HOW TO BRIEF A CASE (see also sample case brief on page 2)
The purpose of a case brief is to provide a brief summary of a particular case.
CITATION: Case name, the court that issued the opinion, and the year and reference of
the case with Bluebook citation, e.g. Miranda v. Arizona 132 U.S .1122 (1966).
FACTS: Summarize in your own words the basic facts that led to the legal conflict.
PROCEEDINGS BELOW: State the holding (ruling) of the lower courts. Since this will
usually be a case on appeal, there have been other courts that have already ruled in this
matter.
ISSUE: This is the central question of the case, whose answer is either yes or no. This is
always a question of law, not of the facts. Not “did Miranda commit the crime?” but
“do the 5th Amendment rights of a suspect during interrogation require that the individual
be warned of his right to remain silent prior to the beginning of the interrogation?”
RULE: In one sentence, state the legal rule or principle that can be derived from this case
to guide future conduct. For example, in the case of Falwell v. Hustler, we might say that
“The first Amendment” prohibits public persons from recovering damages for intentional
infliction of mental distress via publication unless the plaintiff can show that the
publication contained false statements of fact that were made with actual malice.”
HOLDING: Who won this particular case. The case is usually affirmed, denied,
remanded, etc.
Sample CASE BRIEF
CITATION: Miami Herald Publishing Co. v. Tornillo, 418 U.S. 241 (1974)
FACTS: Tornillo brought an action against the Miami Herald, which criticized
his candidacy for the Florida Legislature, under a Florida law that required newspapers to
print replies from candidates opposed by the newspapers. Tornillo sought monetary
damages and an injunction to force the Herald to run his reply.
PROCEEDINGS BELOW: A circuit court in Florida found for the Herald, saying the
law in question violated the First Amendment freedom of the press. The Florida Supreme
Court reversed, however, finding no violation of the First Amendment.
ISSUE: Does a law requiring newspapers to run replies from political
candidates criticized in editorials violate the First Amendment guarantee of a free press?
RULE: A law requiring a newspaper to publish material that its publishers and
editors would not choose to publish puts government in the position of deciding
newspaper content. Such a law amounts to a form of censorship, because by publishing
the material that the Florida law requires, the newspaper loses the right to publish
something of its own choosing.
HOLDING: The Florida law violates the First Amendment. The decision of the Florida
Supreme Court is reversed.