

Conclusion

YES NO

There was negligence

There was no Negligence

A Few Tips: Getting Started

Make sure you are familiar with your research question, including vocabulary and components

Get to know your firm’s library – collection & librariansKnow what type of subscriptions your firm has – and

use accordingly Create a research log – keep track of each search as

you workKnow when to stop – recurring themes, cases, etc.

indicate you have found all there isAlways UPDATE your research – especially before you

hand it inDecide whether online or print searching will work

best for your query

A Few Tips: Print v. Online Research

Print:Analytical and contextual frameworkSearch by rules and conceptsUse to provide concepts to use in online searchingStatutes, treatises, ordered materialsReading and browsing

Online:Broad-based searchingFull-text searchesField and segment searchingMatching factual situations

What’s Online & Free?Federal

Opinions from the U.S. Supreme Court, Courts of Appeals & District Courts (dates of coverage vary widely!)

Statutes & RegulationsAgency materials

StateOpinions & Dockets from State Supreme CourtsState Statutes & RegulationsAgency materialsPublic Records: Corporate filings, professional

licensesSecondary

Research Guides

A Great Place to Start: Research Guides!

Identify sources of information with evaluative/descriptive annotationsTopic-specificJurisdiction-specific

Offer tips for doing researchTwo good search engines for finding

research guides…Cornell & Akron…or, try any law library website!

http://library.lawschool.cornell.edu/WhatWeDo/ResearchGuides/CLL-Legal-Research-Engine.cfm

http://lawscout.uakron.edu/

Primary Sources

Court Opinions: SCOTUS SCOTUS

www.supremecourtus.govFull text of all Court opinions issued from 2004-present

Cornell’s Legal Information Institutewww.law.cornell.edu/supct/supremes.htmComprehensive coverage from 1990-presentSelective coverage prior to 1990

Selection criteria = significant historical valueSearch by topic, judicial author, party name, or date

FindLawwww.findlaw.com/casecode/supreme.htmlFull text of Court opinions from 1893-presentSearch by publication year, official U.S. citation, party name, or

keyword Oyez – Northwestern U.

www.oyez.orgAudio recordings of oral arguments – 1995-present

Selected audio from 1955-1995Blogs/Current Awareness resources

Court Opinions: U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals

Emory’s Federal Courts Finder www.law.emory.edu/FEDCTS Search Opinions by party name, keyword, or date of decision Links to the official circuit courts of appeals’ sites

Those sites provides access to opinions Villanova’s Federal Court Locator

www.law.villanova.edu/library/researchandstudyguides/federalcourtlocator.asp Official Third Circuit Court of Appeals site Portal to other official circuit court sites

U.S. Courts www.uscourts.gov Official federal government portal Statistical reports, Code of Conduct, U.S. Judges Search by district, circuit, zip code, area code, county, or state

AltLaw.org -- Columbia University & University of Colorado www.altlaw.org Full text of selected opinions – U.S. Supreme Court, 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, Federal &

D.C. districts Search by keyword or title; may also browse cases

LexisOne www.lexisone.com/legalresearch.index.html Decisions from the last 10 years from all federal circuits; 1790-present U.S. Supreme Court Search by keyword or citation

Court Opinions: U.S. District Courts

FindLawwww.findlaw.com/10fedgov/judicial/district_courts.htmlPortal access to U.S. district court sites

The Federal Judiciary, U.S. Courtswww.uscourts.gov

Cornell’s Legal Information Institutewww.law.cornell.edu/federal/districtbystate.htmlPortal access to U.S. district court sites, as well as portal

access to bankruptcy court sitesChart indicates whether official U.S. district court has

information only or information & opinions

Court Opinions:State Supreme Courts

LoisLawwww.loislaw.com/product/information/state.htmFull text of state supreme court decisions1920s-present (in most cases)

Cornell’s Legal Information Institutewww.law.cornell.edu/opinions.htmlPortal to all 50 states

Judicial OpinionsRegulations & Other Agency InfoOther State Legal Collections

FindLawwww.findlaw.com/casecode/statelawPortal to all 50 states

Legislation: Federal Session Laws

GPO Accesswww.gpoaccess.gov/index.htmlStatutes at Large 2004-presentSearch by subject, public law number, popular

name, statute or U.S. Code citation, or bill numberLibrary of Congress

Memory.loc.gov/ammem/amlaw/lwsl.htmlIndex and lists of Public Acts/Private Acts/Treaties

of the Statute at Large from 1789-1875

Legislation:Federal Codifications

GPO Accesswww.gpoaccess.gov/uscode/index.htmlAccess to U.S. Code from 1994-presentBrowse by title, search by keyword

Cornell’s Legal Information Institutewww.law.cornell.edu/uscodeSearch by citation, popular name, or by keyword. Can also

browse by title.U.S. House of Rep. Office of Law Revision Counsel

Uscode.house.govSearch by keyword or citationEntire U.S. Code can be browsed

Legislation: U.S. House & Senate Bills

Library of Congress www.thomas.loc.gov Pending bills & resolutions from 101st Congress-Present Search by keyword, index, bill’s sponsor, committee, or date Full text, summary & status, and congressional actions

