U.S. Civil Procedure / U.S. law practice

Court system chart

New York state courts Note 

Federal Courts Federal circuit map: _Appeals_and_District_Court_map.svg 1st – 12th Cir., D.C. Cir., Fed. Cir.

Reporting / citing of federal judgments Trial court: F. Supp. 2d D. Mass., M.D. Tenn., D.D.C. Court of Appeals: F.3d or Fed. Appx. 1st Cir., CA13-judge panels or en banc Court web sites No-cite rules (“unpublished” opinions of federal appeals courts) s/rules/Unpub_Opinions.pdf

State judgments N.E.2d, So. 2d, etc. Controlling judgments

Other reporters Bankruptcy F.R.D. (federal rules decisions)

What if you are unsure how to cite? See how it’s been cited by other courts or in law reviews

Helpful resources Bluebook (19th ed.) Brian Garner, A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage Armstrong & Terell, Thinking Like a Writer Westlaw / Lexis the firm library & librarians Some firms have their own style guide

Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (Fed. R. Civ. P.) Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure (Fed. R. Crim. P.) Code of Federal Regulations (C.F.R.) U.S. Code (U.S.C.), U.S. Code Annotated (U.S.C.A.) Moore’s Federal Practice Wright & Miller, Federal Practice & Procedure

Court dockets From Westlaw or Lexis From PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records)

PACER

Memos Typical Memo structure: Question Posed Brief Answer Facts [Statutory / Regulatory provisions] Analysis Conclusion

Make sure you understand what’s being asked Deadline / length, etc.