Reading Cases: General Questions to Ask

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Short Statement of Key Facts	Who are the parties? What are the parties in this dispute fighting about?
Statement of Procedural (legal) History of Case	What has happened in the courts to this point?
Statement of Issue(s)	What is the dispute to be resolved by this particular court? Which rule of law should be used? What definition of an element of rule should be used? What test should be applied?
Court Holding	What rule, definition or standard did the court articulate in order to solve the parties dispute?
Rationale or Reasoning of Court	What was the court's reasoning for its decision? Was the court's reasoning based on: eonomics politics sociology fairness precedent (previously stated rule) What???
Lawyerly Processing or Reflection	What do you think about the court's decision? What would you have done?
Exam Reflection	What hypothetical can be made from the rationale of the case?

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