ANSWERING LAW QUESTIONS (COMMON ERRORS) -part 3

When answering law questions you must avoid certain pitfalls, we shall discuss this under two broad headlines:

1. Common misconception on problem questions 

2. Common errors in Essay questions. 

COMMON MISCONCEPTION ON PROBLEM QUESTIONS

1. Problem questions are not essay questions: you should not answer problem questions like they are essay questions(they do not follow the formatt- introduction, body and conclusion). When answering problem questions you should use the IRAC acronym as a guide) 

2. Problem questions do not require you opinion or feeling but the position of the law: the examiner does not expect you to state your opinion or feeling, he expects you to apply the right position of the law to the material facts and draw out a conclusion. Some student go ahead to write things like, 'it is not possible', 'this is cheating', 'I can't this', 'abomination!', 'They should leave him to God, God will punish him'

3. Problem questions are not legnthy: some people answer problem questions in 5 or even 8 pages and you wonder what they are writing. Unlike essay questions problem questions are brief. They could be written in 1, 2 or 3 pages. You should cut out all unnecessary additions. When a problem question is on OFFER, it doesn't mean you are required to write everything you know about offer. 

COMMON ERRORS IN ESSAY

1. Expressions and Vocubalary: you must learn how to form your tenses and phrases correctly. You should check your spellings, organization, and proper use of vocabulary. You should use legal terms in writing, words like 'offeror' is preferable to 'the person making an offer', 'plaintiff' is prefereable to 'the person who sued'. 

2. You should use each paragraph for one point, starting from the second paragraph: some people make the mistake of writing their introduction in 2 or 3 paragraphs. Your introduction should be in 1 paragraph, you should start answering the questions from the second paragraph and use each paragraph for only one point. Don't discuss all your points in one paragraph, it's a bad style of writing. 

3. When citing a case as an authority on a points, you are not expected to narrate the whole facts of the case as well all the judgements. You may give a brief outline of the facts and the decision in the case that is relevant to your work. For example, in DONOGHUE v. STEVENSON, where a decomposed snail found in a drink manufactured by the defendant, caused illness to the plaintiff after he drank it. The court held that, all manufacturers of consumer's goods owe a duty of care to their final consumers not to allow any harmful substance get into it. 

Some student make the mistake of citing a case In 2, 3 or 4 pages; you should be brief. 

If you make use of this guidelines, you will find them very helpful in examination. You should also read other insightful materials on answering law questions.