The first time I heard of a case brief, I sincerely thought someone had swapped the two words in briefcase. Turns out, I had heard correctly. So my next question was, of course, what on earth is a case brief, and how does it connect to law school? Read on to find out!

What is a case brief? And what is the point of one?A case brief is a summary of the key points of a case you read for class. It typically includes the following to help with retention and understanding: the case’s name, its procedural history, the case’s facts, the holding and the court’s reasoning for it, and the general rule from the case that could be applied to other fact patterns.

Some people also like to include the arguments of each side and any concurrences and/or dissents to the decision. These work together to help highlight the key elements of a case. Why might you want to highlight the key elements of a case? Because when you read 19 cases for your three doctrinal courses, even if they’re as different as a criminal case on murder and a contracts case on consideration, that’s a lot to remember. They also act as a security blanket against the panic of cold calls. They also help engage with the reading which tends to help with retention. This helps with preparing for exams in the long run. It’s much easier to remember the details of a case you read early in the semester when you have something that goes over the details.

How do I make a case brief?There are typically two approaches to briefing: “traditional” briefing and book briefing. Some people prefer one over the other for different classes and may do both.

Case BriefingA case brief is just a document summarizing the key elements mentioned earlier. Most people will type them; a few people do handwrite them though. Whatever works best for you, go with that. I started with handwritten on my tablet, but then switched to typed. I just keep them all in a running document that I can reference throughout the semester as I outline. I have a template table in my document with the main elements that I just copy and paste for each case and fill in accordingly. The main elements are the same for all my classes, and some of my professors also ask about other things, like the arguments made or the elements of the statute involved, so my template is modified accordingly. I still may freeze up for a split second when called on, but I know my brief is there to help me out.

Book BriefingLook around a law school classroom, and you’ll see casebooks that range from barely touched to looking like a rainbow. The rainbow books typically belong to those who book brief, and each color coordinates to facts, rule/takeaway, issue, etc. It’s basically a case brief within the case itself and if you know that blue is facts, orange is rule/takeaway, yellow is procedural history, and so on, you’ll be golden. I don’t book brief because the rainbow is more distracting to me than it is helpful, but several of my classmates and other law students swear by it so it clearly works for some. Another method is just using one color to highlight all the particular elements and then notate in the margins what each thing is.

So what are the pros of each?Written briefsIt’s easier to refer to them all at once when you have them in one place. If you have an open book/note exam, you can print them out and refer to them that way in a document that’s probably less than 100 pages, which is way shorter than any case book is going to be. I also find that it forces me to engage with the material more deliberately.

Book briefsAssuming you know what your color coding system is or have great margin notes, you just have to go right to the page to answer a question and quote directly from the case. They’re typically faster too. And if you do have an open book/note exam, your notes are right there in the book. Plus you can just add class notes right there in the margins and keep everything in one place.

What about cons?Written briefsThey take longer, and time is precious in law school. Whether you type or handwrite, the reality is typing notes just takes longer than highlighting a few lines and moving on. Unless you’re notating what page something is on, you’ll have to flip through pages to figure that out too in class. If your computer or tablet runs out of battery, unless you have them printed out, you’re not able to access them. Many law schools have desks with outlets, but there’s no guarantee they’d be available and functional so you can’t always rely on that.

Book briefsYour engagement with the material is typically going to be on a more shallow level because you’re highlighting lines rather than paraphrasing into your own words. Also when it comes time to outline, instead of scrolling through 10 pages on a word doc, you’re flipping through 142 pages in your case book. If you lose or misplace your book (or forget it), you’re potentially in deep trouble, which scares me way too much to rely on book briefing.

What works best for you will depend on your personality, how you best learn, and what helps you stay organized. It will likely be trial and error, and may change as your law school career develops. The point of a case brief is to be a learning tool to help you succeed. You don’t have to case brief, but many find this to be one of the best ways to prepare for class and, long-term, understand the material for exams.

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