Writing legal opinions

Legal Writing at Duke Law School Learning to write like a lawyer is perhaps the greatest challenge of legal education. The writing faculty support Duke Law students in all of their writing endeavors, helping them to develop and perfect the skills necessary to produce top-quality legal writing. The Program, supplemented by the Legal Writing Resources website, emphasizes the integration of legal analysis, writing, and research, and helps students to understand and consider the legal audience for whom they are writing.

Lexicon Legal Opinion A legal opinion is a written statement by a judicial officer, legal expert or a court as to the illegibility or legibility of a condition, intendant or action.

Formulation of a Legal Opinion

The letter can also be said to as an opinion of how the highest court of jurisdiction would resolve the issues expressed in the letter.

Professional understanding of the issue relies on the law at the date of writing. However, the opinions expressed in the letter are not a guarantee of a particular outcome. Purpose of opinion letters To satisfy contractual agreements: This is common when the opinion letter is issued for among other occasions, to an investor concerning the sale of securities Lawfulness of an action: Opinion letters are given when you want to know if an action is lawful or if the action will lead to desired legal consequences.

They also address the question raised by other professional. They, therefore, provide an authoritative basis for reports, opinions, and reports on matters where other professionals lack the professional capability to make judgments.

Another purpose is to satisfy regulatory requirements. How to Write an Opinion Letter An opinion letter is useful before you get into a transaction. It is written before one enters, litigates or defends transactions. An opinion letter must address all the questions that the client wants to be answered.

The reason why a client has the question is that they are confused about an issue and they want professional guidance in the area. So when writing the letter, you must clarify all the areas of concern.

Most of the time, the clients approach you with an unclear question. So, when drafting the questions, make them more sensible. However, any natural interface or presumption you have made from the facts must be included.

Do not forget to mention that the interface or presumptions are your personal opinions. For an easy analysis, first set out the provision of the law and the law itself. After that, summarize the jurisdiction of the High Court or the Supreme Court over the issue at hand.

Cite all the extracts. For an ultimate opinion, chose precise extracts on which to base your judgment.Template LEGAL OPINION This is a sample legal opinion for the purpose of paragraph (A) of Part A (Initial Conditions Precedent) of Schedule 1 (Conditions Precedent) to the Contract for Difference Standard Terms and Conditions.

It is issued by the CfD Counterparty as guidance. Writing Reasoned Decisions and Opinions: A Guide for Novice, Experienced, and Foreign Judges S.I. STRONG* TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION II. WHAT CONSTITUTES A REASONED DECISION OR OPINION III. WHY REASONED JUDGMENTS ARE NECESSARY OR USEFUL A.

Structural Rationales for Reasoned . Drafting a legal opinion can and should always be split into two processes: The thinking process and the writing process. The Thinking Process The first thing to do is to digest and organise the facts. A legal opinion is typically written by following a format that consists of six sections, explains The Law Dictionary.

The first section is the heading that includes a one-line case descriptor. The next five sections are the legal issue, an answer, the statement of facts, a discussion and a conclusion. Download file to see previous pages Learning of this decision, school officials responded by implementing a ban on the wearing of black armbands.

Students wearing the armband would be asked to remove them and should they refuse to do so, they would be suspended.

Writing these opinions represent a dialectic between two schools of thought: One, which holds that the lawyer is supposed to give his opinion, not the sources or precedents that he relies upon.