How to attack the MPT

1. Two closed-universe tasks Each MPT is 90 minutes and self-contained. You get a File (the facts) and a Library (the law). It is an open-book skills test, not a memory test—you never bring in outside law.
2. The File Source documents holding the facts: a supervising attorney's memo plus items like interview transcripts, letters, pleadings, contracts, records, or notes. Some facts are irrelevant, ambiguous, or in conflict on purpose.
3. The Library The law you must use: cases, statutes, regulations, or rules—some of which are there to distract. You extract the governing principle yourself.
4. The six skills scored Sorting relevant from irrelevant facts, pulling legal principles from the authorities, applying law to facts, spotting and resolving any ethical issue, writing clearly, and finishing on time.
5. The grader's tool Each jurisdiction grades against an NCBE point sheet listing the exact factual and legal points a strong answer makes. You earn marks by putting those connections on paper, not by sounding smart—aim every paragraph at a listed point.

1. Minutes 0–5, the task memo Read it first and closely; it controls your role, the recipient, the document type, the tone, the format, and any limits.
2. Minutes 5–30, the File Read every document once. Track people, dates, and the story; mark facts that help and facts that hurt.
3. Minutes 30–45, the Library Pull the rule from each authority; note which court and jurisdiction it comes from; sketch an outline keyed to the task.
4. Minutes 45–85, write Follow the outline; IRAC each issue; weave facts into the law as you go rather than in a separate lump.
5. Minutes 85–90, review Confirm you answered every question, used the required format, and matched the required tone. A hard stop that leaves roughly 45 minutes to write is the single most important habit.

1. Who am I? Your role fixes your voice and loyalty: associate, law clerk, or outside counsel.
2. Who reads this? The recipient sets tone and vocabulary—a partner or a judge wants law, a client wants plain English.
3. What document? Memo, brief, letter, statement of facts, or a wildcard; each has its own shape, covered in Part Two.
4. What exactly must it do? List every question or task the memo poses; you must address each one to score its points.
5. What must I NOT do? Honor express limits—"do not draft the fact statement," "address only liability." Work outside the lines and it earns zero.
6. Format instructions If the memo tells you to use point headings, omit a section, or follow a firm style, that instruction overrides every default.

1. Read everything once The story lives across the documents; a stray line in a transcript is often the key fact.
2. Track people, dates, and the timeline Most MPT issues turn on who did what and when, so build a quick chronology.
3. Mark helpful and harmful facts You need both: helpful facts to use, harmful facts to address or distinguish.
4. Expect noise Some documents are there to distract. A fact that connects to no Library rule is usually irrelevant.
5. Mine facts for every element Once you know a rule's elements, hunt the File for a fact matching each one.

1. Read for the rule, not the story From a case pull the holding and reasoning; from a statute pull the elements or factors.
2. Rank the authority The jurisdiction's highest court binds; a lower or equal court, another state, or a secondary source is only persuasive.
3. Watch the dates A newer high-court case can overrule an older one; if the old case still binds, distinguish its facts instead.
4. Let the test set your structure Many Libraries hand you a multi-factor test or a list of elements; that becomes the skeleton of your analysis.
5. Synthesize, don't quote Summarize each rule in your own words. Long block quotes show no filtering and earn few points.

1. Start from the task's questions Each question the memo asks becomes a major heading.
2. Drop in the rule Under each heading, note the governing rule and its elements or factors.
3. Slot the facts Place each key fact under the element it proves or defeats.
4. Decide the conclusion now Pick your answer for each issue before you write, so the prose drives toward it.
5. Order logically Threshold and jurisdictional questions first, then the merits.

1. Issue A short heading framing the question; start the sentence with Whether.
2. Rule State the governing rule from the Library in plain words; keep citations short—the case name alone is enough.
3. Application Start with Here and match each fact to each element; on objective tasks argue both sides, on persuasive tasks argue your side and answer the other.
4. Conclusion Start with Therefore and answer the question; reach a conclusion on every issue, even a close one.
5. Signpost with headings Give each issue its own heading so a fast-reading grader sees your structure at a glance.

