Legal Strategy Summary

Legal Strategy Summary

Synthesizes facts, law, procedure, and risk into one litigation roadmap.

Prerequisites

Gather before drafting:

1. Core record — pleadings/draft claims, key exhibits, correspondence, timeline
2. Objectives — client goals, acceptable outcomes, constraints, settlement posture
3. Forum — jurisdiction, governing law, procedural posture
4. Deadlines — filed/upcoming dates, limitations periods, scheduling order
5. Known gaps — missing documents, witnesses, unresolved disputes

Output Sections

Keep each section concise and evidence-linked.

1) Executive Overview

2) Key Facts

3) Issues, Claims, Defenses

4) Legal Authority Snapshot

5) Argument Map

6) Procedural Strategy

7) Discovery Strategy

Discovery checklist:

• Confirm litigation hold and custodian identification
• Map repositories and privilege boundaries
• Plan deposition order and key admissions
• Define expert needs and retention timing

8) Settlement / ADR Posture

9) Risk and Outcome Assessment

10) Deadlines and Triggers

11) Open Questions

12) Next Steps

Checks

• Cite record sources for every material fact or inference.
• Mark uncertain authority with [VERIFY].
• Keep the strategic thesis consistent across motions, discovery, and settlement sections.
• Separate known facts from allegations and disputed issues.
• Flag jurisdiction-specific rules and procedural traps.
• Provide candid strengths and weaknesses — do not overstate success likelihood.
• Exclude privileged content beyond what strategy requires.