Legal Opinion Writing

Legal Opinion Writing

What is a Legal Opinion?

  • A formal written statement or analysis by a lawyer or legal expert.
  • Assesses relevant laws, regulations, case precedents, and legal considerations related to a specific legal issue.
  • Provides guidance to individuals, businesses, and organizations on how the law applies to a particular situation.
  • Must be legally correct and not misleading.
  • Dual purpose:
    • Inform the person of the legal effect of a situation.
    • Identify legal risks to consider before taking further action.
  • Often a prediction of what is likely to happen if a case goes to court.
  • Can be:
    • For another lawyer within the firm (legal memorandum).
    • For a lawyer outside the firm (barrister advice).
    • For a client (client letter).

Types of Legal Opinions

  • Formal and Informal (main categories).
  • Advisory Opinion:
    • Guidance on potential legal implications of a proposed course of action.
    • Examples: business decisions, contractual arrangements.
  • Litigation Opinions:
    • Requested regarding potential or threatened litigation.
    • Helps decide whether to commence or defend an action and legal implications.
  • Legislative Opinions:
    • Provided to lawmakers or legislative bodies (e.g., Parliament).
    • Ensures actions comply with relevant laws and are constitutionally correct.
  • Regulatory Compliance Opinions:
    • Ensures business operations comply with relevant laws and regulations.
    • Minimizes the risk of regulatory non-compliance.

Key Consideration

  • Consider who is relying on the opinion.
  • For the assessment, the audience is the senior supervising partner.

Tone of a Legal Opinion

  • Impartial, objective, and informative.
  • Must reach well-justified conclusions.
  • Different from arguments in court, which are partisan.

Structure of a Legal Opinion (IRAC Method)

  • IRAC stands for Issue, Law, Application, and Conclusion
  • Legal question must be clearly defined, requiring a good understanding of facts.
  • Sub-issues may need to be addressed.
1. Introduction
  • Clear and concise overview of the issue and purpose of the opinion.
  • Mention who the opinion is prepared for and key background information.
2. Statement of Facts
  • Outline relevant facts of the case or situation.
  • Summarize briefly; focus on key facts.
  • Provides context for the legal analysis.
3. Issues
  • Clearly define the legal issue or question to be addressed.
  • Guides analysis and helps focus on key legal principles.
4. Relevant Law
  • State the relevant legal principles accurately and succinctly.
  • Use your own words but cite relevant authority.
5. Application
  • The basis for the legal opinion.
  • Explain how and why you arrived at your opinion.
  • Discuss applicable laws, regulations, case law, and legal principles to the specific facts.
6. Conclusion
  • Brief summary of the overall opinion and advice.
  • Address the advice sought (e.g., should an action be commenced? What are the chances of success?)
  • Executive summary of the opinion.
  • State simply and clearly what action should be taken.
  • Can move the conclusion to the top for immediate advice, followed by the reasoning.

Applying IRAC: Example

Scenario
  • Sarah wants to open a coffee book and craft shop.
  • Preliminary discussions with Maya about Shop Number 5.
  • Email from Sarah to Maya: "I would like to rent Shop Number 5 at Whakapapa Village for $900 per fortnight, payable in advance for one year commencing on the 05/15/2025."
1. Issue
  • Is the email that Sarah sent to Maya definite enough to be an offer of tenancy?
2. Law
  • An offer is a definite promise to be legally bound provided specified terms are accepted.
  • Authority:
    • The Connell case: Advertisement with specific conditions held to be an offer.
    • Boulder and Tanire case: Compliment slip was not a formal offer as it lacked a definite promise and specified terms.
3. Application
  • Sarah's email contains a definite promise to be bound: "I would like to rent Shop Number 5."
  • Specifies payment terms: "$900 per fortnight payable in advance."
  • Specifies length of tenancy: "for one year commencing on the 05/15/2025."
  • More definite than the compliment slip in Boulder and as definite as the advertisement in Carlisle.
4. Conclusion
  • The email that Sarah sent to Maya on May is definite enough to be an offer of tenancy.

Legal Opinion Template

  • To: [Addressee Name]
  • From: [Your Name]
  • Date: [Date]
  • Matter: [Subject of the Opinion]
  • Follow with the IRAC structure, including an introduction.

Citations and References

  • Properly cite legal sources to add credibility.
  • For the assessment, everything needed is in the Brooker case.

Proofreading and Editing

  • Proofread for grammar, spelling, and formatting errors.
  • Edit for clarity and coherence.
  • Read aloud to yourself to check for flow and clarity.
  • Seek feedback from others to ensure clarity.

Writing Efficiently

  • Use simple language.
  • Avoid phrases like "I feel," "I think," "I believe."
  • Simplify sentence structures.
  • Example:
    • Instead of "The issue is that there is consideration price of a promise for," use "The issue is, is there consideration for x's promise?"

Key Phrases

  • Introduction/Body Text:
    • "The question deals with…"
    • "The principal issue raised by this question is…"
    • "The main issue is whether…"
    • "The issues to be considered are…"
    • "The problem also raises the issue of…"
    • "It would seem that…"
    • "It is possible that…"
    • "It could be argued that…"
    • "It would appear that…"
  • Conclusion:
    • "From the evidence examined, it's my opinion that…"
    • "It is therefore recommended that…"
    • "Based on the facts presented, their evaluation, the best course of action is to…"

Key Reminders

  • Brevity and clarity are crucial.
  • Avoid flowery language and verbose writing.
  • Be on point.
  • A good legal opinion reflects a thorough understanding of the law, rigorous analysis, and effective communication skills.
  • Remain impartial and unbiased.

Assessment Details

  • Releasing the legal opinion at 12:00 today.
  • 1,500-word limit.
  • Anything over the limit will not be counted, and 10 marks will be deducted.
  • The case is Brooker and police 20073NZedLR91.