Troxel v. Granville Rhetorical Analysis

For example, “Citation 530 U.S. 57, 120 S. Ct. 2054,147 L. Ed. 2d 49, 2000 U.S.,” (“Troxel v. Granville”).

• By providing a case citation, the audience gains validity of the case and allows them to pursue the case in extended review.

Troxel v. Granville Rhetorical Analysis

By Nandi Bryan

Linguistic Conventions

Reference Conventions

This offers credibility to the legal brief.

• In the beginning of the brief there is a case citation.
• The brief writers adds this so the audience can identify the document and document part to which the writer is referring.

Conclusion

After the analysis of Troxel v. Granville legal brief, it is evident that structural, linguistic, and reference conventions are important to convey the brief’s purpose.

Through the use of clarity, validity, and the understanding of facts and findings; the brief writer presents significant evidence to show that case of Troxel v. Granville is worth an in-depth assessment.

Linguistic conventions serve as criteria the court uses to evaluate the decisions previously made and what the court will be reviewing.

An important linguistic convention is this brief is hedging.

• This is important because it implies that certain scenarios do not occur all the time.
• For example, “…there may be situations where a child has a stronger interest at stake than mere protection from serious harm.,” (“Troxel v. Granville”).
• The goal of this is to make the audience understand the findings of the case and alternate outcomes of the case.

Which Genre was Chosen for this project?

The genre chosen for this upcoming rhetorical analysis is a legal brief.

• This is used to provide a brief rundown of a case.
• It allows a potential audience of a judge, jury, opposing lawyer, or client in question to decide whether a case is relevant and worth in-depth evaluation.

Background of Legal Brief Chosen

• Troxel v. Granville is a US Supreme Court case that follows grandparents, Jenifer and Gary Troxel who believe they deserve extended visitation with their grandchildren.
• The mother of the children, Tommie Granville does not believe the grandparents deserve extended visitation.
• The US Supreme Court eventually ruled that parents have the right to make decisions about their children.

What is the Legal Field?

This is a field is used to protect various rights from violations by persons, government, or organizations.

The Core Values of this Field

The values of the legal field are:

• to present fact/findings of cases
• show validity of a case
• grant justice to clients
• gain an understanding of a case
• interpret legal terms
• get clarity and conciseness of a case

Works Cited

"From Memo to Brief." (n.d.): n. pag. The Writing Center at GULC. Georgetown University, 2004. Web. 23 Nov. 2016.

Martin, Peter W. "Basic Legal Citation." Basic Legal Citation. Cornell University Law School, 2016. Web. 30 Nov. 2016.

O'Connor. "TROXEL V. GRANVILLE." TROXEL V. GRANVILLE. Cornell University Law School, 05 June 2000. Web. 28 Nov. 2016.

"Troxel v. Granville." Case Briefs. Bloomberg Law, 2000. Web. 21 Nov. 2016.

Types of Writing in this Field

Legal writing includes many genres such as memoranda, letters to clients, briefs, documents, and negotiation letters.

Thesis Statement

Through the analysis of the legal brief, Troxel v. Granville, the brief writer makes sure to exemplify the structural, linguistic, and reference conventions to convey the legal brief’s reasoning that a case is worth in-depth evaluation.

Structural Conventions

This convention is used to provide a logical outline of the case.

• In the Troxel v. Granville legal brief, many important structural conventions are used.
• The brief writer of this case uses ‘point headings,’ which guide the reader and serves as a topic statement for the major sections of the brief.
• For example, “Held: The statute unconstitutionally infringes on the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment,” (“Troxel v. Granville”).
• The purpose of this example is to create a sense of conciseness and clarity for the audience.

Image by Tom Mooring