Hilary Case

Assignment 2: Hilary Case

Due Week 8 and worth 200 points

Review the case file titled “Hilary Case,” found below these instructions.

Write a paper, in which you

1. Draft a legal memorandum in which you discuss the likelihood of a successfully legal recovery by your client who is the plaintiff.
2. Write a summary of the main activities that you, as the paralegal, need to take in order to prepare the Hilary Case for trial.
3. Describe two (2) issues you might encounter as you prepare your case that would cause you to reach out to the supervising attorney for help.
4. Draft a letter to the supervising attorney in which you describe a possible settlement of the Hilary Case and set out reasons why the client should accept it.
5. Use at least two (2) quality references. Note: Wikipedia and other Websites do not quality as academic resources.

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:

• Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; references must follow APA or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.
• Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required page length of five to six pages

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:

• Use the rules for citation form for primary and secondary authorities as well as the use of signals such as id., supra, infra, etc.
• Analyze what paralegals do, the career choices available to paralegals, their role in the legal profession, and the need for continuing education and training.
• Examine the paralegal workplace, tasks, and functions of a paralegal and accounting procedures in the law office.
• Use technology and information resources to research issues in paralegal studies.
• Write clearly and concisely about paralegal studies using proper writing mechanics.

• DOWNLOADABLE OUTLINE FOR YOUR PAPER

  Before you download this Outline, please read the directions for the Assignment that are detailed above. Then use this document to help you organize your thoughts and presentation. Outline of Issues to Cover(1).docx

• DIRECTIONS ON HOW TO PRESENT YOUR ANALYSIS

  A student had sent me several questions about the Assignment. I thought it would be helpful to answer them here so that everyone will have the benefit of my responses.

  • Are the medical bill, notice of intent to obtain records, the nurse’s report, the incident report and the subpoenas the only documents available in the case?

  Yes. You should use them to develop your analysis of the case. In many situations when your client first comes to see your firm, there will not be very much information and you will need to begin to develop a strategy of how you will proceed. It may raise more questions than answers but you should be able to begin to formulate some legal theories about what the case looks like (what possible legal claims can be made, what facts support such a claim, what facts still need to be developed) and what directions you want to pursue.

  • Issue one: does successful recovery refer to medical recovery from the cuts and bruises or the economic and compensatory damages recovery in the form of money if the case is won?

  “Recovery” does not refer to the medical recovery but rather refers to the legal issues – from a legal perspective, what if anything can you possibly recover from the other party if you were to proceed to a civil suit lawsuit and trial. For example, which legal claims would you make, what are the elements of those claims, and which facts support those claims; what types of legal recovery could you seek to obtain (e.g., money, injunction, etc.)

  • Issue two: does it refer to obtaining the additional documentation needed or do we have to name the steps based on the limited information we have?

  It can be both. A thorough answer will discuss not only the steps that you need to do next, but also the types of information that are missing or that you want to develop next. Here you can use your analytical skills and your understanding of the claims being asserted to figure out what additional information you think would help your client to win their case and what particular activities you would undertake to get that information. You can also discuss other activities or steps that you would take to get ready for trial. Think back to what is involved in the discovery phase and also the differing roles of the attorney and the paralegal in preparing for a trial that were raised in Assignment 1.

  • Issue four: does it refer to warning the attorney about the chances of losing the case because the weapon was not found?

  This question is basically asking you to look at the strengths and weaknesses of your case, and then to figure out why you think that a settlement might be in your client’s best interest. Having decided that a settlement might be better than going to a trial, what arguments would you make to explain to the attorney why he/she should consider settlement – i.e., what are the legal and factual strengths and weaknesses of the whole process of settlement versus trial and of your particular case that on balance make it a good idea to at least try for a settlement. Therefore, for example, the presence or absence of a gun may be important to consider depending on the legal claims you are going to assert – while it may be very important to locate the gun for a criminal case, it may not be as critical in a civil case; your assessment of the value of the gun will then help you to explain whether it is important to settle the case before going to trial.