Conventions
An acronym for the components of a legal argument.
CREAC. ALW pp. 99-100.
This kind of authority controls the outcome of a legal issue in a jurisdiction.
Mandatory authority. ALW p. 23.
A legal principle that appears directly in the text of a primary source.
An explicit rule. ALW pp. 108-09.
When writing a rule, you use this tense.
Present tense. ALW p. 117
The kind of reasoning that applies the key language from the rule directly to a client’s facts.
Rule-based reasoning. ALW p. 143
A vocab word ALW uses for a description of a case that helps prove or clarify a rule and helps preview the framework for the application.
Case illustration. ALW pp. 119-21.
Commentary about the law that is not binding.
Secondary authority. ALW p. 16.
A combination of legal principles from more than one authority.
A synthesized rule. ALW pp. 111-13.
When writing the trigger facts, you use this tense.
Past tense. ALW p. 125.
Describe the difference between a rule and a holding.
A rule is general and a holding is case-specific. A rule “sets a legal standard” by “telling people what they must or can do, what they must not or should not do, or what they are entitled to do under certain conditions”; the holding provides “the court’s answer to one of the questions presented by one of the parties.” ALW pp. 53, 65.
A vocab word ALW uses for something that states the legal principle the case illustration will clarify and prove to be true.
A hook. ALW p. 122.
When courts may be bound by decisions of courts at the same level in their court system hierarchy.
Horizontal Precedent. Class 2, Slides 15-16.
This sets the standard in your client’s case; controls the answer to your client’s question; and creates a structure around which your argument should be organized.
The governing rule. ALW pp. 65-67
The technique of beginning the second sentence with an idea from the prior sentence.
A bridge. ALW pp. 116-17.
When you should quote a source instead of paraphrasing it.
“Save quotations for ‘key language’—that is, particular phrasing or terms of art that need to be conveyed precisely as they were in the original [text].” ALW p. 117.
A defensible reason for “breaking” CREAC.
Introducing new law in a counter-analysis. ALW p. 194.
Court-created law in the absence of state or federal legislation.
Common law. ALW p. 22.
Give an example of a word or phrase in a statute that tells you the list is illustrative, not exhaustive.
“or,” “either,” or “without limiting.” ALW pp. 41-42.
The name for a verb that has been turned into a noun.
Nominalization, zombie noun, derivative noun, or hidden verb. PEL pp. 22-23.
When you should use rule-based reasoning over analogical reasoning.
RB when rule and application are so clear there’d be no benefit to analogical reasoning. A when there’s binding precedent with similar or distinguishable facts to your case. Class 6, Slides 4-5.
Name all the sections of an objective legal memo.
Heading, [Question Presented, Brief Answer,] Statement of Facts, Discussion, Conclusion. Class 9 Slides 4-8.
Name the hierarchy of primary authorities.
Constitution, statues, regulations, and judicial opinions. ALW p. 24.
Give two examples of something that is “off limits” from an opinion when trying to extract a rule.
“Anything that was unnecessary to the court’s decision in a precedential opinion (legally insignificant facts, dicta, separate opinions).” Class 3, Slides 8-9.
Name the four things you consider before you begin writing a new genre of writing.
Audience, purpose, structure, and persona. Class 1, Slide 10.
Name the components of an analogical application.
Point sentence, fact-to-fact comparison, and legal consequence. ALW p. 148.