(Adopted from the San Beda College Of Law 2012 Central Bar Operations Reviewer)

How to Write a Legal

Opinion
Guide questions

◼ What are the facts of the case?

◼ What law applies to the factual
situation?
◼ How does the law apply in relation to
the facts of the case?
◼ What does jurisprudence say in cases of
similar nature?
Relevant facts

◼ Legally significant facts that raise the

question of what law governs the
dispute, and how the law applies to
the factual setting
◼ Test: If the fact is changed or removed,
will the situation or likely outcome of
the case change significantly?
Relevant issue vs Legal
question
◼ RELEVANT ISSUE: Those when
resolved determine the outcome of the
legal dispute

◼ LEGAL QUESTION: The question

concerning the application of law to
the facts of the dispute
 Parts of a legal opinion

◼ Heading and introduction

▪ State purpose of the opinion and issue to be
answered
▪ What legal questions will you answer?
Dear Mr. Juan De la Cruz,

You request our legal opinion on whether you can

collect your separation pay, unpaid wages and other unpaid
benefits from ABC Corporation (ABC) after the latter
acquired all the assets and business of your former
employer XYZ Company, Inc. (XYZ), which has since closed
 Parts of a legal opinion

◼ Brief answer
▪ To remove preset opinions
▪ To guide the client as to what to expect

We believe there is sufficient ground to conclude that the

sale of all assets and business of XYZ to ABC is not in good
faith, and ABC must assume all the liabilities of XYZ
including the obligation to pay your separation pay, unpaid
wages and other unpaid benefits.
Parts of a legal opinion

◼ Statement of facts
▪ State all relevant facts, whether favorable or
unfavorable
You inform us that XYZ is a Philippine company in the business
of making furniture for export. Your employment records show
that you were a painter at XYZ’s finishing section for 18 years,
when your employment was terminated on March 3, 2011,
allegedly because your services were no longer needed after
XYZ acquired an automatic painting machine. Your dismissal
was found to be unlawful by the National Labor Relations
Commission in a Decision dated January 17, 2009, but
pending its execution, all the business and assets of XYZ were
Parts of a legal opinion

◼ Discussion
▪ Analysis of applicable law and how it applies
to relevant facts
▪ Legal opinion is not the advocate’s pleading
– client must know entire picture; opinion
must be balanced and complete
 Parts of a legal opinion

◼ Conclusion
▪ Answer to the legal problem – advocate
states position
▪ Brief answer at the start of the opinion
explained fully

Based on the foregoing, it is our opinion that ABC

Corporation should be held liable to pay your separation
pay, unpaid wages and other benefits as successor-in-
interest of XYZ Company, Inc.
 Parts of a legal opinion

◼ Recommendation
▪ Solution/remedies – “what should client
do?”
▪ Should help client understand his/her legal
situation
It is our further advice that you file the labor case where
you obtained a favorable judgment a motion for the
execution of the judgment to be enforced by levy by the
sheriff on such assets and properties transferred by XYZ to
ABC as may be sufficient to pay the judgment in your favor.
These properties may be sold on auction and the proceeds
of any sale paid to satisfy your claims.
Dan Kevin Castro Mandocdoc (8 August 2013)
Modified by Maria Patricia Cervantes-Poco (3 July 2014)

Citation 101
Why cite?

◼ Avoid plagiarizing another’s work

◼ Aid the future researcher find one’s
sources
◼ Provide evidence for one’s argument
How long does it take to
cite?
◼ Not an overnight thing
◼ Complete the citation details while
writing the body
Which sources should one
cite?
◼ Primaryauthorities
◼ Secondary authorities
▪ Books
▪ Journal articles
▪ Theses
▪ News clips
▪ Reliable websites
How to cite?

◼ Ateneo Law School

▪ Footnotes
▪ ALJ Legal Citation Guide
▪ The Bluebook
▪ Bibliography
How to cite?

◼ General rules:
▪ Footnotes = sentences
▪ Accuracy
▪ Subsequent citations
◼ Blockquote v. “direct quote” v.
paraphrasing
◼ Footnote reference placement
▪ After the punctuation mark/quotation mark
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Philippine Constitution:

PHIL. CONST. art. ___, § ___, ¶ ___.

Note:
Always cite the Constitution in full.

1. PHIL. CONST. art. II, § 3.

2. PHIL. CONST. art. II, § 3.
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Codes/Statutes:

Full Title, [Short Title], Statute Number,

subdivisions, (year).

3. An Act to Ordain and Institute the

Civil Code of the Philippines [CIVIL
CODE], Republic Act No. 386, art. 21
(1950).
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Subsequent citations:

Short Title, subdivisions.

4. PHIL. CONST. art. I.

5. CIVIL CODE, art. 3.
6. Id. art. 207.
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Supreme Court Decisions:

Case Title, volume number

SCRA/SCAD/Phil. first page, cited page
(year).

7. Caguioa v. Magtoto, 436 SCRA 3, 41

(2007).
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Subsequent citations:

First Party, volume number

SCRA/SCAD/Phil. at cited page.

8. Caguioa, 436 SCRA at 54.

9. Id.
10.Id. at 52.
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Separate opinions

Cite like an ordinary case (J. Surname of

Justice, separate/concurring/dissenting
opinion).

11. Pabilane v. Magtoto, 436 SCRA

30, 41 (2007) (J. Sta. Maria, dissenting
opinion).
12.Id. at 59 (J. Candelaria, concurring
opinion).
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Books with Single Author

AUTHOR, TITLE cited page (year of

publication or edition number year of
publication).

