Taking Notes in Law School: The Content 

I hope this helps you become more successful.

Thank you.

Good luck!

@@Learnlawbetter first week in. this method really works! Torts are more fun than I thought. Thanks!

Please do a video where you show a real example of law school notes.

If you have more than one page you are likely transcribing, not taking the right type of notes.

No. Law professors believe that recordings will stifle discussion.

Some constitutional law cases are fact dependent. So to complete the exam you need to refer to facts from the case. Not essential for all constitutional law questions, but be aware that it might happen.

Your first year doctrinal classes have two components: class preparation and exam preparation. For class preparation, you need to answer questions based on the cases you are assigned. This means case briefs, but not more than half a page in length. After that class is over you will never need the facts from the cases you covered in that class. If you are concerned with applying facts to law, I recommend that you practice with multiple choice questions, such as those found in the Finz Multistate Method book. Going over facts from a prior class is almost worthless because your professor will not give you the same fact pattern.

Ok! That makes more sense to me now. Thank you for the clarification!

This is a great question, which I will answer with the classic law school answer: it depends. I have never seen a law school exam from the United Kingdom, but I'm sure some of those reading this post have. What I'd like to know if British law school exams assess primarily on facts (e.g., what is the definition for battery), or higher level thinking skills (e.g., based on the fact below, explain whether Mr. Fletcher committed a battery). Legal education in the the United States involves the latter, so much of my advice is directed toward those types of exam. Can you tell me what a British law school exam looks like?

Learn Law Better I know this is late but I’m studying law in UK at UofG. The exams are the latter type too. A short story of facts and then a question as to what crime has been committed or what remedy is available in civil cases.

Cases are used to help students find the law. It is the law that is important, not the facts in the case. You won’t be tested on the facts from a case because the facts, after classroom discussion, aren’t important.

Case facts help us figure out the law applied and is an easier way to remember everything