Ⅰ. Introduction
Case Method has been broadly applied in educational fields and achieved some successful experience in several subjects. Taking MBA education for example, the Business School of Harvard University wins its world-wide fame by successfully using Case Method in teaching and the qualified graduates. Meanwhile, Case Method has also been introduced into legal education. Today, this method had already developed into a successful teaching method and is well applied in common-law-system nations. With the development of our nation’s legal education and the frequent academic exchanges, Case Method is not an unfamiliar teaching method to legal education field. And the study of Case Method still should be deepened and improved. The following respects will be discussed in the paper: What Case Method in Legal Education ( hereinafter called Case Method ) is; The comparison between Case Method and the traditional Lecture Method in Legal Education ( hereinafter called Legal Method ); Several questions related to our nation’s introduction of Case methods.

Ⅱ.What is Case Method?
A. The Essence of Common Law
It is necessary to master the essence of Common Law if we want to fully study Case Method because Case Method is commonly applied in common-law-system nations:
In England, each locality had its own laws based on custom and tradition. After the Norman Conquest, 1066, judges appointed by the king moved from one place to another to administer those local laws. As time passed, local laws gave ways to judges' interpretations of a broader system of laws accepted in more than one area. Eventually the decisions of the judges, constantly modified by later decisions were accepted as the body of English common law” (Liu and Que15).
It is unwritten and the “judge-made-law” is also named. Courts’ opinions are the content of Common Law. Although there are many statutes or written laws now, the courts and the judges take charge of interpreting them. Because the courts are ruled by precedents, how the precedents interpreted the law is the key part in judges’ reasoning process. Sometimes, it is the precedent not the statute that judges apply to suits. So the study of cases is very essential in Common Law learning.
B. The Brief Introduction to the Development of Case Method
Case method has a history of more than one hundred years. In 1870, Professor Christopher Columbia Langdell was appointed as the president of the Harvard Law School and he introduced an ordered collection of an ordered collection of cases on contract which were the court’s opinions to his students.
He had concluded that the shortest and best way of mastering the few basic principles on which he thought the law to be based was by studying the opinions in which they were embodied. He also believed that the instruction should be of such a character that the pupils might at least derive a greater advantage from attending it than from devoting the time to private study. Once law professors began to put collections of cases in the hands of their students, the next step was to abandon the traditional lecture method and to pose questions and discuss with the students the cases which they were the have read before the class --- the so-called Socratic method. By the end of the first decade of 19th century these techniques had been generally accepted in law schools throughout the country”(Liu and Que72). #p#分页标题#e#
C. Three Characters of Case Method
According to Professor Edwin W. Paterson’s opinion, Case Method has three characters: “1. the contents of teaching are the courts’ actual opinion; 2.students’ full and deep discussion in class; 3. the usage of supposed cases that are designed for examination” (Patterson758).
Firstly, the application of casebooks composed of courts’ opinions could make students know judges’ interpretation of law, analysis of facts and the process of judicial reasoning directly. Mastering selected classical cases which have great effect to the development of society generally, students could improve their understanding of society and the law though vivid legal practice.
Secondly, it is students’ fully and deep discussion in clad that is the key point of Case Method. “ Time of students preparation for teacher’s appointed materials is at least the same as the time of class, otherwise, students could not answer the teacher’s questions correctly ”(Wang77). So students could gain more information in the whole process.
Thirdly, the usage of supposed cases for examination could reduce the chance of students’ rigid recitation of laws only in order to pass the examination and improve students’ ability to apply laws and solve practical problems.
In addition, the cases applied in traditional lecture method are “Examples”. And this method can not e regarded as Case Method. For one aspect, the goal of “ Examples ” is not to practice students’ ability to analysis and solve problems, but to explain the definition of legal terms. The other aspect, teacher’s lecture and students’ note-taking still the main content in class. But the students’ discussion based on preparation is the main part in Case Method’s class.

