This week you will be acting as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable S. Jackson.  Judge Jackson has just heard a contested custody trial and you sat in and took notes.  The class handout reflects your summary of the facts and evidence presented at trial.  You are to prepare a Memorandum of Law for Judge Jackson wherein you compare the facts of this case to each of the "best interest of the child" factors applicable in your state.  For example, if you are reviewing a factor such as "the strength of the child’s relationship with each parent," you should include facts like how much time each parent spends with the child, what activities they share together, how comfortable the child feels confiding in each parent, etc. – any facts that would help the Judge assess that particular factor.

The only legal citation you need to include in this Memorandum is a cite to the statute or case law that sets forth the best interests factors under your state’s law.  You are welcome to include other citations if you wish, but you are not required to do so.   At the conclusion of the Memorandum, please provide your assessment to Judge Jackson of what type of custody arrangement you believe would be in the children’s best interests of the children based on the facts of this case. 

• be in paragraph format, correct and clear in grammar, syntax, spelling, punctuation;
• respond directly to the question(s) asked and respond to all parts of the assignment;
• reflect substantive, thoughtful, in-depth critical thinking;
• offer specific, clear, relevant examples as needed to clarify and justify positions;
• provide additional information to add value to the discussion;
• contain APA citations or an explanation of your source of knowledge from the text or your professional/personal experience, if necessary;
• support your answer/position with concepts, or an explanation of your source of knowledge from the text or your professional/personal experience.