Law Homework Help

Competency

• Analyze contract defenses.
• Analyze drafting and signature requirements for contracts.

Scenario

Jill and Will are independent contractors. They have completed technology projects for people and businesses. They have not sold parts, because they did not want to have to collect sales tax or deal with the paperwork. In the past, their carefully selected customers have been great. Collection of bills has not been difficult. They preferred not to use written bids or contracts.

Jill and Will have changed their minds, due to customer needs. They have sought advice from your supervising attorney, Mary. They have even decided that they will sell some bigger ticket items.

Jill and Will understand, from their own research, contracts where they sell over $500 of goods will require a writing, but they want more up-to-date and accurate information. Mary, the attorney, wants you to do a survey of recent cases and articles on the statute of frauds, to make sure that she has an up-to-date basis for legal advice.

Instructions

By submitting your assignment to this drop box you agree to abide by the Academic Misconduct Policy set forth in the course syllabus. You acknowledge that your failure to do so could result in being expelled from the course.

You have been asked to create a memorandum of law. Within your memorandum, research and report on the following sources:

1. A recent case in Lexis or Fastcase on the Statute of Frauds
2. A recent article in the Rasmussen Online Library on the Statute of Frauds
3. A legal blog regarding the Statute of Frauds
4. A statute of frauds or statute requiring a writing that has been enacted in your home state

Additionally, for the appellate case (in question 1 above) on a statute of frauds issue, complete and include an IRAC analysis within the memorandum. How will that look? See the “Format for Week Four Written Assignment” document in the Module 04 folder.

Use bluebook citations for every use of a source. Include a footer with your initials on every page. Include both a title page and reference notation.

Q. What is the IRAC Method?

Answer

**Click here for a sample template**

Paralegals need to be able to understand and employ legal analysis to effectively serve clients and support their supervising attorneys. Legal analytical skills are required for nearly every paralegal activity in which you may engage. Some of common places where you may employ this method include:

• Assessment of the merits of a prospective client matter
• Review of case law
• An aid to help determine what evidence is necessary to prosecute or defend a case
• Practically all aspects of legal writing including, but not limited to, case briefing, legal memoranda, legal briefs and appellate briefs

In simple terms, one of the skills that will set you apart from a legal assistant or legal secretary is your ability to employ legal reasoning.

IRAC is an acronym for each step of the process. It stands for:

Let’s see how IRAC works:

Issue

One of the most important skills you will need to develop when engaged in legal analysis is issue spotting. The issue is the question or problem to be resolved by application of a legal rule.

Do not assume there is only one issue for each legal problem. Sometimes there is only one issue involved, but in the real world, it is more likely there are many. Sometimes you need to resolve one issue before moving onto the next. For example, in a negligence action, you will want to know whether the defendant owed a duty to the plaintiff before you can determine if a duty was breached. If no duty was owed, then no duty was breached.

How do you spot issues? If you are reading a court decision, you’ll probably be told what issues the court is deciding. If you are not given that luxury, then you must determine what legal problem needs to be answered or solved.

Let’s look at an example. Suppose a client comes in who has been injured in a car accident. Some issues that you may need to resolve include:

• Issues of liability
• Theories of recovery available – known as a claim or cause of action
• The burden of proof to establish liability
• Defenses to liability
• Measure of recoverable damages
• Whether it is too late to do anything because of a statute of limitations

As you can see, it can get complicated. The key to issue spotting is to pay careful attention to the facts and determine what facts pose issues.

Rule

The next step is to find and list the legal rules that apply to each issue. Legal rules come from four primary sources:

• Federal & State Constitutions
• Statutes
• Regulations
• Case Law

If you are reading a court decision, the court will identify the applicable legal rules and will usually spend some time explaining each.

If you need to find the rule that applies to an issue, then you will have to engage in legal research. For example, you may review your state’s Supreme Court opinions to determine the required elements to establish the tort of negligence in your state.

Application/Analysis

At this stage, the law is applied to the facts to resolve the issue. If you are reading a court case, the court will spend time explaining how it applied the law to the facts to reach its decision.

An easy example is determining whether a statute of limitations precludes a lawsuit. Let’s say that a prospective client has come into the office that was injured four years ago. You believe the client has a viable claim but discover that the statute of limitations – or deadline in which to file a claim – is three years. Thus, the statute of limitation bars the claim.

Conclusion

The conclusion is the result of the application of the law to the facts used to resolve the legal issue. In a court opinion, the conclusion is the court’s holding or decision.

