1. Reading Legal Opinions
Prep for Law 2014

2. What’s In a Legal Opinion
Caption
Case Citation
Author of Opinion
Facts of the Case
Law of the Case
Concurring or Dissenting Opinions

3. Common Legal Terms Found in Opinions
Read cases with a legal dictionary nearby!
Learn terms for civil and criminal disputes
Learn basic terms in appellate litigation

4. What You Need to Learn From Reading a Case
Facts
Specific Legal Arguments Made By the Parties
Disposition – The Action the Court Ultimately Took
Reasoning of the Majority Opinion
Significance of the Majority Opinion
Understand Any Concurring or Dissenting Opinions

5. Why Do Law Professors Use the Case Method?
The Historical Reason:
We inherited English tradition of Common Law or “judge-made law”
Judges can only decide real cases or controversies
Precedent and stare decisis
Christopher Columbus Langdell

6. Why do Professors Use the Case Method?
The Practical Reason:
Lawyering Skill: Apply an Abstract Legal Rule to a New Set of Concrete Facts – Seeing the Law in Facts and the Facts in Law
Lawyering Skill: Reasoning By Analogy – Compare Your Facts to Other Sets of Facts
Lawyering Skill: Wrestle with Hypotheticals (“Hypos”) to Define the Limits of Terms and Rules

7. When You First Begin Reading Opinions
Before Worrying About Briefing, You Must (1) Read the Case Critically and (2) Understand the Gestalt of the Case, i.e. a Coherent Whole Picture

8. Beginning Case Reading Worksheet
Save as a Template on Prep for Law Portfolio and Google Drive
Print out copies or fill out individual copies as you read
Will make briefing go faster
Will train your brain to see what you need as you read

9. Now, to Practice Read the edited version of the Hobby Lobby case.
Fill out the Beginning Case Reading Worksheet as you go.
Add the Worksheet template to your Prep for Law Portfolio for future use.
On the Discussion Board, post a link to the template on your site and copy and paste the contents of your completed Worksheet for Hobby Lobby.