Proving You Are Ready to Go from the Exam Room to the Courtroom

As you review your fall semester exams and set goals for the spring semester, ask yourself: Does my exam look like the work of someone who should be given a license to practice law? When you graduate, you are likely to accept a position with either a plaintiff’s firm, prosecutor’s office, a defense firm, or the court. And, you may find yourself switching from one side to the other throughout your legal career. Therefore, you have to convince your professor that you are capable of handling the legal matter from any chair in the courtroom. The good news is that a well-constructed IRAC answer does just that!

The Rules Section

Q. Where do the jurors learn all of the legal rules and instructions during a trial?

A. From the judge, especially during the final jury instructions.

You have to show the professor that you know and understand the rules of law associated with the litigation. At a real trial, it will be your job as the judge to properly instruct the jury as to the law. Similarly, if you are one of the litigants, then you must protect your client’s interests by ensuring that the judge properly carries out his or her duty. Therefore, both the judge and the litigants need to be well-versed on the legal standard. Show the professor that you know the rules that are related to the specific dispute. Just as a Judge wouldn’t burden a jury with unnecessary rules that don’t relate to the instant case, you too, should be selective in the rules offered to your professor. Include enough rules to help the jury/professor understand the legal standard, while omitting any unnecessary or irrelevant bits of information.

The Application Section

Q. Where do the jurors get all of their facts during a trial?

A. From the witnesses who testify and the exhibits offered into evidence during the litigation.

Q. Whose job is it to tie everything together, i.e. convince the jury that the facts offered at trial actually amount to a crime or tort or breach of contract, under the law as explained by the judge?

A. From the lawyer representing the injured party.

This section shows the professor that you can argue on behalf of your client. The professor essentially gives you a trial transcript when they draft a fact pattern or hypothetical for the exam. It is your job, as the attorney, to dissect that transcript, identifying each piece of helpful (or hurtful) testimony. Then you must compile all of those facts into a thorough and thoughtful argument on behalf of your client, making sure to discuss each of the legal factors or elements important to your case. Just like all good attorneys, you will likely spend more time discussing the hotly disputed elements, while quickly dispensing with the more obvious ones.

Would you ever stand up in a jury trial and say “Clearly the defendant intended to kill the victim,” and then simply sit back down? Of course not! So, don’t make that type of conclusory argument on an exam either. Instead, take the professor step-by-step through each fact or witnesses or piece of documentary evidence that supports your argument, just like you would during a real trial.

If you follow these litigation techniques when you draft your spring exam answers, you’re bound to get a verdict in your favor!  (Kirsha Trychta)