Court Cases
CASE BRIEF:
IRAC METHOD:
Issue (What is the question the court must decide?)
Rule (What’s the rule?)
Analysis (Under what circumstances should you be found guilty?)
Conclusion (Purpose of the law)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Presenting:
1) Title, court, year (Which court?) (Which year the case was decided)
2) Facts (Tell us about the facts of the case)
3) Legal issue (What is the legal issue?) (The legal question the court must decide?)
4) Decision (How did the court decide?)
5) Courts Reasoning (Why did the court decide?)
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Legal System:
Laws ----> Consensus (We need people to agree)
Law Enforcement (We need enforcement because it would be chaotic to not have it)
Judges = Disinterested (They don’t care either way who wins or loses, if the rules that follow)
System of dispute resolution (Some way people settle their disputes without turning into violence)
Consequences
Advocates
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Sources Of Law:
Legislative law (Congress - State Senate & Assembly – NYC Council)
Legislative law is a formal written rule created and passed by a government's lawmaking body, such as Congress or parliament.
Judicially (created law) (English legal system --> Common Law System --> Precedent --> Stare Decisis)
Executive Order –
A signed, written, and published directive from the President of the United States that manages the operations of the federal government.
Administrative Law - Administrative law is the body of public law that governs the creation, organization, operation, and powers of executive branch government agencies.
Examples:
Fire department
Building department
Health
IRS
Constitutional Law - the body of legal rules and court decisions that set up the structure of government and protect the basic rights of citizens.
Treaty – The agreement between nations
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Categories of law:
All laws are either...
Criminal Law
Or
Civil Law
All laws are either...
Substantive
Or
Procedural = Due process (If you don’t follow the process; you can’t do it)
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Chapter 2 – Dispute Resolution (Overview)
Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)
Court Systems
Jurisdiction
Sequence of a lawsuit
Alternative Dispute Resolution
Use of a 3rd person to hear & decide a dispute
Arbitration - A way to settle a legal disagreement outside of a normal courtroom
Federal Arbitration (1925)
Arbitrator’s decisions are enforceable
Quick and efficient
Private
Non appealable
Informal
(Choose your arbitrator)
Mediation - voluntary, confidential process where a neutral third person helps people in a dispute talk through their problems and find a shared solution.
Not binding
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Day 3
Our Court System
2 Systems function side by side
1) Federal Court System
Unified system
2) State Court Systems
Federal Court System
Authorized by our constitution
Judiciary Act (1789)
3 level system – 1 trial level court – 2 appellate level courts – special courts
Judges
Federal court claims
3 levels
1)(A) Trial court = U.S. District Court
Now 94 District Courts
Judges (decides questions of law)
Jury (decides questions of fact)
1) (B)
U.S. Court appeals
Aka Circuit court
One appeal as of rights
Appellate courts review errors of law
No new trial (no jury)
No witnesses that are heard
Examine the record of the trial court (for errors of law)
Appellate court may...
Affirm (Agree with the trial)
Reverse (Disagree with the trial court)
Modify the decision of the trial court
Remand
send back or return, most used in legal contexts to describe sending a legal case back to a lower court or returning an accused person to custody to await trial
Issue injunctions
Court order that says “stop it”
U.S. Supreme Court (1 Located in Washington D.C.)
9 Judges
Chief Judge: Justice John Roberts – Elena Kagan – Sonia Sotomayor – Amy Coney Barrett – Brown Jackson – Brett Kavanaugh - Clarence Thomas – Sam Alito
Special courts in the federal court system
Limited subject matter
Tax Court
Bankruptcy Court (Chapter 7)
Where someone says i have a lot of debt, I can pay any back, I will give the court everything i have, and please forgive my debts, and court says to you, “we give each creditor 10%”
Bankruptcy Chapter 11
Says we have a lot of debt, some assets, and we think if they can give our creditors hold off for a while, we can remain in business.
Court International Trade
is a federal trial court that resolves civil legal disputes arising from U.S. customs, tariffs, and international trade laws.
State Court Systems
Tri-level – 1 trial level – 2 appellate levels
2)(A) Trial law - One in every county
- Most states --> County Court
New York --> Supreme Court
2)(B) - Intermediate Appellate Court
- Appellate Division
- Special Courts in the state
Court System
Housing court
Family court
Court of Claims
Place where you allow to go to sue if you are injured by government
Surrogates Court
(Surrogate) One who stands in place for another
Administrates the state in stage for the deceased people
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Day 4
Certiorari
Supreme court looks over at your case and decides if they should take it or not take it
Jurisdiction
When can a court exercise the power to adjudicate a case against a defendant
1) _______ Resides in that state
2) _____ Can be served with a summons in that state
3) Long-Arm-Rule – a state summons may be delivered to ___ out of state if ________ commits a tort within the state
If ____ signs a contract
Does business within the state
Pretrial
Pleadings – Summon & Complaints
Answer – where the defendant responds to the summon and complaints
(Admit, Deny, “I lack information sufficient form of belief”)
No answer --> Default judgement = You lose automatically
Counterclaim
Reply
Subpoena
“You have something we need in order to access this lawsuit”
Discovery
Each side is supposed to tell each other about their case
Motions
Summary Judgement
Trial
Voir Dire
Opening Statements
Prosecution of Education Direct Case
Defendant Case
Closing statements
Deliberations
Verdict (Truth Spoken)
Judgement
Post Trial
Appeal -
Affirm
Reverse
Modify
Remand (Send it back, do it again)
Enforcement -
Attachments & Execution
Garnishment
Chapter 4 – Constitutional Law
History -
1960 - George III
1776 – Made the Declaration of Independence
1781 – Treaty
1783 – Treaty Affirmed
Articles of Confederation