CASE BRIEF

A case brief should be 1-2 pages. (250-500 words) The brief for each case should be submitted before the date on the work schedule. Be prepared to discuss your brief in class.

Facts: Summarize the facts of the case. List only the essential facts that you need to understand the holding and reasoning of the case.

Procedure: Most of the cases that you'll read in law school will be appellate court decisions. In this section, you want to list what happened in the lower court(s). Do not go into too much detail. One or two sentences are sufficient for this section.

Issue(s): What is/are the question(s) facing the court? Form the issue questions in a way that they can be answered by yes or no.

Holding: How did the court answer the issue question(s)? YES/NO?

Reasoning: This is the most important section of your case brief. Here you want to list the reasoning of the majority in reaching its decision. You can actually be quite detailed in this section. List what the law was before this case was decided and how the law has changed after this decision. Law professors love to discuss the reasoning of a case in class discussions.

Concurring/dissenting opinions: Even though I read the concurring and dissenting opinions, I rarely brief them. However, there are some cases (e.g. Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer) where the concurring or dissenting opinions end up becoming more important than the majority's opinions. In such cases, you should add this section to your case brief.

Chapter 19 - In re Gault and Due Process Rights of Juveniles

This was a fifteen year old boy named Gerald Francis Gault that presumably made a lewd phone call to his neighbor and was taken into custody. There was no efforts made to contact his parents upon his arrest. Nor was there any type of counsel present during his questioning. It was questionable whether the boy or a friend truly spoke on the phone during the incident. Gerald was sentenced to a State Industrial School until he turned 21 years old. The reason the sentence was so harsh was that he was on six months probation for being in the company of another boy whom had stolen a woman’s purse. Keep in mind “in the company of”.

This case was a historic Supreme Court decision as they recognized that this youth’s rights had been trampled all over. They felt as if this specific juvenile court had failed to comply with the constitution. Gerald Gault's rights as an American citizen were not upheld. There was a lack of due process before us in this case. This case brought us four new constitutional rights in juvenile proceedings. In re Gault states that a juvenile should have timely notice of charges, a right to counsel, a right against self-incrimination and a right to confront and cross examine complainants and other witnesses.

What is important to remember is that the Constitution states no age and therefore juveniles are entitled to due process under the 14th Amendment just as an adult. This case was responsible for bringing a spotlight to this specific challenge that needed to be addressed.