Legal Reasoning Tool: How to Prepare a Factum

OJEN Legal Reasoning Tools are designed to provide high school students with the skills to investigate legal issues, identify perspectives and think critically about legal developments within the classroom and beyond. These tools assist students in applying the legal inquiry process by guiding them through the stages of formulating questions, gathering and organizing information, interpreting and analyzing legal issues, evaluating and drawing conclusions, and communicating their findings.

A factum is the written argument that is provided to the judges of appeal courts
before they listen to the lawyers argue the case. The judges read the facta of all of the parties, and read the cases or legislation referenced in each factum. When the argument of the case begins, the judges are very familiar with the issues. At the oral hearing, the factum is a guide for the judges and the lawyers to follow and is the basis for the arguments made in court.

This resource provides an overview of each component of a factum and tips on how to prepare a student factum.