Note: As a general rule, there is no prescribed form for Legal Opinion.

However, substance must meet certain minimum requirements of content. (Abad,2009) PARTS OF A LEGAL OPINION:

the

1. HEADING AND INTRODUCTION Consist of the letter head of the law firm, date, name and address (inside address) of the client, salutation and a short introduction. (Tabucanon, 2010) 2. BACKGROUND FACTS THAT ADEQUATELY INTRODUCE THE ISSUES IN THE CASE Introduce the issues by providing the background facts that are need to understand those issues. (Abad, 2009) Note: Only as much background facts as are needed for an understanding of the issue or issues included. (Ibid.) Standard of sufficiency in introducing an issue or issues of the case requires the following: The Statement of the Case Purpose: To provide a clear and concise statement of the nature of the action. (Ibid.) It describes the nature of the action and the proceedings it had gone through. (Ibid.) The Statement of Facts Purpose: To provide a background of the transaction or event involved to enable the court or reader to see the issues in the proper context. (Ibid.) narrates the transaction or event that created the legal dispute and led to the filing of the suit. 3. THE POSITION YOU TAKE ON THOSE ISSUES 1. State the issue or issues - this is the query in which the client seeks out your opinion concerning the facts surrounding the issue. (Ibid.) 2. State the position you take on those issues - This is the part where you answer the query, answering based on relevant laws and jurisprudence. (Ibid.) 3. How to create an argument? The legal argument is the right rule and the right fact put together. A legal argument is made up of three statements: The statement of a rule that applies to a given fact or set of facts (the rule statement); The statement of the fact of a particular case that opens up such case or closes it to the application ofthe rule (the case fact statement); and The conclusion that the rule applies or does not apply to the particular case (the conclusion statement). Knowing the essential statements of your legal argument is important because the effectiveness of your argument depends on how ably you write up each statement of your argument into a convincing part. Knowing the essentials enables you to dismantle your argument, reinforce or improve the weak parts, emphasize the strong, and put them together again to produce a persuasive argument (Abad, 2009).

4. THE ARGUMENTS THAT MAY BE MADE AGAINST YOU List all the pertinent laws and jurisprudence which are not in your favor to show your client both sides as to not incite overexcitement to a winning case nor distress over a possibly losing case. 5. ARGUMENTS IN YOUR FAVOR 6. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION (WHAT YOU WHAT YOUR READER TO UNDER THE CIRCUMSTANCES) In the Conclusion, reiterate the answer to the question raised in the issue/issues. (Tabucanon, 2010) The Recommendation on the other hand answers the question: What do you propose the client would do? It states the proposed solution to the issue. (Ibid.) The idea behind every closing statement is to depart on a good note after pacing your pleading with every sort of argument in support of your stand. The closing statement should not appear to argue even if it may appeal to the good sense of the judge exercised in your favor (Abad, 2009). (Source: UST Golden Notes 2011)