In this section, I have included a sample case brief, legal memorandum, and advocacy letter done during my legal writing course at University of California, Santa Barbara. The objective of each piece is the following:
Case Brief: This is used to dissect a past case, find the most essential facts, form a summary which sorts out the story line of each party involved, and analyze the courts decision. It is made up of notes that are set up systematically and objectively, making it clearer to identify the rules of law.
Legal research memorandum: This piece consists of taking a case brief and converting it into a concise statement of facts and analysis. All legal memorandum's follow the same general structure and are made up of legal research and analysis.
Advocacy letter: This is a letter that is used to advocate for your clients rights. Using subtle cues and past cases from the Westlaw database to support your case, this piece is aimed to persuade your reader to believe that their client is in the wrong.
Through these pieces, I discovered the importance of fulfilling the expectations of a legally-trained reader. This course allowed me to partake in legal research and learn the many benefits of persuasive righting in legal advocacy.