CREAC
A description of a case that helps prove or clarify a rule and helps preview the framework for the application.
Case illustration. ALW p. 114.
Commentary about the law that is not binding.
Secondary authority. ALW p. 16.
A legal principle that appears in the text of a primary source.
An explicit rule. ALW p. 103.
When writing a rule, you use this tense.
Present tense. Class 5, Slide 17.
This kind of authority controls the outcome of a legal issue in a jurisdiction.
Binding or mandatory authority. ALW p. 23.
This states the legal principle the case illustration will clarify and/or prove to be true.
A hook. ALW p. 116.
When courts are bound by decisions of courts above them in their court system hierarchy.
Vertical Precedent. Class 2, Slide 13.
A legal principle that is supported by but absent from the text of a primary source.
An implicit rule. ALW p. 104.
When writing the trigger facts, you use this tense.
Past tense. Class 5, Slide 18.
This kind of authority does not control the outcome of a legal issue in a jurisdiction.
Persuasive authority. ALW p. 24.
An acronym for the components of a legal argument.
CREAC. ALW pp. 93-94.
When courts may be bound by decisions of courts at the same level in their court system hierarchy.
Horizontal Precedent. Class 2, Slide 15.
A combination of legal principles from more than one authority.
A synthesized rule. ALW p. 63.
The technique of beginning the second sentence with an idea from the prior sentence.
A bridge. ALW p. 110.
Reasoning that applies the key language from the rule directly to a client’s facts.
Rule-based reasoning. ALW p. 143.
This tells the reader the point that the following analogy will prove.
A point sentence. ALW p. 149.
Court-created law in the absence of state or federal legislation.
Common law. ALW p. 21.
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 p. 61.
The name for a verb that has been turned into a noun.
Nominalization, zombie noun, derivative noun, or hidden verb. PEL pp. 22-23.
Instead of writing: "The doctor performed an examination of the patient."
Write: "The doctor examined the patient."
Reasoning that applies the law to the client’s facts through an analogy.
Analogical reasoning. ALW p. 147.
Name the sections of an objective legal memo.
Heading, [Question Presented, Brief Answer,] Statement of Facts, Discussion, Conclusion. Class 5, Slides 9-14.
Name the hierarchy of primary authorities.
Constitution, statues, regulations, and judicial opinions. Class 2, Slide 4.
Give an example of a word or a phrase in a statute that tells you the statute's list is illustrative, not exhaustive.
"or" or "Without limiting"
Class 1, Slide 29
Name the four things you consider before you begin writing a new genre of writing.
Audience, purpose, structure, and persona. Class 1, Slide 11.
Name the components of an analogical application.
Point sentence, fact-to-fact comparison, and legal consequence. ALW p. 148.