Brief Boxle v. United States. Use Chapter One, Appendix, Reading and Briefing Cases for reference. In your brief, you should include the following information:
- the Parties (Who is the plaintiff? The defendant? The appellant? The appellee?)
- the History of the case (Who won at trial court? Who won at the lower appellate level? Who won in this decision?)
- the Facts (What happened that caused the plaintiff to sue?)
- the Plaintiff's Theory (Why he thinks he is right)
- the Defendant's Theory (Why she thinks she is right)
- the Legal Issue (a yes or no question)
- the Holding of the Court (Yes or no--answers the legal issue).
- The Reasoning of the Court (i.e.: what facts and laws did the court rely on to decide the case; why the case was decided in the winner's favor; why did the other side lose)
What do you think? Was this case decided correctly? Why or why not? (Study tip: For the mid-term, remember that the issue is the question the court answered; the holding is the answer to that question.)