While you have already reached your conclusion in the application section, it is good practice to restate it in the conclusion. Conclusions can often be quite short. For example, you may conclude that a client was a victim of a battery but does not have a claim because he is the one that started the fight and the other party has a valid claim of self-defense.

Q. How do I create a Legal Memo? What are the parts? What does one look like?

Answer

Paralegals are often required to draft legal memos. The sections of a legal memorandum are:

• Heading or Caption
• Facts
• Issue(s) Presented
• Brief Answer
• Reasoning or Discussion
• Conclusion

**Click HERE to view a Legal Memo Template**

The Caption appears at the top of the page and contains this information:

The Facts section of the memo provides a formal and objective description of the legally significant facts in your research question.

The Issue(s) Presented is the subject of the memo presented as a question; How does the relevant law apply to the key facts of the research question?

Beginning with a conclusion (yes, no, probably yes, etc.), the Brief Answer provides an explanation of the reasons for your conclusion. This section is no more than four to five sentences.

The Reasoning or Discussion section educates the reader about the applicable legal principles, illustrates how those principles apply to the relevant facts, and explore any likely counter arguments. This section is the heart of the memo.

This is followed a restatement of the Conclusion.

Click HERE to view a Legal Memo Template

Q. How do I cite using Bluebook guidelines?

Consult the Indigo Book for all of your legal citations.

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Answer

Paralegal course assignments require legal resources to be cited using Bluebook guidelines. The Indigo Book is what students should use for help using The Bluebook: Uniform System of Citation.

Students have access to the free Indigo Book on the School of Justice Studies Guide.

Need help?

1. Refer to the Bluebook tab in the School of Justice Studies Guide for additional help including a Bluebook Sample Paper.

2. Make an appointment with a tutor using Tutor Match. Select Paralegal in the School drop down and then pick Bluebook.

3. Attend the Paralegal Study Sessions. Topics vary week-to-week including Bluebook Citations, Lexis Advance & FastCase, our top 10 resources to support you, specific challenges in your course, writing help, and more!

4. Refer to this Bluebook Formatting information.

Looking for additional examples? Consult Cornell University Law School’s Legal Information for guidance in creating legal citations for a variety of legal resources.

**RUBRIC**

• Research

  25% of total gradeMastery: Advanced or exceeds achievementFound four types of sources with precise adherence to the requirements. All four sources were of good or top quality, recent and explicit applicability.Proficiency: Clear/effective achievementFound four types of sources with precise adherence to the requirements. All four sources were of good or top quality, recent and evident applicability.Competence: Adequate/basic achievementFound four types of sources, with reasonable adherence to requirements. Sources were recent and of good quality.Emerging: Limited or growing achievementAttempted to find some sources. Either the article or the case was found using the required research services, Lexis, Fastcase, or Rasmussen Online Library.

• Report on Research

  25% of total gradeMastery: Advanced or exceeds achievementOriginal explanation of the sources and statute of frauds. Makes clear applications to the scenario that show personal analysis.Proficiency: Clear/effective achievementOriginal explanation of the sources and statute of frauds. Makes clear applications to the scenario.Competence: Adequate/basic achievementOriginal explanation of the sources and statute of frauds. Some applications to the scenario are included.Emerging: Limited or growing achievementMinimal description of what each source shows about a requirement of a writing (statute of frauds). Comprehension of the sources is shown.

• IRAC

  33% of total grade

• Mastery: Advanced or exceeds achievementA highly effective IRAC analysis of a contracts case that shows how the court applied a rule to a statute of fraud issue in an appellate case.Proficiency: Clear/effective achievementComplete IRAC analysis of a case that shows how the court applied a rule to a statute of frauds issue in an appellate case.Competence: Adequate/basic achievementComplete IRAC analysis of an appellate case on a statute of frauds issue.Emerging: Limited or growing achievementPartially complete IRAC analysis of an appellate case involving a statute of frauds or related contracts issue.

• Spelling and Grammar

  8% of total gradeMastery: Advanced or exceeds achievementMinimal to no spelling and grammar errors.Proficiency: Clear/effective achievementFew spelling and grammar errors.Competence: Adequate/basic achievementSome spelling and grammar errors, which detract from the audience’s ability to comprehend material.Emerging: Limited or growing achievementNumerous spelling and grammar errors, which detract from the audience’s ability to comprehend material.

• Bluebook Citation

  9% of total gradeMastery: Advanced or exceeds achievementBluebook in-text citations and references are used correctly.Proficiency: Clear/effective achievementBluebook in-text citations and references are used with few errors.Competence: Adequate/basic achievementAttempted to use Bluebook in-text citations and references.Emerging: Limited or growing achievementBluebook in-text citations and references are missing.