SmartBrief
Confirm favorite deletion?
Legislation and Regulation Keyed to Manning, 5th Ed.
Blanchard v. Bergeron
Citation:
489 U.S. 87 (1989)Facts
Arthur J. Blanchard brought a civil rights action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Sheriff’s Deputy James Bergeron, the sheriff, and the St. Martin Parish Sheriff’s Department, alleging he was beaten by Deputy Bergeron while at Oudrey’s Odyssey Lounge. Blanchard also included state-law negligence claims against these defendants and against the lounge’s owners and manager. Blanchard had entered into a contingent-fee arrangement with his attorney, whereby the attorney would receive 40% of any damages awarded. After trial, a jury awarded Blanchard $5,000 in compensatory damages and $5,000 in punitive damages on his § 1983 claim. Blanchard then sought attorney’s fees and costs totaling more than $40,000 under § 1988. The District Court awarded $7,500 in attorney’s fees and $886.92 for costs. On appeal, the Fifth Circuit reduced the fee award to $4,000, holding that the contingent-fee agreement served as a cap on the attorney’s fees that could be awarded.
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.