GAMBIA LAW SCHOOL

OPINION WRITING
GUIDE

2019

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 GUIDE TO OPINION WRITING

1. Stages in the Opinion Writing Process

In summary, there are six recognisable steps which most people will take when giving
written advice:

i) Read Instructions

ii) Analyse and evaluate the case (i.e. based on the facts supplied, consider what
law is relevant, and how far the existing evidence allows the lay client to satisfy
what that law requires to achieve the desired outcome)

iii) Form an Opinion on how far the issues can be resolved in your lay client’s favour

iv) Plan the structure of how your opinion will be set out in writing i.e. the order of
paragraphs and what headings they will carry

v) Write the Opinion out in full

vi) Check for errors in expression or analysis before signing off.

These six stages will typically contain the following considerations:

i) Reading the Instructions:

Who are your clients?

What do the lay clients want? (may be different from what the law is capable of providing)
What does the client say is the problem?
Is there any other problem they have not mentioned? i.e. an implied question
What stage in process has been reached and what decisions need to be made?
What is the cause of action? Is there a defence to it?
What remedies can a court grant?

ii) Analyse and Evaluate

Check EACH element of the cause of action (the points which a claimant must prove)
What facts do you have in the papers?
Are any of the facts likely to be disputed?
What are you going to argue?
What are the other side likely to argue?
Identify strengths & weaknesses of available evidence
What further evidence would be helpful?
Will it be possible to obtain that further evidence? Is the expense of doing so justified?

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Note any relevant court procedure
Form a view: What is a court likely to find on each element of the cause of action. Say why

To avoid overlooking any aspects of the case analysis, it is often helpful when learning legal
analytical skills to set out those aspects in the form of a table/grid as follows. There is no
particular design for these, and students will have their own preferences for how to record
information in them. One example appears on the next page.

A shorter, alternative formulation for an analysis table is to use just four columns adopting
the mnemonic LEGO, denoting Law, Evaluation, Gaps in evidence and Opinion. Although
the use of a table is highly recommended as the safest way to avoid the accidental omission
of information, students may of course employ whatever method they find most successful.

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