13. FLORENZ D. REGALADO, CRIMINAL

LAW CONSPECTUS 45 (4th ed. 2009).
14.Id. at 342.
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Books with Multiple Authors

AUTHOR 1 & AUTHOR 2 OR AUTHOR 1, ET

AL., TITLE cited page (year of publication
or edition number year of publication).

15.JOSE C. VITUG & ERNESTO D. ACOSTA,

TAX LAW AND JURISPRUDENCE 89 (3d
ed. 2006).
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Subsequent Citations

SURNAME OF AUTHOR(S), supra note

footnote, at page being cited.

16.REGALADO, supra note 13, at 13.

17.VITUG & ACOSTA, supra note 15, at
432.
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Consecutively Paginated Journals

Author, Title of the Article, volume

number JOURNAL first page, cited page
(year).

18. Ryan Jeremiah D. Quan, Revisiting

the Element of Exploitation in the
Definition of Trafficking in Persons in
Republic Act No. 9208, 57 ATENEO
L.J. 402, 405 (2012).
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Unpublished Theses
Author, Title of the Article, at page number
(date) (description, institution that awarded
the degree) (source).
20. Jose P. Tejada Jr., A Critique of the
Jurisprudence on the Matter of Supreme
Court’s Administrative Supervision, at 11
(2002) (unpublished J.D. thesis, Ateneo
de Manila University) (on file with the
Professional Schools Library, Ateneo de
Manila University).
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Websites
Author, Title of the Article, available at URL
(last accessed date).
21. United Nations Office of the High
Commissioner for Human Rights, What
are human rights?, available at http://
www.ohcch.or/en/issues/Pages/
WhatareHumanRights.aspx (last
accessed June 26, 2012).
Basics – Footnotes

◼ News Articles Online

Author (if available), Headline, NEWSPAPER,
date of publication, available at URL (last
accessed date).
22. Maila Ager, Tupas on disclosure of
evidence: What’s wrong?, PHIL. DAILY
INQ., Jan. 4, 2012, available at
http://newsinfo.inquirer.
net/122301/tupas-on-disclosure-of -
evidence-what’s-wrong (last accessed
June 26, 2012).
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Subsequent Citations

23. Quan, supra note 18, at 430.

24. Tejada Jr., surpa note 20, at 35.
25. Ager, supra note 22.
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Double citations
▪ “the text is citing another text”
▪ Follow this: X (citing Y).

26. Quan, supra note 18, at 435 (citing

PHIL. CONST. art. I).
27. Go v. Perez, 123 SCRA 45, 63
(1987) (citing
Ruiz v. Cruz, 4 Phil. 23, 45 (1930).`
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Other uses of footnotes: Explanations

▪ The use of footnotes for explanations makes
the work more focused and cohesive.

Has the Philippines successfully

transitioned from its Marcosian28 past?

28.The Proponent uses the term “Marcosian” to

refer to the massive violations of civil and
political rights and the economic plunder
committed by those in public office during the
time of Marcos.
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Other uses of footnotes: Indirect

Citations
▪ Introductory signals
▪ Convey the relation between the text and the
authority cited in the footnote text
▪ May signify support, comparison, or divergence.
▪ Italicized for emphasis.
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Introductory Signals
▪ Support
▪ See
▪ See, e.g.,
▪ See generally
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Introductory Signals
▪ Comparison
▪ Compare ____ with _____.
▪ Contrast ____ with _____.
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Introductory Signals
▪ Divergence
▪ Contra
▪ But see
Basics – Footnotes

◼ Tip:
Use introductory signals to make
your thesis more scholarly.
▪ The use of introductory signals gives the
impression that you conducted a thorough
research
▪ It also gives makes your thesis more holistic
Basics – Bibliography

◼ The Bibliography is the summary of the

sources you used during your research
◼ It must be organized based on these:
▪ Grouping
▪ Clustering
▪ Sequencing
Basics – Bibliography

◼ Grouping
▪ First Part: Primary Authorities
▪ Second Part: Secondary Authorities
◼ Clustering
▪ Organize sources of the same class together
▪ Example: All books must be listed together.
Basics – Bibliography

◼ Grouping + Clustering

I. Primary Authorities
A. Constitution
B. Statutes
C. Cases
II. Secondary Authorities
A. Books
B. Journals
C. Internet Sources
Basics – Bibliography

◼ Sequencing
▪ For primary sources:
▪ Constitution – based on year of effectivity
▪ Statutes – based on class (BP, PD, RA)
▪ Then, based on year of effectivity
▪ If same year, based on BP/PD/RA number.
▪ Format: ALJ Bluebook (same with footnotes)
▪ Cases – based on level of court (SC, CA, RTC)
▪ Then, alphabetically
▪ Format: ALJ Bluebook
▪ Treaties, UN Documents, etc. – follow rule on
statutes.
Basics – Bibliography

◼ Sequencing
I. Primary Authorities
A. Constitution
1973 PHIL. CONST.
1987 PHIL. CONST.
B. Statutes
Batas Pambasa
Presidential Decrees
Republic Acts
C. Jurisprudence
Supreme Court
Court of Appeals
Basics – Bibliography

◼ Sequencing
▪ For secondary sources: Turabian
▪ Surname first
▪ Alphabetical
Thank you!