LINK TO CASE: https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/FSupp2/301/454/2511405/
Court decisions must be read, summarized, and applied to answer any research question dealing with legal issues. The case summary assignment presents a good opportunity to demonstrate how to condense a case into its most important elements: a) Citation; b) Key Facts; c) Issues Presented to the Court; d) Decision of the Court; and e) Reasoning of the Court. Important cases revealed during research inquiries summarized in this fashion provide the researcher the ability to quickly and efficiently incorporate this information into any report or written findings. Overall, the case summary assignment serves as an excellent informational tool and exercise for the development of legal writing skills.
Instructions
A closer look at typical case summaries reveals a strict adherence to a mechanical approach to content and to basic writing style. The case summary assignment intends to compress as much information as possible with precise expression. In order to accomplish this task, every word must be crucially important.
For this assignment, you will prepare one case summary of a court decision that addresses legal issues in sport (see below for cases to choose from). It is expected that you will read the case and synthesize the case into the format provided. You are summarizing and selecting the specific messages the justices communicated in the case and not giving your analysis of the decision.
Each case summary should be at least two pages and may not exceed four pages. An electronic copy of the court decision title page must be attached to your summary or a 10% deduction will occur. Follow the structured format identified below and separate each section from one another with a double space:
Citation
Key Facts to include
factual setting of the case,
significant background,
parties involved,
nature of dispute,
positions of the parties on the issue,
decisions of previous courts on that specific case (i.e., if this is a supreme court decision there is likely other courts previously which decided on the case)
Issues Presented to the Court, for example
Negligence, sexual harassment, contract breach, etc…
Other issues can be included but there should be some real legal issue at stake!
Decision of the Court
this should be a short response to the issues
Reasoning of the Court
Regurgitate the court’s justification for its decision in clear and concise terms. This could be difficult to draw from the court’s opinion. This is not a paraphrase but a capture. Demonstrate your understanding. Address any important dissenting or concurring opinions.
Submission Guidelines
The following guidelines should be adhered to when completing this assignment:
Your summary should be no longer than four pages single spaced. Better if over two but less than four pages!
Writing should be precise, concise, simple, and logical. An elaborate description of the facts is not necessary.
Correctly format your case summary using APA 6th edition, including
citing the case on a cover page with your name(s)
Do not include citations in text.
Legal writing is impersonal. Never use proper names. For example,
Incorrect- Judge Seifried stated
Correct- The dissent stated
Incorrect- Chad Seifried
Correct- defendant
Attach the first page of your case to your assignment. This can be a copy and paste from the document or a screenshot.
Grading
Your submission will be graded according to the following guidelines/rubric.
Criteria
Exemplary
Good
Unacceptable
Key Facts
(20%)
Points possible: 16-20pts
Information provided highlights the key facts/background of the case. Presents information on legal issues and identifies specific legal terms. Not a direct copy and paste of the opinion but a summary with past decision history provided (if applicable).
Points possible: 11-15pts
Evidence of the key facts is provided but some specific recognition of the correct legal terms or legislative items is missing. May have a bit too much copy and pasting from the court opinion with irrelevant information.
Points possible: 5-10pts
The writing is not logically organized, and the elements do not make sense as stated in the case. The summary is difficult to follow and no legal or legislative terms are provided.
Issues and Decisions
(30%)
Points possible: 25-30pts
Correct identified issues and decisions provided that connect to the key facts. Short and to the point. Specific legal terms and legislation is correct.
Points possible: 16-24pts
Reasonable issues connecting to the key facts. Likely some missing legal terms or legislative items. May have issues identified that are not legal issues or that may be merged with other issues.
Points possible: 10-15pts
Information does not connect to the key facts or identify the correct issues. Some mix of reasoning in the decision.
Reasoning
(30%)
Points possible: 25-30pts
Superior effort to compare and contrast the law, theories, policies, and/or precedent cases/terms in the literature review in order to apply it to a specific setting or context. Good evidence of showcasing the significance of the information discovered. Recognition of dissenting and concurring opinions when applicable.
Points possible: 16-24pts
Adequate effort to compare and contrast law, theories, policies, and/or precedent cases/terms in the literature review in order to apply it to a specific setting or context. May be some evidence of a lack of ability to apply it to a specific setting or context you chose.
Points possible: 10-15pts
Overall, lacking ability to compare and contrast the literature, law, policies, and/or theories along with precedent cases. Personal opinion is provided instead of legal opinion.
APA Style
(10%)
Points possible: 10pts
APA style followed throughout. References also follow correct APA style. Overall, free of errors.
Points possible: 5pts
APA style somewhat followed throughout. References somewhat follow correct APA style, but errors are present.
Points possible: 0pts
Incorrect APA style and numerous errors (almost too many to count) regarding APA references.
Writing Quality
(10%)
Points possible: 10pts
The legal writing is free or almost free of errors. High quality sentences that are easy to read and supported with the correct legal terms. Emphasis on using active verbs, good grammar, etc. Also avoidance of using names of the parties.
Points possible: 5pts
There are occasional errors, but they don’t represent a major distraction. Still, could contain spelling and grammar issues, and present several other items of concern. Some overuse of names of the parties.
Points possible: 0pts
There are so many errors that meaning is obscured. Poor organization of document (i.e., elements are not logically connected). Any general reader would have problems following your summary. Overuse use of names rather than legal terms.
Overall paper
Total-100 points
