PA 752

Public Administration and the Law

Fall 2008

Style Sheets for Written Brief and Oral Argument

• Purpose

• Written Brief

• Oral Argument

• Who has which case

Purpose

The purpose of this assignment is to expose you to the court decisions that shape much of the current law governing public administration.  It is also designed to give you the opportunity to assess the arguments in favor and against these policies through developing your own line of reasoning the case you are assigned to, and judging the claims made by your classmates for the cases they argue.  You will also develop your proficiency in finding cases online and analyzing them, and effectively presenting information and advocating a position orally and in writing.

The cases to be argued  are a subset of those hyperlinked to the class schedule (as opposed to those in the class texts) . Early in the semester we will decide in class who will argue each side for each case.  All written briefs are due Oct. 6.  Your oral argument will take place on the date specified in the schedule. You should use any comments I make on your written brief to improve your oral argument.   

To prepare your written brief, you will need to read the final Supreme Court decision, which you can find on findlaw.com or Lexis.  Students who are not arguing their cases on any particular evening should have read the excerpt hyperlinked to the class schedule, and should be prepared to ask questions, just as the Supreme Court justices do when they hear oral argument. 

Written Brief

Due October 6

In this brief I am looking for a cogent and persuasive argument in favor of the position you are asking the Court to take. While I realize you may not agree with the position you have been assigned to take, there are certainly strong arguments that can be made for both sides or the justices would have all been on agreement in their ruling on the issue.  You should feel free to borrow material from the Justices' decision for your argument. (Of course, for the purposes of this exercise, the decision has not been made--so consider the justices' arguments to be briefs or decisions made by a lower court rather representing the final outcome of the case). Please do not make up anything such as new evidence or facts.

The paper should begin with a brief summary of the facts of the case. Your arguments should focus on the main constitutional and statutory issues and what they mean for the issue we are discussing. You should not argue about justiciability (e.g., standing, mootness) or technical legal concerns (e.g., precedents).  The paper should include a discussion of the broader implications of the court ruling for those likely to be affected by it; i.e., employees in the workplace, administrators of public universities, clients of public sector agencies, even for society in general. 

You are encouraged to find other sources to substantiate your argument, although this is not required. These sources can be briefs filed by parties advocating a position on the case, the lower court decisions that preceded the appeal to the appellate or Supreme Court, articles in  law reviews or other academic journals, or other credible sources. Where you use other sources, you must cite them using a correct method of citation.

The brief should be no longer than 5 pages, double-spaced.

Your grade for the written brief will be based on the following:

• The pursuasiveness of your argument which is based, in part, on the range and credibility of sources that you use to back it up.
• The clarity and conciseness with which you present the argument.
• The extent to which you anticipate, and refute possible counter-arguments.
• The comprehensibility and logic of organization of your argument.
• The extent to which you address the broader implications of the case.
• The care with which you cite and properly document the sources used, if any.

Oral Argument

Due on date specified in class schedule

For the oral argument, you will basically present a summary of your written brief--highlighting the most important points.  You should not read from the brief--it is important to maintain eye contact with the justices!  The format will be as follows: The "attorneys" representing the two sides will have up to 10 minutes each to present your arguments, beginning with the petitioner. Then each side will have up to 5 minutes to offer a rebuttal to the other side's argument, again beginning with the petitioner. (I will hold you to these time limits!) You should then be prepared to field questions from the "justices" (your classmates and me).  Your argument should be well-reasoned, concise and delivered in a clear and professional manner. You may borrow as much content as you wish from the opinions the justices wrote in this case (again, assuming for the purpose of this exercise that the decision has not been made yet). Please do not invent any new information or facts.

Your grade for the oral argument will be based on the following:

• The persuasiveness of your argument
  

• The extent to which you underscore the important points in the case, and the ramifications of the decision the Court is about to make in the time you have available to do so
  

• The extent to which you effectively respond to questions put to you by the "justices"
  
  
• The professionalism and clarity with which you present your argument.

Assignments for Written/Oral Briefs