The memorandum

What is the legal memo assignment?

The legal memo is an objective memorandum that provides you the opportunity to
review and research relevant case law, investigate relevant facts using available
resources, analyze those facts under that law, and impartially assess the potential
outcome of a matter. The legal memo is an assignment that law firm associates are
frequently asked to provide to senior attorneys.
Far too often, however, the assigning attorney takes one look at the result and replies, “I
knew this already.” To prevent this outcome, it’s important to write a legal memo with
sufficient understanding of audience, scope, purpose, and format. With proper planning,
law firm associates can maximize the odds of favorable reception at the outset.
What’s the difference between a closed legal memo and an open legal memo?
A closed legal memo is an assignment where you are given the case law or other
primary law to be used in your writing. Far more challenging is an open legal memo,
where you will need to research and identify the relevant law, investigate and analyze
the most legally significant facts involving a particular client, and provide a critical
assessment of how the court may apply the law to the matter.
By extension, unlike a court brief, the legal memo is not the place to wager a legal
opinion or argue facts. The legal memorandum serves as an objective standalone
document and identifies the risks and any unknown facts that need investigation. It
should maintain an impartial tone, with no implied preference for one side or the other.
What’s the standard legal memo format?
Generally, a legal memorandum comprises six sections, with the following information:
1. Heading or caption
A section, titled, “Memorandum,” identifies the recipient (To: ), the author (From:), the
assignment submission date.
2. Question presented
A brief one-sentence statement that defines how the law applies to the legal question at
hand, and the jurisdiction where the matter will be decided. The question presented is
specific and impartial and doesn’t assume a legal conclusion.
3. Brief answer
A quick-hit legal prediction to the question presented, based on a short (four to five
sentences) explanation that references relevant law and facts.
4. Statement of facts
A concise, impartial statement of the facts that captures the heart of the legal matter, as
well as current and past legal proceedings related to the issue. The facts can be
chronological or grouped thematically, whichever format presents the facts in the
clearest manner.
5. Discussion
Restates the main facts and delineates the overarching legal rule. Several paragraphs
outline the various legal topics to be addressed in the case and provide an analysis of
the legal issues, usually ordered in subsections.
6. Conclusion
The assigning attorney will likely read this section first. It predicts how the court will
apply the law, and how confident you are in your prediction based on the data. With an
impartial advisory tone, you identify next steps and propose a legal strategy to proceed.
Purpose
A memorandum, also known as a “memo,” communicates information to members of an
organization. Unlike an individual message, memos generally have a larger audience.
The memorandum can be made by the employer, representative of the employer or the
employee.