DISCLAIMER: This entry may look familiar since this is from my other blog, "LAW STUDENT'S COFFEE TABLE" however, I made some minor adjustments and improvements so that you can make an organized, effective, and understandable case digest.
Let us start with the basics. How do you digest a case? Some students and not just law students who have law subjects are often asked by their professors as a requirement for their class to digest cases that are normally assigned by your professors either for your next meeting or for the whole semester. For someone who does not know how to digest a case, this can be a laborious task as some cases may be as long as reading a whole book.
What are these cases assigned to you by your professors? These are the cases decided by the Supreme Court containing the story of the case and the application of the principles and theories that are discussed under the law. These cases were assigned to you simply because they are related to the topic that you will be discussing in your class. While memorizing the law and knowledge of the law is good, it is always better to back yourself up with the application of the law which can be found in these assigned cases.
As I have stated earlier, digesting cases can be a laborious process as lengthy cases and foreign concepts with alien terms can be very intimidating. Imagine digesting a case as if you are making a book summary, you read a novel or a story assigned to you which you then summarize. The same thing with case digest, you read the case and summarize it into something comprehensible for a layman and of course for yourself.
Here are some tips I would like to share with you today. Some of these tips are supported by different sources from other blogs on How to Write a Case Digest. I'll be posting the links to these sources at the end of this entry.
I. WHY SHOULD YOU DIGEST CASES?
As stated earlier, the cases that will be assigned to you will be a huge part of the discussions and recitations. It's hard to give a logical answer to a question to which you do not know the answer. Sometimes, you may have read the cases by heart and understand the doctrines discussed in them. Since there are tons of cases to read, you might find yourself mixing up facts and ruling of the cases and that can be a disaster.
You are digesting cases for you to have guidelines and an overview regarding the case you have read. The digest should contain brief facts of the case, the issue that needs to be resolved, and the decision and the rationale behind the decision given by the Supreme Court. It is impossible to memorize everything except if you have a photographic memory, and let's face it, we can only wish we have that skill.
Take note that some professors do not allow open books but allow you to open written notes. When you have a written digest, it would help you alleviate your anxiety knowing that you have yourself a guide for the discussion. You can then follow the discussion and probably even prepare for the questions that might be asked by the professors with the little lifesaver you call, "Case Digest".
II. STEPS IN DIGESTING CASES
STEP 1
GET YOURSELF A FULL-TEXT COPY OF THE CASE.
You want to appreciate and understand a story? Read the book and watch the movie after. As a rule, you DO NOT! I repeat, YOU DO NOT read the digest first before the full text of the case. That is a mortal sin for professors if they found out that you have only read the case digest and not the full text. It gives the impression that you are lazy, and that is a big problem with the capital "P" in it. Being branded as the lazy kid in the room is not fun. Understand that digests online are digests made by other people who are, just like you, prone to error. The case digest you read might be missing some important details which the person who made it missed, or perhaps the one who made the digest was in a hurry or was merely accomplishing the digest for the sake of submission. That won't do you any good.
However, as they say, "if there's a general rule, there's an exception" which is, if things are hopeless and you have to finish the case as soon as possible, then you can rely on another person's case digests. However, take that digest with a grain of salt, as this is not advisable for some professors who were not born yesterday and they will try to ask questions that are found in the full text and most of the time are being overlooked by the students (Such as the date, the justice who penned the case, the full names of the petitioner and respondent, etc.). SO DO YOURSELF A FAVOR, GET A FULL-TEXT COPY OF THE CASE!
You can get the full text of the case either through the internet such as Lawphil, Supreme Court E-Library, or Chanrobles or you can check your school's law library.
STEP 2
DON'T JUST LOOK AT IT, READ IT!
Did you get yourself a copy of the case? Good. Now, you read it. Nothing beats old-school read and grind. It pays to be chismoso/chismosa when reading a case. Gossips are interesting to read or to listen to, we can spend hours and even a day just indulging ourselves in gossips about other people. Why not treat the case as a piece of gossip. It is a case about another person after all, what is more, interesting than a person being sued for something and what was the decision given by the Court. Know what was he/she sued for, how he/she looks (Some of my former classmates even go to the extent of searching them on Facebook to have a clear image of how they look.), relate the title of the case to the story in the case. Let me give you a hypothetical example, People v. Maria dela Cruz, a case about estafa were Maria was found guilty of the said crime. Your mind should be creative enough that when you hear People v. Maria dela Cruz, you will automatically say, "ah eto yung kaso nung estapadora"
Have this romantic relationship with the cases you read, pay close attention to the case, and while you're at it, write some notes regarding the case not so complicated right?
Reading the case takes some time, but take note of the important things just in case, these are:
- Full names of the petitioner and the respondent;
- Date of the decision of case;
- Important places in the case (specific address, what type of vehicle they are riding, name of the streets, etc.)
- Justice who penned the case; and
- Other information that may seem important to the case.
These things are important especially in Criminal Cases especially the time and place where the crime was committed.
Some cases are interesting such as, criminal cases, cases relating to annulment, and the likes. However, you'll have a problem with cases that will not spark your interest or dull topics. For me, cases relating to tax and corporations are incomprehensible and boring, but you have to read these cases no matter what. It's worth the effort, trust me. If you can read fifty shades of grey or the twilight saga, or even Lord of the Rings, then you can also read those cases. Think as if your life and grade depend on it. Put humor in the cases, something that will remind you of what is that case all about.
STEP 3
NOW WRITE!
"The palest ink is better than the sharpest memory"
- Chinese Proverb
Remember that a case digest should only be a page short as much as possible. You're not rewriting the full text, you are summarizing it. Imagine writing a digest longer than the actual text, makes no sense right?
Now some formalities are to observe in writing down your case digest, I will discuss them step by step.
