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Case Brief Generator

Read the opinion, then enter the case name, citation, facts, procedural history, issues, holding, rule, reasoning, and any concurrences or dissents. The generator lays them out as a classic law-school brief or in FIRAC order, with a prompt for anything you have not briefed yet. Honest templates, no AI.

Layout

The case

Facts and procedure

The court's decision

Beyond the majority

Your case brief

9 parts still to write

Case Brief

Case brief

Case:

Citation:

Court:

Decided:

Tip: Check the full citation against the format your course requires — usually The Bluebook in U.S. law schools.

Facts

To write: Summarize the legally relevant facts: who the parties are, what happened between them, and what the plaintiff asked for. Leave out details the court did not rely on.

Procedural History

To write: Explain how the case reached this court: the trial result, any appeals, and which party is appealing.

Issue

To write: Frame each issue as a yes-or-no question that joins the legal rule to the key facts: “Is … liable when …?”

Holding

To write: Answer each issue in one sentence: yes or no, with the essential reason.

Rule of Law

To write: State the rule the court applied or announced, in general terms that would decide future cases.

Reasoning

To write: Trace how the court got from the rule to the holding: the steps of its argument, the policy reasons, and the precedents it followed or distinguished.

Disposition

To write: Record what the court did with the decision below: affirmed, reversed, remanded, or vacated.

Concurring and Dissenting Opinions

To write: Summarize each concurring or dissenting opinion: who wrote it and where it parted from the majority. Write “None” if there were none.

Notes and Significance

To write: Add your own analysis: why the case is in your casebook, how it relates to other cases, and questions to raise in class.

How to Use the Case Brief Generator

  1. 1. Read the whole opinion first. Briefing on a first read tends to copy the court's words; reading it through once shows you which facts mattered.
  2. 2. Enter the case details. Case name, citation, court, and year. Format the full citation with the Court Case Citation Generator or the style your course requires.
  3. 3. Brief each part in your own words. The facts, the procedural history, the issue as a yes-or-no question, the holding that answers it, the rule, the court's reasoning, the disposition, and any separate opinions.
  4. 4. Pick a layout and export. The classic brief lists every part separately; FIRAC folds them into Facts, Issue, Rule, Application, and Conclusion. Copy, download, or print the result for class.

The Parts of a Case Brief

PartWhat to write
FactsThe legally relevant facts: who the parties are, what happened between them, and what the plaintiff wanted. Leave out what the court did not rely on.
Procedural historyHow the case reached this court: the trial result, any appeals, and which party is appealing.
IssueThe legal question, framed so it can be answered yes or no and naming the key facts.
HoldingThe court's answer to the issue, with the essential reason.
Rule of lawThe principle the court applied or announced, stated so it could decide future cases.
ReasoningHow the court got from the rule to the holding: its argument, its policy reasons, and the precedents it followed or distinguished.
DispositionWhat the court did with the decision below: affirmed, reversed, remanded, or vacated.
Concurrences and dissentsWho wrote separately, and where and why they parted from the majority.

Example: Palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad Co.

Press “Try an example” to see a complete brief of Palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad Co. (N.Y. 1928), a negligence case many first-year torts courses brief early. Four of its parts show why a brief keeps them separate:

Palsgraf, briefed

Issue

Is a railroad liable in negligence to a passenger standing far down the platform, outside the range of danger its guards could foresee?

Holding

No. Any negligence was toward the man the guards pushed, not toward Palsgraf, because no harm to her was reasonably foreseeable.

Rule

A duty of care is owed only to those within the zone of reasonably foreseeable risk.

Dissent

Judge Andrews treated the question as one of proximate cause rather than duty, and would have upheld the verdict for Palsgraf.

The holding answers the issue in its own terms, and the rule is broader than the holding: the holding decides this case, while the rule is what decides the next one. The dissent matters too, because it frames the debate the course will return to.

IRAC, FIRAC, and the Classic Brief

IRAC — Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion — is most often taught as a framework for exam answers and legal memos; FIRAC puts the Facts at the front so the same order can serve as a brief. The classic brief keeps more parts separate, which is why many first-year courses teach it: the procedural history and disposition record what the court actually did, and dissents sometimes become later law. Use whichever your professor expects — the generator builds either from the same notes.

Common Briefing Mistakes

  • Copying the opinion. A brief in the court's own words shows you found the passage, not that you understood it. Paraphrase, and quote only a line worth remembering.
  • An issue that is too abstract. “Was there negligence?” fits every torts case. Put the key facts into the question.
  • Confusing the holding with the rule. The holding decides this dispute; the rule is the general principle that will decide others.
  • Skipping the procedural posture. Who won below and who is appealing changes what the court's answer means.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a case brief?
A case brief is a short, structured summary of a judicial opinion, written to prepare for class and to review for exams. It records the facts, the procedural history, the legal issue, the court's holding and reasoning, the rule the case stands for, and any concurring or dissenting opinions.
How long should a case brief be?
Usually a page or less. A brief is a study tool, not an essay: if it is longer than the parts of the opinion that matter, it is probably copying the court rather than summarizing it.
What is the difference between the holding and the rule?
The holding is the court's answer to the specific issue in the case — in Palsgraf, that the railroad was not liable to Palsgraf. The rule is the general principle behind that answer, stated so it applies to future cases: a duty of care is owed only to those within the zone of foreseeable risk.
What does FIRAC stand for?
Facts, Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion. It is IRAC — the framework many law students use for exam answers — with the facts added at the start so the structure also works as a case brief.
How do I cite the case in my brief?
U.S. law schools generally follow The Bluebook: the case name, the volume, reporter, and first page, then the court and year in parentheses. Your brief only needs the citation in the form your course uses, and the Court Case Citation Generator formats case citations in APA, MLA, Chicago, and other styles, with notes on Bluebook form.
Does this generator brief the case for me?
No. You read the opinion and write each part; the tool arranges your notes into a consistent brief and flags the parts still missing. It does not summarize opinions or use AI, and it runs entirely in your browser.

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