Case Construction

What Is a Case?

Your case is your prepared constructive speech—the arguments you'll present at the beginning of the round. A strong case has a clear structure, logical flow, and strategic arguments that work together to prove your side of the resolution.

In this lesson, you'll learn to build both affirmative and negative cases that are competitive-ready.

The Structure of a Case

Every LD case follows a similar organizational structure:

Building Your Framework Section

Value Statement

Keep it simple and direct:

"My value is justice, which I define as giving each individual what they are due."

Criterion Section

This is where you spend more time. Your criterion section should include:

1. Statement: "My criterion is protecting individual rights."
2. Definition: Explain what this means
3. Justification: Why this achieves your value
4. Framework: Cite a philosopher or ethical theory (when applicable)

Example:

My criterion for achieving justice is protecting individual rights. John Locke argues that individuals possess natural rights to life, liberty, and property that are inalienable. Justice is achieved when the government respects these fundamental rights because doing so acknowledges the inherent dignity and autonomy of each person. Thus, any policy must be evaluated based on whether it protects these individual rights.

Crafting Strong Contentions

Contentions are your substantive arguments for why your side of the resolution is true. Each contention should:

• Support the resolution (affirmative) or oppose it (negative)
• Link back to your framework
• Be supported with logic, examples, or evidence
• Be clearly structured with sub-points

Contention Structure

Example Contention

Contention 1: Civil disobedience exposes injustice.

Civil disobedience is necessary to bring attention to unjust laws. When legal channels fail to address systematic oppression, civil disobedience serves as a powerful tool for exposing injustice to the broader public.

For example, the Civil Rights Movement employed civil disobedience through sit-ins and freedom rides. These actions violated segregation laws but brought national attention to the moral bankruptcy of Jim Crow. As Martin Luther King Jr. wrote in his Letter from Birmingham Jail, "An unjust law is no law at all," arguing that individuals have a moral duty to disobey laws that violate human dignity.

This links to my criterion of protecting individual rights because civil disobedience is often the only mechanism available to marginalized groups to assert their rights when traditional political processes exclude them. By breaking unjust laws, civil disobedience protects the fundamental rights that justice requires we uphold.

Affirmative vs. Negative Cases

Affirmative Case Strategy

As the affirmative, you must prove the resolution is generally true. Your contentions should:

• Present positive reasons to affirm
• Show benefits or moral imperatives
• Demonstrate why the resolution reflects proper values

Negative Case Strategy

As the negative, you can either:

• Present disadvantages: Show harms from affirming
• Defend the status quo: Argue current systems are sufficient
• Offer counter-values: Present competing moral considerations
• Combination: Mix strategies for a robust case

You don't need to prove the resolution is always false—just that it's not generally true or that there are strong reasons to reject it.

Definitions

Only define terms when:

1. A term is genuinely ambiguous or technical
2. You want to establish a specific interpretation that helps your case
3. You anticipate definitional debate

Keep definitions brief and use credible sources (dictionaries, legal definitions, or expert consensus). Don't define obvious words—judges will find it unnecessary.

Case Writing Tips

1. Start with Research

Before writing, spend time understanding the topic. Read news articles, philosophical essays, and example cases to build your knowledge base.

2. Outline First

Don't start writing full sentences immediately. Create an outline with your framework and contention claims, then fill in warrants and impacts.

3. Write Clearly

Judges need to understand your arguments quickly. Use clear topic sentences, logical transitions, and straightforward language. Save complex philosophy for your criterion justification.

4. Time Yourself

Your case must fit within your speech time (6 minutes for AC, 7 minutes for NC). Practice reading your case aloud and cut content that doesn't add strategic value.

5. Link Everything

Every contention should explicitly connect to your framework. Don't assume the judge will make connections for you—spell out how your arguments support your criterion and value.

Common Case Mistakes

• Too many contentions: 2-3 strong contentions are better than 5 weak ones
• No framework justification: Don't just state your framework—defend it
• Weak links: Every contention must clearly support your framework
• Running over time: A case you can't finish is worthless
• Overly complex: If you can't explain it simply, simplify it

Moving Forward

You now have the tools to build a complete LD case! In future lessons, you'll learn advanced skills like cross-examination strategy, rebuttal techniques, and framework debate. But first, make sure you're comfortable with case construction—it's the foundation everything else builds on.

Write multiple practice cases on different resolutions. The more cases you write, the faster and more strategic you'll become.