Legal Memorandum Pre-Writing

3.3 Pre-Writing Assignment Overview

For this pre-writing assignment, students will demonstrate an understanding of and ability to explain the problem, addressing the audience, appropriate tone, and develop key elements of the writing assignment. Follow the instructions for organizing your document; Standardizing the assignment in this way will make it easier to complete peer reviews on each others’ work.

Step 1: Developing Document Layout and Memorandum Header Elements

Using the legal memorandum guide provide in writing assignment 3.1, develop a document header and titles for the required sections. (Note: this is a different Memorandum Guide and format than you used on the first two assignments.) Complete the header content by reading the problem described below.

Step 2: Problem Definition

Answer the questions below. Put the answers in your document as a second appendix.

1. What problem you have been asked to address? This is not a statistics question, therefore the answer is not about performing a certain calculation.
2. What is the objective or outcome this work should produce? Again, this is not a statistics question, and will not be answered with a statistical approach. (Refer to the answer to question 1 and 2 when writing your thesis statement.)
3. a) What statistical approach will you use to address this problem? b) Why does this approach provide you insight into addressing the problem? c) What does it let you know about the problem that can inform a decision? d) how will you approach tell an audience not familiar with statistics why this is valid and what you know from it?
4. Who have you have been asked to address this memorandum to?
5. Who else is likely to read the memorandum as part of the litigation process?
6. a) What is the addressee likely to need from reading the memorandum? (This is a critical thinking exercise, ask yourself what the addressees’ responsibilities are and use that to think about what they need to know from you. If you are not familiar with this role look up descriptions online. ) b) What tone is appropriate and how will you display it in your document?
7. What is each of the other litigation participants likely to need from your document? b) What tone is appropriate and how will you display it in your document?

Step 3: Developing Document Content

1. Determine the Statistical Approach and Complete Statistical Analysis – To have the information necessary to complete the thesis statement you will need to complete the analysis and determine what your answer to the question posed will be. Include the calculations as the first appendix.
2. Question Presented. Develop the language for the Question Presented section. This section should be a one-sentence question worded as a legal issue.
3. Brief Answer. This section is a statement of what your analysis shows the outcome of the litigation should be.
4. Facts. This section will provide the context of the case and the information you were provided. Part of what you should consider in producing this section is how to convey the information you were provided to the readers in the way that they can most easily absorb it.
5. Graphics

Graphics should be used in this assignment to support or make more clear ideas you are presenting in the document. Determine what type of graphic you will use in your document and state in writing below the graphic why it is the best approach for enhancing your message. Review Quick Reference for Figures section the Figures and Charts handout from UNC writing center to assist you in thinking through this.

Develop the graphic you will use in the final document. Include identifiers on your graphic that are necessary to make the graphic clear for an outside reader. Provide a title using the formatting discussed in the Figures and Charts handout. Include all of this under the analysis section of your pre-writing.

Problem Description:

Critical comparison of opposing claims, analytical thinking, and problem-solving

The amount of shaft wear (.0001 in.) after a fixed mileage was determined for each of n = 8 internal combustion engines having copper lead as a bearing material, resulting in a sample mean of 3.72 and s = 1.25. Assuming that the distribution of shaft wear is normal with mean μ, use the appropriate test at level .05 to test H0 : μ = 3.50 versus Hα: μ “>> 3.50. Please state any assumption you have made if necessary.

Shaft wear in excess of 3.50 could lead to catastrophic failures in extreme weather conditions. Engineers for the manufacturer of the shafts claim that the shaft wear is within acceptable limits. Lawyers representing a class action legal suit filed against the company feel that recent deaths due to catastrophic vehicle failures for engines with this shaft are due to faulty bearings.

1. Conduct the appropriate hypothesis test. Whose claim would you support?
2. Be sure to present the logic of your statistical approach clearly and completely to convince the Judge and jury of your position.
3. Write your response as if you were presenting evidence as an unbiased expert witness.

Audience: As the expert witness for this case, your primary audience is the jury who will be reviewing the case documents. NOTE: this is a different primary audience than your reading discusses. This audience is assumed not to have the specific technical knowledge of the field the witness is explaining. The expert witness must persuade the audience of their expertise and their presentation of the case is the most credible assessment of the facts possible.

Officers of the court, legal advisories, and opposing expert witnesses are important secondary audiences, making it necessary to address any ideas that would counter your case and present why they do not disqualify your case.

Document: This document should present as a memorandum to the court in the case Tindall v. The Accurate Parts Company. The primary addressee is the Judge – The Honorable Fatima Haik.

• Utilize plain language. Develop the document around a direct, coherent message, andclear analysis to support it.
• Do not use contractions, slang or colloquialisms, clichés, abbreviations, or text message shortcuts.

MEMORANDUM Litigation example.pdf

Rubric

GEA 233 Pre-Writing 2019 Summer

Last Updated on July 9, 2019