1. Read the audience Your client or a supervising attorney means objective; a court or an opponent means persuasive.
2. Objective = candid Give the honest prediction; discuss strengths and weaknesses; name the bad facts and their effect.
3. Persuasive = advocacy Lead with your best arguments; frame true facts in your client's favor; place bad facts mid-paragraph and answer them.
4. Headings follow the tone Objective headings are neutral labels; persuasive headings state a conclusion plus the reason for it.
5. Never fabricate Persuasion is framing and emphasis—never inventing a fact or an authority.

1. Ignoring the memo Skipping the required format, tone, or an express limit.
2. Blowing the clock Over-investing in task one and shortchanging task two; each task is graded on its own.
3. Law with no facts, or facts with no law Points come from the connection between them—never recite one without the other.
4. Ducking the hard part Skipping the bad facts or the unfavorable authority instead of distinguishing them.
5. Not concluding Leaving an issue open, or failing to answer a question the memo asked.
6. Over-quoting Copying long passages from the Library instead of synthesizing the rule.

1. Build what the memo names The task memo always identifies the document; build that exact shape.
2. Mirror any sample If the File gives a sample document or a firm format, copy its structure and headings.
3. Default when unsure A clear caption, a short introduction, IRAC headings, and a conclusion will fit almost anything.

1. Heading To, From, Date, and a Re line naming the matter.
2. Question(s) presented Optional; one Whether sentence per issue.
3. Brief answer or introduction The bottom line plus the key reasons, up front.
4. Statement of facts Include only if the memo requires it; keep it to a few paragraphs.
5. Discussion IRAC per issue, neutral point headings, both sides analyzed.
6. Conclusion Sum the analysis; add no new law.

Tone: neutral and candid. You predict the outcome; you do not argue for one.

1. Caption or statement of the case The parties, the procedural posture, and the relief sought.
2. Statement of facts A truthful account framed to favor your client; you may not omit a material fact.
3. Argument Persuasive point headings—each a conclusion plus its reason—with IRAC beneath.
4. Conclusion or prayer for relief State the specific ruling you want the court to make.

Tone: advocate. Emphasize favorable authority, distinguish the unfavorable, and answer the bad facts rather than hide them.

1. Date, recipient, and caption Address the opposing party or their counsel.
2. Opening Say who you represent and why you are writing.
3. Body The facts and the legal basis for the demand, in accessible terms.
4. The demand Exactly what the recipient must do, and by when.
5. Consequence and close What follows non-compliance, then a professional signature.

Tone: firm and persuasive, professional, never threatening.

1. Date, recipient, and greeting Addressed to the client.
2. Opening and short answer Restate the question, then give the bottom line first.
3. Explanation The law in plain English applied to the facts; define any legal term you use.
4. Options and recommendation The realistic choices and your recommended next step.
5. Professional close A courteous sign-off.

Tone: objective and plain-language; honest about risk, reassuring in manner.

1. Use only File facts Include nothing that is not in the record; invent nothing.
2. Tell it in order Usually chronological, so the reader follows the story.
3. Keep it accurate A persuasive statement still may not omit a material bad fact; frame it, don't bury it.
4. Match the tone Neutral for an objective document, favorably framed but true for a persuasive one.
5. No law, no argument Facts only; save the analysis for the discussion or argument.

Will, contract clause, discovery plan, closing argument, settlement proposal, witness examination plan:

1. Follow the model The File almost always supplies a sample or a checklist; copy its form exactly.
2. Match the document's shape Operative drafting language for a will or a clause; a numbered plan for discovery; spoken advocacy for a closing argument.
3. Ground every choice Tie each provision or step to a Library authority or a File fact.
4. Serve the client's goal The task rewards a practical solution that meets the stated objective, not a treatise.