OB

Chapter 13 - Law Office Memo

Purpose and use

  • The main purpose of the office memo

    • to record the law found as a result of the research

    • to explain how the researcher analyzed the law and applied the facts

    • ultimately propose a solution

  • a memo can be expensive with research time

  • can be referred back to, used to discuss problems to be resolve, aid further research, and many more

Basic Question

  • The basic question the memo answers is how similar precedent will be applied to your client’s case to arrive at an answer.

  • This is similar to the opinion letter but here the focus is more on your thought process as to how you figure out the answer.

  • Not the niceties in communicating with your client

Style

  • the tone of an office memo should be objective, not persuasive

  • keep yourself out of the memo (dont use I)

  • avoid slang

  • formal, but not so formal that its unappealing to read

  • dont use elegent variation

  • choose specific words, not abstract words

Format

  • no one correct format

  • To and From

  • Re ( identify the subject matter)

  • Date (date you completed it or the date you deliver it to your reader)

  • Facts

    • limit them to one or two paragraphs

    • if you assume facts, clearly state that its an assumption

  • Issues and answers (the heart of your memo)

    • an issue and the corresponding answer should be one sentence in length but should give the reader as much information as possible.

    • The issue is usually stated in the form of a question, and the answer is a full sentence response to the issue

  • Reasoning

    • thesis, a short conclusion, statement of the rule of law, and the application of the rule of law to the facts

    • Thesis

    • Rule of law

      • the law contained in any legal sources that will be applied to your facts later in your memo

      • leave out portions that are irrelevant any omissions by using ellipses.

      • if the law is simple, you may want to explain it in your own words

      • explain abt case law

    • application of law to facts

      • explain why a constitutional or statutory provision applies or does not apply

      • explain it in a way that someone who has never read about that area of the law before can understand your memo

    • conclusion (summarize)

Memo Content

  • To: Who is the memo for?

  • From: Who wrote the memo?

  • Re: What is it about?

  • Facts: What are the facts of your case?

  • Issue: What question are you answering?

  • Answer: What did you find?

  • Reasoning: FIRAC

  • Conclusion: Repeat the answer with more detail.

FIRAC

  • Facts: what are the facts of the precedent case?

    • Who were the parties

    • What did they do?

    • What was the law suit about?

  • Issue: What was the issue that was presented to the Court in the precedent case?

  • Rule

    • How did the court rule?

    • In making their ruling what did the court say?

    • What precedent did they create?

  • Analysis

    • Compare and Contrast

    • This is where you take the facts from your case and apply them to the precedent case

  • Conclusion: the answer!

    • This is where you explain why the precedent you used pushes you to the opinion you have given.

good lawyers teach the law