Instructions
Revise & Edit the Affirmation in Support of Summary Judgment in Melmarkets Case
An Affirmation in Support of Summary Judgment in a case entitled Melmarkets is available in Class Materials. It is a slip and fall case in a supermarket. When you read it you will note that it is very repetitive and at times confusing. Please revise, retype and shorten the affirmation keeping it in the same format (ie: consecutively numbered paragraphs, double spaced, etc.). You should also read the articles, particularly “Keys to Clear Writing…”, posted in the Lecture Notes/Videos module.
The motion you are revising won. The Court’s decision is attached to the document. Despite winning, it is a very wordy and confusing Affirmation that could have been made much shorter, easier to understand, and stronger legally. You can build the case law into the affirmation as the attorney did. You should NOT include any additional case law. Simply use what is already in the affirmation unless you decide to eliminate certain things. For example, you may determine not to discuss or mention the two cases cited in the Affirmation, or you may determine not to quote from the Bill of Particulars and instead just reference it. Use what is already contained in the Affirmation and revise it. The cases as portrayed in the Affirmation are accurate.
There is no right way or wrong way to revise the Affirmation. Your assignment is to improve it, making it the best you possibly can through editing and revising it. You do not have to revise or re-type the Notion of Motion or the Court’s Order, only the Affirmation itself.
Keep in mind the grading for this assignment, as for the others, is based substantially on your effort. Revising and editing is something that is continually done in a law firm. Also keep in mind that when a document, motion, affirmation, letter or any type of writing is clear, to the point, and seemingly simply and straight-forward, it was likely edited and revised numerous times to get it into that shape.
If you have any questions or run into any issues as you write, please email me. I will not respond to emails after 5 pm on May 16th because you should have substantially completed your revisions by then. You do not have to do anything with the Notice of Motion or the Order that follows the affirmation, just ignore those 2 documents.
This is your final project for this class and counts much like a final exam would. You have several weeks, almost a month, to start and complete this assignment. You should begin working on it as soon as possible. If you save it for the last minute and then have questions, you will not be able to have those questions answered by me after May 16th.
Ideally, you should have a first draft of your revised Affirmation done by May 10th and continue to work on it and edit it over the next week. Of course, you are able to go to the Learning Center and get assistance from Rachael if you need to.
This Assignment will NOT be accepted late. If it is not submitted by the due date, it is doubtful a student will be able to pass the class. DO NOT merely remove a few words or a few paragraphs. Substantially rewrite it and edit it so that it makes sense, and find ways to make the points clearer.
In summary judgment motions, the facts are not disputed; what plaintiff has claimed is accepted as true. The sole question is a legal one – Does this case need a trial? Or, said differently…Does plaintiff have any facts that a jury should decide or can the case be dismissed as a matter of law by the judge based upon the arguments presented?
Given that, think about whether you want to call it the “alleged condition” as was done in the original motion, or whether you might want to just say what it was — a grape. Your choice. Good luck!
You MUST submit 2 attachments in Word form- the original Affirmation retyped by you that is attached here and also in Class Materials as a PDF, AND a red-lined copy of your revised Affirmation in Word.
THEREFORE, YOU MUST 1ST RETYPE THE AFFIRMATION IN WORD FORM IN ORDER TO BE ABLE TO SUBMIT A RED-LINED VERSION IN WORD FORMAT. A MINIMUM OF 30 POINTS WILL BE DEDUCTED IF A RED-LINED VERSION IS NOT ATTACHED.
You can easily begin re-typing the Affirmation as soon as you have viewed this Assignment. Doing so will help you with your revisions.