Related bills listed Committee Reports from 104th Congress-Present

Search by keyword, committee, or date Law Librarians’ Society of Washington, D.C. (LLSDC)

Legislative Source Book -- www.llsdc.org/sourcebook Advice on compiling legislative history Examples of legislative history

Center for Democracy & Technology Open Congressional Research Reports -- www.opencrs.com Congressional Research Reports Not comprehensive – access to report requested by individuals from

their representatives

Legislation:State & Local

OnlineSunshine www.leg.state.fl.us Florida legislature Portal to Senate and House sites Search statutes from 1997-present Browse FL Constitution, or search through index Digest of general laws from 2003-present Link to Laws of FL (FL department of state website)

WashLaw www.washlaw.edu Portal access to links for official state Internet sites

Municode.com Free access to full text of many codes and ordinances for 50 states Hyperlinked map lets researcher to choose state Links to counties’ and cities’ codes within state Search by keyword or table of contents

Regulations & Executive Publications:Federal Regulation

Federal Register – GPO Accesshttp://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.htmlSearch F.R. from 1994-presentBrowse table of contentsSearch by keyword, section, issue date, and page

number

Regulations & Executive Publications: Decisions of Federal Agencies

Code of Federal Regulations – GPO Accesshttp://www.gpoaccess.gov/cfr/index.htmlCoverage from 1996-presentSearch the Most Current 50 Titles (2007-

2008)Search by keyword or citationBrowse

University of Virginiawww.lib.virginia.edu/govdocs/

fed_decisions_subject.htmlSubject-created indexDirectory of agencies

Regulations & Executive Publications:Executive Orders & Presidential Publications

Official White House Sitewww.whitehouse.govCurrent administration onlyOrders and proclamations arranged in reverse chronological orderSearch by keyword

GPO Accesswww.gpoaccess.gov/pubpapers/search.htmlWeekly Compilation of Presidential Papers

1993-January 29, 2009Search Public Papers of the President

Coverage from 1991-2004 National Archives and Records Administration

Archives.govClinton Administration

Secondary Sources

Secondary Sources: Research Guides

Law Librarians’ Resource Exchange (LLRX)www.llrx.comAccess to subject research guides – over 35

legal topicsLinks to court rules and docketsResearch assistance for primary sources of

law at international, federal, and state levelsThe Virtual Chase

www.virtualchase.comGuides to help locate info about businesses,

companies, individuals

Secondary Sources: Dictionaries

Merriam-Webster’s Law Dictionarydictionary.lp.findlaw.com/dictionary.htmlFindLaw website

Law.com/DictionaryWEX

http://topics.law.cornell.edu/wexCornell’s Legal Information InstituteWiki created site – requires that author be a

qualified expertCitations to applicable federal and state

statutes & judicial decisions included

Secondary Sources: Law Reviews

University Law Review Projecthttp://www.lawreview.org/Free abstract e-mail serviceFull text search of law journals onlineList of journals by topic

Secondary Sources: Current Awareness

Jurist: Legal News & Researchhttp://jurist.org/Written & edited by law school staff & students at University

of PittsburghContinuous legal news from around the worldUpdated 24 hours/daySearch by keyword

Google Alertshttp://www.google.com/alertsResearcher selects search terms, can select comprehensive

or limited searchesSearches emailed directly to research

Daily, weekly, or monthly

Secondary Sources: Blogs

ABA’s Blawg Directoryhttp://abajournal.com/blawgs/Weekly featured blawgList of most popular blawgs

Week, month, all-timeSearch by subject, author type, region, or law

school

Secondary Sources: Working Papers

SSRNhttp://www.ssrn.com/Can upload working papers to receive

commentaryCan download working papersElectronic paper collection – search by keyword,

title, title abstract, or author

Sites to Remember

Important Free Legal Resources

Important Sites: Federal

Library of Congress’ THOMASFederal Legislation Information

GPOAccessService of Government Printing Office

Regulations.govFederal Rulemaking Portal

http://thomas.loc.gov/

http://www.gpoaccess.gov/

http://www.regulations.gov/

Important Sites: Free Caselaw

LexisONE & FindLaw (ThomsonWest)Limited date/jurisdiction coverage

i.e., past 5 years on LexisONERobust search engine – biggest advantage!Registration (free) is usually required

http://www.lexisone.com/

http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/casesummary/index.html

http://www.fastcase.com/

Important Sites: Municipal Codes

Not available on Lexis or WestlawUse Municode.com

Mostly free, some pay contentOne-stop source for many hard-to-find local lawsUnofficial, commercial site, but has solid

reputation.

Important Sites: Law Portals

Cornell’s Legal Information Institute US primary materials + topical guidesUser friendly, extensive coverage

Law Library of Congress’ Guide to Law OnlineUS primary materials + international guides + topical guidesExtensively annotated

JustiaUS primary materials + PACER search engineInnovative search features

Florida Law Online (FLO)

http://www.law.cornell.edu/

http://www.loc.gov/law/help/guide.html

http://www.justia.com

QuestionsQuestions

Thank you for joining the seminar tonight!Have a great week.

Thank you for joining the seminar tonight!Have a great week.