法律英语课件-Legal English(case brief)案例摘要

A standard case citation contains:
1. the name of the case; 2. the published sources in which we can find the case; 3. information in parentheses indicating; A . the year the decision was issued , and B . When not apparent from the name of the cited reported volume, the court which issued thee decision; and 4. the prior or subsequent history, if any, of the case.




Court decisions are complied chronologically by date of issuance and published in volumes called case reporters.
Law reports


include decisions of court appeals and the decisions


A citation identifies a legal authority or reference work, such as a constitution, statute, court decision, administrative rule, or treatise. The function of a citation is to help a reader to do legal researches, which serves to help the reader locate a legal authority or reference work.

Circuit‟s decision issued in 1973 and published in volume 483 of the Federal Reporter, Second Series [F. 2d] , beginning at page 754 in that volume. The Third Circuit „s decision was reviewed and affirmed[aff‟d] by the United States Supreme Court, whose decision was issued in 1974 and published in volume 419 of United States Reports[ U.S.] , beginning at page 345 in that volume.

Jackson v. Metropolitan Edison Co. , 384 F. Supp. 954(M.D. Pa. 1972 ), aff‟d , 483 F. 2d 754(3d Cir. 1973), aff‟d, 419 U.S. 345(1974)

Name : Jackson v. Metropolitan Edison Co. A decision in the case of Jackson v. Metropolitan Edison Company is reported in volume 348 of the Federal Supplement, beginning at page 954 of that volume. This decision was issued by the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania[ M.D. Pa.] in 1972. The District Court‟s decision was affirmed [ aff‟d] on review by the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit [ 3d Cir.], with the Third

1. 主审法官的意见用现在时态；前审法院的意见用 过去时态； 2. 主审法官的意见是法院意见；
3. 除法院意见外还有两种意见，被称为“反对意见” 与“配合意见”。




反对意见（dissenting opinion) ___opinion offered by a judge disagreeing with the majority panel of judges‟ conclusion


Hebb v. Severson, 201 P. 2d 156 (Wash. 1984)


Hebb----plaintiff Severson---defendant (volume 201 of the Pacific Reporter Second Series beginning on page 156) (Washington State Supreme Court)

Example: State v. Yoder, 49 Wis. 2d 430 , 182 N. W. 2d 539 (1971)


1.93N.J324, 461A.2d138(1983) 2.Morgan v. United States,298 U .S.468, 56S.Ct 906, 80L.Ed.1288(1936) 3.New York Times Co.v. Sullivan 376 U.S.254(1964)
of the supreme courts that give the common law lawyer information on the status of the law. It is also these decisions that a student of law school.


wk.baidu.com





D. The issues ____What is the legal question before this court? E. The rules ____What rules (primary law) did the court rely On in reaching its decision? F. The analysis (reasoning) ____How did the court analyze the facts in light of the legal question and the rules? G. The conclusion ____How did the court resolve the dispute?
Facts: Necessary fact Unnecessary fact Hypothetical fact




The name and the citation of the case ----names of litigants and correct legal citation for this reported case. Name Official Citation Unofficial Sources Year Function: to help a reader to do legal researches.
English Cases Case Brief Citation Case Reporter Civil litigation


How to read English Cases

Marbury v. Madison California v. O.J.Simpson Miranda v. Arizona Greenman v. Yuba Power Products, Inc. Hamer v. Sidway



1. Who are the parties ? 2.If the case is an appeal, what happened in the lower court(s)? 3.What happened to bring these parties into court in the first place? 4.What is the legal question before this court? 5.What rules (primary law ) did the court rely on in reaching its decision? 6.How did the court analyze the facts in light of the legal question and the rules? 7.How did the court resolve the dispute?






A. The name and the citation of the case ____names of litigants and correct legal citation for this reported case. B. The judicial history ____What happened to bring the parties before the court? C. The facts ____What happened to bring the parties before the courts?




Case brief（案例摘要） ———对案例汇编中收录的案例所做的概述。 A short summary of a published case. A case brief is one way to summarize a reported case. The brief helps you identify the key facts and issues; then you are prepared to compare the reported case with your client‟s situation


配合意见(concurring opinion) ___opinion written by a judge agreeing with the majority

6. Votes of the court affirmance (维持原判） reversal (撤销原判） remandment （发回重审）




1. Case Name E.g. Marbury v. Madison V. is short for versus ( 诉求） 2. Court rendering the opinion E.g. New Jersey Supreme Court 3. Citation 4. Justice wrote the opinion 5.Opinion stating the issue raised, describing the parties and facts, discussing the relevant law, and rending judgment.

1. The facts of the case: the statement of the facts of the case includes only those facts that are relevant for
the (appellate) court’s decision.