STEP 3.a.
NAME OF THE CASE, GR. No., DATE and JUSTICE WHO PENNED THE CASE.
This is important. If the full text is entitled "Maria Corazon de Jesus Victoria Trinidad vs. Manuel Gabriel" or if the case has many petitioners and respondents, you can shortcut it into (for my example) "Trinidad v. Gabriel" Last name of the petitioner and last name of the respondent.
Then after the case title, under that, you put the G.R Number of the case and the date of the decision of the case beside it.
Let's say your petitioner's surname is Trinidad and your respondent's name is Gabriel and it was penned by DE GUZMAN, J. on August 30, 1950, then your case caption should look like this (based on my example earlier):
TRINIDAD v. GABRIEL
G.R. No. XXXXXXX, August 30, 1950
DE GUZMAN, J.:
STEP 3.b.
FACTS
Facts are the brief background of the case. You should write what happened in the case, who is the petitioner and the respondents, what is the decision of the Court of Appeals and Lower Courts. Facts should be brief as possible. Remember that a digest is a summary of the full text and not another copy of the full text so make it brief, simple, but complete.
STEP 3.c.
ISSUE
It is common to starts the issue with "WHETHER OR NOT" followed by the issue that is related to your topic. For example, the topic is about a warrant of arrest and the issue in the case is the validity of the warrant, then your issue should be, WHETHER OR NOT the warrant is valid.
Please remember that your issues should be related to the topic. The issue should be the question that needs to be answered in your Ruling/Held
STEP 3.d.
RULING/HELD
This is the decision of the Supreme Court in the case you read. I repeat this is the DECISION OF THE SUPREME COURT not the ruling of any lower court regarding the issue you raised in your issue portion. So, The ISSUE is the question, the RULING is the answer.
If your issue is not related to the topic you are discussing, you will be in big trouble as your held will also be wrong. You might end up being confused when you are discussing the case.
You can use Ruling or Held, whatever is comfortable for you. The point is, you or other people should see the decision of the court whether it is granted or dismissed, and the rationale behind such decision.
Please follow the formalities. The first paragraph should be the complete answer. Let us take our earlier example on the issue:
ISSUE: WHETHER OR NOT THE WARRANT OF ARREST IS VALID
HELD:
No/Yes the warrant of arrest is valid/invalid
Your second paragraph should be the decision given by the Supreme Court and the rationale behind the decision.
STEP 3.e.
DOCTRINE
The Doctrine should come before Facts as this should give you the clear idea as to what the doctrine was adapted in the case you are digesting. It is a brief form of Ruling/Held.
STEP 3.f.
HOW IT SHOULD LOOK LIKE
TRINIDAD v. GABRIEL
G.R. No. XXXXXXX, August 30, 1950
DE GUZMAN, J.:
DOCTRINE:
FACTS:
ISSUE:
RULING:
III. SAMPLE DIGEST
BIRAOGO v. THE PHILIPPINE TRUTH COMMISSION OF 2010
G.R No. 192935. December 7, 2010
MENDOZA, J.:
DOCTRINE:
he Chief Executive’s power to create the Ad hoc Investigating Committee cannot be doubted. Having been constitutionally granted full control of the Executive Department, to which respondents belong, the President must ensure that all executive officials and employees faithfully comply with the law. With AO 298 as a mandate, the legality of the investigation is sustained.
FACTS:
E.O No. 1 establishing the Philippine Truth Commission (PTC) of 2010 was signed by President Aquino. The said PTC is a mere branch formed under the Office of the President tasked to investigate reports of graft and corruption committed by third-level public officers and employees, their co-principals, accomplices, and accessories during the previous administration and submit their findings and recommendations to the President, Congress, and the Ombudsman. However, PTC is not a quasi-judicial body, it cannot adjudicate, arbitrate, resolve, settle or render awards in disputes between parties. Its job is to investigate, collect and assess pieces of evidence gathered and make recommendations. It has subpoena powers but it has no power to cite people in contempt or even arrest. It cannot determine for such facts if probable cause exists as to warrant the filing of information in our courts of law.
Petitioners were contending the Constitutionality of the said E.O. on the following grounds.
- It violates the separation of powers as it arrogates the power of Congress to create a public office and appropriate funds for its operation;
- The provisions of Book III, Chapter 10, Section 31 of the Administrative Code of 1987 cannot legitimize E.O. No. 1 because the delegated authority of the President to structurally reorganize the Office of the President to achieve economy, simplicity, and efficiency does not include the power to create an entirely new office was inexistent like the Truth Commission;
- The E.O illegally amended the Constitution when it made the Truth Commission and vesting it the power duplicating and even exceeding those of the Office of the Ombudsman and the DOJ.
- It violates the equal protection clause
ISSUE:
WHETHER OR NOT the said E.O is unconstitutional.
RULING:
Yes, the E.O in question is unconstitutional.
E.O No. 1 should be struck down as it is violative of the equal protection clause. The Chief Executive’s power to create the Ad hoc Investigating Committee cannot be doubted. Having been constitutionally granted full control of the Executive Department, to which respondents belong, the President must ensure that all executive officials and employees faithfully comply with the law. With AO 298 as a mandate, the legality of the investigation is sustained. Such validity is not affected by the fact that the investigating team and the PCAGC had the same composition, or that the former used the offices and facilities of the latter in conducting the inquiry.
CHAPTER IV. CONCLUSION
That's all I can share to you about digesting cases. I hope this detailed guide helps and please let me know what you think about digesting cases. We're also open to other suggestions just leave them in the comments section. THANK YOU AND GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR DIGESTS!
CHAPTER V. REFERENCES
1. How to Write a Case Digest (diorysdiction.yolasite.com)
2. How To Digest Cases – Uber Digests
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