TIPS ON ANSWERING LAW QUESTION- part one

An examination is not a test of brilliance but a test of intelligence. It is not enough to know what to write, you need to know how to write. What you write may be 100% accurate and yet you get a D for lack of proper organization.

Law questions could be basically classified into two types:

1. Problem questions, and

2. Essay question.

PROBLEM QUESTION

Law problem questions comes in form of a scenario, it test the student's ability to identify the area of law, deduce the material facts and correctly apply the applicable law and draw out a conclusion from a scenario. In answering problem question an acronym is suggested; IRAC- Identification and issue, Rule, Application, and Conclusion. 

IDENTIFICATION 

The first step in answering a problem question is to identify what area of law the given scenario is, to do this you have to read the whole scenario and consider which facts are material. Material facts are those facts that are relevant in order for you to arrive at a valid conclusion. Let's take this scenerio for example; Mr. Ade advertised in a daily newspaper on June 28, 2015, offering to pay the sum of $50 to anyone who finds and returns his 

mummies sing Cassio gold wristwatch. Mrs. Biola finds the watch and returns it and claims the price which Mr. Ade refused to pay claiming that there was no contract between them since he had intended to make an offer to the whole world which was impossible and she did communicate her intention to accept the offer, if ever it were possible.

You should note that not all the facts are material. For instance, the date of the publication, color or brand of the wristwatch is immaterial. It would make no difference if it were a D&G silver watch. You can Infer that the indentification for the scenerio is UNILATERAL CONTRACTS if you have offered law of contract(usually taken in the 2nd year).

2. ISSUE: this refers to the subject of contention. The question of law to be determined. It usually begins with 'whether'. Using our above scenerio, we can deduce these issues:

A) whether an offer can be made to the whole world

B) whether communication of acceptance is required in unilateral contract.

3. RULE: these is a general proposition of law applicable to the issue. It should be gotten from statute or case law. On the first issue, in the above scenerio the general rule laid down in Carlill v. Carbolic Smoke Ball Co. Is that an offer can be made to the whole world. 

4. APPLICATION: This involves applying the general rule to the issue up for determination. You state briefly the material facts and apply the general rule to it. Support your application with relevant authority(cases and statutes as well as opinion of notable scholars and jurist). 

5. CONCLUSION: Draw a valid conclusion from your premise (application). You may be asked to advice the parties. Your advice may go thus: 'I advise Mr. Ade to honor the contract as he may not succeed in an action to set it aside'.