Summer Employment Resources

While there are rules of general applicability like the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, each court has its own local rules, too. Be sure to check these before drafting litigation documents.

Federal Local Court Rules

California Local Court Rules

When engaged in litigation, it is helpful to gather as much information as you can about your opponent and the judge who will be hearing your case. Use a litigation analytics tool to locate data on:

• What types of cases an opposing law firm has handled
• How often a law firm settles specific types of cases
• How a judge tends to rule on motions
• How long certain types of issues typically take to be resolved
• How likely a certain type of issue is to go to trial
• How often an expert witness is on the winning side​

Pursuant to the California Rules of Court, citations in documents submitted to Superior Courts may follow either the Bluebook or the California Style Manual, but must be consistent throughout. The California Courts of Appeal, however, "encourage" that brief writers follow the California Style Manual. 

Drafting litigation documents can be scary, but there are lots of helpful resources available!

• First, check with your employer to see if they have a database of exemplars. Many attorneys and firms maintain collections of motions, briefs, and other litigation documents for themselves or other attorneys to use as examples when drafting similar documents. 
• If your employer doesn't have examples available, you can look for real-world examples pulled from dockets.

• You can also use fill-in-the-blank templates called forms. Forms can often be found in subject-specific practice guides, but Lexis and Westlaw both offer useful form-finding resources.