Lieke Spruit (16030575) Skills-1: “Legal Analysis”
Skills-1
The IRAC Formula
IRAC forms the fundamental building blocks of legal analysis. It is the process by which all
lawyers think about any legal problem.
ISSUE What facts and circumstances brought these parties to court?
RULE What is the governing law for the issue?
ANALYSIS Does the rule apply to these unique facts?
CONCLUSION How does the court’s holding modify the rule of law?
Issue
The key to issue spotting is being able to identify which facts raise which issues. Because of the
complexity of the law, the elimination or addition of one fact (e.g. time of day or whether
someone was drinking) can eliminate or add issues to a case thereby raising an entirely
different rule of law.
Questions to ask when reading a case:
• What facts and circumstances brought these parties to court?
• Are there buzzwords in the facts that suggest an issue?
• Is the court deciding a question or a fact – i.e. the parties are in dispute over what
happened – or is it a question of law – i.e. the court is unsure which rules to apply to
these facts?
• What are the non-issues?
Whenever you read a case, state the issue as a question turning on a set of particular facts.
Rule
The rule is the law. The rule could be common law that was developed by the courts or that
was passed by the legislature.
For every case you read, extract the rule of law by breaking it down into its component parts.
I.e. ask the question: what elements of the rule must be proven in order for the rule to hold
true?
Questions to ask when reading a case:
• What are the elements that prove the rule?
• What are the exceptions to the rule?
• For what authority does it come? Common law, statute, new rule?
• What is the underlying public policy behind the rule?
• Are there social considerations?
Skills-1
The IRAC Formula
IRAC forms the fundamental building blocks of legal analysis. It is the process by which all
lawyers think about any legal problem.
ISSUE What facts and circumstances brought these parties to court?
RULE What is the governing law for the issue?
ANALYSIS Does the rule apply to these unique facts?
CONCLUSION How does the court’s holding modify the rule of law?
Issue
The key to issue spotting is being able to identify which facts raise which issues. Because of the
complexity of the law, the elimination or addition of one fact (e.g. time of day or whether
someone was drinking) can eliminate or add issues to a case thereby raising an entirely
different rule of law.
Questions to ask when reading a case:
• What facts and circumstances brought these parties to court?
• Are there buzzwords in the facts that suggest an issue?
• Is the court deciding a question or a fact – i.e. the parties are in dispute over what
happened – or is it a question of law – i.e. the court is unsure which rules to apply to
these facts?
• What are the non-issues?
Whenever you read a case, state the issue as a question turning on a set of particular facts.
Rule
The rule is the law. The rule could be common law that was developed by the courts or that
was passed by the legislature.
For every case you read, extract the rule of law by breaking it down into its component parts.
I.e. ask the question: what elements of the rule must be proven in order for the rule to hold
true?
Questions to ask when reading a case:
• What are the elements that prove the rule?
• What are the exceptions to the rule?
• For what authority does it come? Common law, statute, new rule?
• What is the underlying public policy behind the rule?
• Are there social considerations?
