Casesim Fact Pattern Builder

Fact Pattern Builder — Realistic Case Files for Training and Scenario Planning

When to use this

Invoke when:

• A law school or moot court program needs a realistic fact pattern for student exercises
• A firm is training junior associates on a practice area using synthetic scenarios
• A bar candidate needs practice scenarios for exam preparation
• A litigation team wants to model settlement scenarios from a real case (using partial real facts, with synthetic additions for confidentiality)
• A mock arbitration preparation requires a complete case file
• An attorney wants to stress-test a legal theory against a developed fact pattern before committing to it

Inputs

| Input | Required | Notes | |---|---|---| | Use case type | Yes | Training / bar prep / moot court / settlement modeling | | Practice area | Yes | Contract, employment, real estate, tort, commercial, criminal, family, etc. | | Jurisdiction | Yes | Primary forum; secondary if cross-border | | Desired difficulty | Yes | 1 (introductory) to 5 (distinction / complex) | | Seed facts | Optional | Real or partial facts to build around (will be sanitized/synthetic in output) | | Complicating factors | Optional | See list below | | Output format | Optional | Full case file / summary only / document set only |

Complicating factor options

These are added to increase realism and training value:

| Factor | Description | |---|---| | Witness credibility issue | One key witness has a prior inconsistent statement or conflict of interest | | Evidence gap | A document that should exist is missing or destroyed (raises adverse inference question) | | Jurisdictional split | The contract has a foreign governing-law clause; local mandatory law may override | | Parallel proceedings | A related arbitration or regulatory investigation is ongoing | | Third-party liability | A non-party may be partly responsible | | Corporate veil question | The contracting entity is a shell; a related company holds the real assets | | Timing issue | A limitation period or notice requirement is close to being triggered or may have expired | | Expert disagreement | The two expert witnesses reached opposite conclusions from the same data | | Language/translation dispute | A key contract term means different things in the Arabic and English versions |

Case file output structure

A complete fact pattern produced by this skill includes:

1. Case Overview

• Parties (plaintiff/claimant; defendant/respondent; third parties if any)
• Background narrative (how the dispute arose)
• Key dates timeline
• Forum and applicable law
• Brief statement of the claims and defenses

2. Document Set

A realistic supporting document set — all synthetic unless the user provided seed facts:

• The relevant contract(s) with specific provisions highlighted
• Key correspondence (email chains, letters, notices)
• Meeting minutes or board resolutions (where relevant)
• Financial documents (invoices, payment records, bank statements where relevant)
• Expert reports (summary form)
• Witness statements (first-person narrative format)

Privileged / non-privileged split: each document is labeled:

• Non-privileged (disclosable)
• Privileged — attorney-client (training: note why privilege applies)
• Privileged — work product (training: note why)
• Disputed (training: reason for dispute, arguments for both positions)

3. Difficulty Assessment

Each fact pattern is scored 1–5:

| Score | Description | |---|---| | 1 — Foundation | Single issue; clear liability; standard damages; no complicating factors; one jurisdiction | | 2 — Developing | Two issues; one factual dispute; standard procedural posture | | 3 — Intermediate | Multiple issues; at least one complicating factor; cross-jurisdictional element | | 4 — Advanced | Several interacting issues; credibility dispute; evidentiary challenges; jurisdictional complexity | | 5 — Expert | All of the above plus strategic uncertainty; multiple possible outcomes; high-stakes damages |

4. Legal Issues Map

A structured list of the key legal issues the fact pattern raises, organized by:

• Primary issues (those the exercise is designed to develop)
• Secondary issues (ancillary; can be addressed for extra credit)
• Trap issues (designed to mislead; tests whether the student chases red herrings)

5. Model Answer / Teaching Notes

(For training use; withheld if the fact pattern is used for competitive assessment)

• How an experienced practitioner would analyze the primary issues
• Key arguments for each side
• Likely outcome range
• Where most students / trainees go wrong on this pattern

Practice-area-specific notes

Contract disputes (MENA context)

• Include a governing-law clause with a potential conflict between chosen law and mandatory local law
• For UAE: consider whether the UAE Civil Transactions Law mandatory provisions might override a foreign-law clause
• For DIFC: DIFC Contract Law (modeled on English common law) applies; consider whether the contract is entirely within DIFC or has onshore touchpoints

Employment disputes

• MENA employment law is highly regulatory; include a limited-term vs. unlimited-term contract ambiguity for UAE scenarios
• For KSA: Saudi Labour Law end-of-service benefits (Article 84 and related provisions) are a rich source of realistic disputes
• For Lebanon: the Lebanese Labour Code's mandatory indemnity provisions

Commercial fraud / dishonesty

• Include documentary trail that can be read two ways
• Include at least one witness whose testimony is internally consistent but inconsistent with the documents

Use cases — examples

Moot court competition (intermediate level)

A UAE-incorporated joint venture between a Beirut-based company and a Dubai-based company disputes the distribution of profits after one party claims the other diverted business opportunities. Governing law: UAE Civil Transactions Law. Complicating factors: a parallel arbitration in DIAC; a dispute about whether a key email is privileged.

Bar prep — Lebanese contract law (foundation)

A Lebanese contractor has not been paid for construction work. The employer claims the work was defective. The contract has a disputes clause requiring notice within 14 days of a complaint. The employer gave notice on day 17. Issues: breach of contract; defect claims; notice requirement; damages quantification.

Associate training — employment (advanced)

A Dubai law firm associate must advise on a termination scenario involving a UAE-national employee who was on a limited-term contract, terminated early, claims arbitrary dismissal under the UAE Labour Law, and has a parallel DIFC claim because the employment agreement references DIFC law. Expert disagreement on the correct annualized salary for compensation purposes.

Related skills

• [[casesim-client-q-and-a-prep]]
• [[casesim-cross-examination-rehearsal]]
• [[casesim-judge-bench-perspective]]
• [[casesim-outcome-probability-estimator]]
• [[academy-justinian-tutor]]
• [[academy-litigation-game-coach]]

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: sboghossian
• Source: sboghossian/mini-claude-for-legal
• License: MIT

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.