Fundamentals of Legal Drafting: Research Workshop

1. Fundamentals of Legal Drafting: Research Workshop Kathy Darvil March 3, 2009

2. Issue Spotting • Parties? • Jurisdiction? • Rules? • Statutes? • Cases? • Claims?

3. Doing Research with Statutes • Federal Rule of Procedure 12 (b)(2)

4. Doing Research with Statutes

5. Doing Research with Statutes: Using Annotations • To Identify Relevant Treatises

6. Starting Points: Relevant Treatises • Treatises Guide a Researcher: • Leading Cases • Forms • Related Rules, Regulations, and Statutes

7. Starting Points: Relevant Treatises

8. Starting Points: Relevant Treatises

9. Rule 12 (b) (2) Requirements • Two part test: • Forum State’s Long Arm Statute • Due Process Clause Requirements • Burden of Motion • On Plaintiff • Either • Preponderance of Evidence • If based on written evidence alone, prima facie showing • *Burden on Defendant • For a challenge to the Constitutional reasonableness and fairness of chosen forum • Court views facts in light most favorable to Plaintiff

10. Doing Research with Statutes • Massachusetts Long Arm Statute: Mass. Ann. Laws ch. 223A Section 3

11. Doing Research with Statutes: Using Annotations

12. Using Case Notes to Interpret Statutes

13. Chasing Headnotes on Lexis

14. Chasing Headnotes on Lexis

15. Using Case Notes to Interpret a Statute

16. Chasing Headnotes on Lexis

17. Chasing Headnotes on Lexis

18. Test for Long Arm Jurisdiction • Did Defendant transact business in MA? • Did cause of action arise from the transaction of business? • Is the activity instrumental in the formation of the contract? • Courts interpret “transaction of business” broadly. • Transaction does not need to be commercial just needs to be a purposeful act by defendant.

19. Chasing Headnotes on Westlaw • Hahn v. Vermont Law School, 698 F.2d 48

20. Chasing Headnotes on Westlaw

21. Chasing Headnotes on Westlaw

22. Keyciting Headnotes on Westlaw • Daynard v. Ness, 290 F.3d 42

23. Keyciting Headnotes on Westlaw

24. Using Practice Aids on Westlaw

25. Using Practice Aids on Westlaw

26. Due Process Requirements • Defendant Minimum Contacts with Forum: No Offend Notions of “fair play and substantial justice” • Contacts such that Defendant Reasonably Anticipates being haled into court there • General Jurisdiction: Cause of Action does not arise out of Defendant’s acts in jurisdiction • Defendant had numerous and substantial contacts in forum • Specific Jurisdiction: Cause of Action arises out of Defendant’s acts in jurisdiction

27. Westlaw’s KeyRules

28. Westlaw’s KeyRules

29. Westlaw’s KeyRules

30. Westlaw’s KeyRules

31. Westlaw’s KeyRules

32. Form Books on Westlaw

33. Form Books on Lexis

34. Form Books on Lexis

35. Form Books on SARA

36. Form Books on SARA

37. Form Books on SARA

38. Using LC Subject Headings

39. Form Books on SARA

40. Using Google to Find Free Forms • Advanced Search Template

41. Using Google to Find Free Forms

42. USCourts.gov

43. LLRX.com • llrx.com/courtrules

44. LLRX.com

45. United States District Court-MA

46. To Review • Used the Directory to Identify Relevant Databases • Used Annotations and Headnotes to Identify Relevant Treatises, Practice Aids, and Cases • Identified Forms in: • Westlaw and Lexis • SARA • Advanced Google Search • LLRX