How to Write a Law School Essay

Law-school essay examinations can be frustrating and overwhelming. A technique known as IRAC (issue, rule, application and conclusion) is useful for writing the standard law-school essay. Follow this general guideline and the steps below to write your law-school essay exams.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

1. Read through the entire essay exam question several times carefully. Pay close attention to the question asked.

2. Spot the issues relevant to the question and organize them into a logical order on scrap paper.

3. Describe the most important issue in detail as the first sentence of your essay.

4. Explain the legal rule that applies to this issue, giving a clear and concise description of the law. Note the leading cases, how the courts apply the law, limitations of the rule and policy considerations that support the law.

5. Apply the rule of law to the particular facts presented in the essay question. Explain your thought process and demonstrate to the professor that you understand how the rule is used in this context. Sometimes it is necessary to show why a rule does not apply.

6. Conclude the essay with a short statement that summarizes your position and answers the question.

7. Repeat steps 3 through 6 for every issue you noted on your scrap-paper outline.

8. Budget your time carefully. Often the biggest obstacle in taking a law-school essay exam is the clock.

Tips & Warnings

• Law school essays are often full of superfluous information. Sift through the unnecessary facts and focus on those that relate to the question presented.
• A short outline on scrap paper that details the issues and facts relevant to each topic is a good way to organize your thoughts. Number the issues in order of importance so if you run out of time, you have covered the most significant topics first.
• Applying the law to the facts of the specific case is the most important section of the essay.
• Analogies are good ways to demonstrate your understanding of a rule of law.

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