Mini-Brief #1- D.C. v. Wesby (2018), 138 S. Ct. 577. Police were called to a loud party (disturbance). Officers observed illegal activity and entered the house without permission.
After a brief investigation, they arrested 21 people for "Disorderly Conduct." Some months later, 16 sued for "False Arrest." Did the police have Qualified Immunity?
MINI-BRIEFS
Mini-briefs should be three (3) pages long. They are worth 10 points each.
Mini-briefs are divided into five (5) parts: Citation, Introduction, Summary, Majority Opinion(s) and Dissenting Opinion(s) (if available).
1. The Citation provides all reference numbers a case, including defendant and plaintiff names.
2. The Introduction describes the nature of the legal dispute. The Supreme Court only considers constitutional issues. Normally, I pick cases which involve search and seizure (4th Amendment), interrogation /Miranda (5th Amendment) or due process (4th and 14th Amendments). If there are earlier cases that influenced the decision (or precedents) this is where they are identified.
3. The Summary presents important facts of the case. The Summary section should be no more than one (1) page long. Some students fail to identify the constitutional issues being decided and provide long, overly detailed summaries.
4. The Majority Opinion summarizes the majority (ruling) decision. Well-written summaries require students to understand and distill complex issues. The highest grades will be given to mini-briefs that convey comprehension of the majority decision.
5. The Dissenting Opinion argues against the Majority Opinion. Sometimes there is not a Dissenting Opinion. However, most of the time, Dissenting Opinions give valuable insight into the legal arguments. This is where you can demonstrate your understanding of the case and improve your grade.
Mini-briefs are divided into five parts: Citation, Introduction, Summary, Majority Opinion(s) and Dissenting Opinion(s).
• The Citation provides reference numbers and sources for a case, including defendant and plaintiff names.
• The Introduction describes the nature of the legal dispute. In this class, it will always be a United States constitutional issue. The description should include a very short lineage that explains how the case made its way through the lower courts.
• The Summary presents important facts of the case, especially those that are being argued. It should be no more than one (1) page long. Most students fail to identify salient issues and provide long, overly broad and tedious summaries.
• The Majority Opinion summarizes the prevailing decision. Well written summaries require students to understand and distill complex issues.
• The Dissenting Opinion argues against the majority opinion. Not every case has a dissenting opinion. Sometimes, dissenting opinions are more interesting and insightful than majority opinions.
The highest grades will be given to mini-briefs which convey understanding of the ideas expressed by the Justices in making their decisions.