SmartBrief
Confirm favorite deletion?
Statutes and the Creation of Public Policy Keyed to Eskridge, 7th Ed.
Blanchard v. Bergeron
Citation:
489 U.S. 87 (1989)Facts
Arthur J. Blanchard brought suit in federal district court alleging that Sheriff’s Deputy James Bergeron beat him while he was at Oudrey’s Odyssey Lounge, violating his civil rights under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Blanchard sued the deputy, the sheriff, and the St. Martin Parish Sheriff’s Department, and also joined state-law negligence claims against these defendants and the lounge owners and manager. After trial, a jury awarded Blanchard $5,000 in compensatory damages and $5,000 in punitive damages on his § 1983 claim. Blanchard had entered into a contingent-fee arrangement with his attorney providing for a 40% fee of any damages recovered. He sought attorney’s fees totaling more than $40,000 under 42 U.S.C. § 1988. The District Court awarded $7,500 in attorney’s fees, but the Fifth Circuit reduced this to $4,000, holding that the contingent-fee agreement capped the recoverable fees.
Only StudyBuddy Pro offers the complete Case Brief Anatomy*
Access the most important case brief elements for optimal case understanding.
*Case Brief Anatomy includes: Brief Prologue, Complete Case Brief, Brief Epilogue
- The Brief Prologue provides necessary case brief introductory information and includes:
Topic:
Identifies the topic of law and where this case fits within your course outline.Parties:
Identifies the cast of characters involved in the case.Procedural Posture & History:
Shares the case history with how lower courts have ruled on the matter.Case Key Terms, Acts, Doctrines, etc.:
A case specific Legal Term Dictionary.Case Doctrines, Acts, Statutes, Amendments and Treatises:
Identifies and Defines Legal Authority used in this case.
- The Case Brief is the complete case summarized and authored in the traditional Law School I.R.A.C. format. The Pro case brief includes:
Brief Facts:
A Synopsis of the Facts of the case.Rule of Law:
Identifies the Legal Principle the Court used in deciding the case.Facts:
What are the factual circumstances that gave rise to the civil or criminal case? What is the relationship of the Parties that are involved in the case.Issue(s):
Lists the Questions of Law that are raised by the Facts of the case.Holding:
Shares the Court's answer to the legal questions raised in the issue.Concurring / Dissenting Opinions:
Includes valuable concurring or dissenting opinions and their key points.Reasoning and Analysis:
Identifies the chain of argument(s) which led the judges to rule as they did.
- The Brief Prologue closes the case brief with important forward-looking discussion and includes:
Policy:
Identifies the Policy if any that has been established by the case.Court Direction:
Shares where the Court went from here for this case.