Ⅲ. The Comparison between Case Method and Lecture Method
A. The Directions of Information’s transitions are Different
In Lecture Method class, students who listen to the teacher’s lecture are the passive part of receiving the information given by the teacher (see Picture 1). On the contrary, both students and the teacher play active role in Case Method classes and they learn from each other. The information not only just transits from the teacher to students but also from students to the teacher and students to students. ( see Picture2 )
B. Students Gain More Information in Case Method Class
Students in Case Method class gain more information than what they gain in Lecture Method class. On one hand, students begin their preparation before the class which means the extending of class and students get much information out of class. On the other hand, the discussion among students increases the quantity of transiting information in class. “ According to experience, the information of teaching could be increased by 200% ~300% by applying case Method”( Shi576).( see Picture3 )
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C. The two Methods Have Different Goals of Teaching
The main goal of teaching in Lecture Method class is that the teacher makes students master the theoretical knowledge though lectures. But the students frequently feel puzzled in application of laws when they face practical cases because of lacking of knowledge of cases. On the contrary, “the main goal of Case Method class is to practice and improve students’ ability to analysis and solve problems besides the mastering of theoretical knowledge”(Liu124).
D. Case Method Could Help Students Have a Deep Knowledge of Common Law
Because of case’s special position in Common Law system, the usage of Case Method could help students have a deep knowledge of Common Law. Accompanied by the development of our nation’s economy and the increasing of suits referring to foreign factors, the knowledge related to Common Law is becoming more and more important. Meanwhile, Anglo-American law schools’ teaching experience which lasts for more than one hundred years has demonstrated that Lecture Method could not reach the same level as Case Method in respect to practice and improve students’ logical and reasoning ability.
E. The Importance of Lecture Method Should not be Ignored
Though Lecture Method, the teacher can not only interpret directly the general principals, specific rules and basic definitions of one legal field but also can introduce clearly the relationships among related laws and special parts of one law to students. The teacher is just like a guide who gives the map of study to students directly which can not be reached by Case Method.

Ⅳ. Several Questions Related to Our Nation’s Introduction of Case Method
A. What Courses Could Apply Case Method
Generally speaking, the courses with the following characters could apply Case Method:
1.The courses are aimed to improve the ability of students who already have certain basic knowledge on the major. Taking Contract Law and Tort Law for example, Case Method plays an important role to improve both students’ knowledge and ability in Anglo-American law schools. Because these kinds of laws are very flexible, complex and have a close relation with the social policy which reflects the public benefit. So there is a long distance between recitation and application of laws. And the Case Method could bridge the gap properly.
2. The courses can only be mastered by Case Method. “The International Private Law( Conflicts Law ) is a good example of this kind of courses which are complicated and difficult both in theory and practice. Only the teaching of definitions, principles and rules could not make students master the application of the law. So Case Method must be used in this course”(Wang79).
3. The courses are aimed to further the study of Common Law. Precedent is the core of Common Law. As discussed in Part Ⅱ, judicial opinion is still the key part of though statute is one of the main sources. So do not know precedents or cases completely, students can not master Common Law completely. #p#分页标题#e#
B. Chinese Case or Foreign Case Should Be Used
On one aspect, Chinese Courts’ judicial opinion is not the precedent that rules the later similar suits compared with Common-Law-system’s opinion. On the other aspect, it is normal the reason for Chinese court’s opinion is short and the reasoning process is not in detail.
But the Chinese opinions are made under the special Chinese social atmosphere and the reading of them is much easier for Chinese native learners, even who do not know English. According to the analysis, the Chinese case could be applied in teaching Chinese laws and the foreign case for foreign laws. So the application of case should be both Chinese and foreign in Case Method class.
C. Case Should Be in Chinese or in English when Applying Foreign Case
The advantage of case in English is that students can have the direct meaning of cases though reading original sources and practice and improve their English at the same time. But the application of case in English needs the teacher and students to have a higher English ability. And the difficulty in English may decrease the speed of teaching---this is the disadvantage.
If the teacher could select some classical cases and translate then into Chinese and edit then into casebooks, the students with lower English level could read them without difficulty. The combination of case in English and Chinese could increase the speed of teaching. Meanwhile, students could rich their background knowledge and deepen their understanding of source cases by reading foreign case in Chinese.
The key point of this process is that the teacher or translator should have both the higher knowledge of English and law and could express exactly the original meaning of source cases.
Ⅴ. Conclusion
Both Case Method and Lecture Method have their advantages and disadvantages. The combination of these two kinds of method in legal education should be the tendency under Chinese special legal education environment. Nonetheless, the reforming process is like the Long March which can not be reached in one day and should be stable and step by step. Professor Pan Weida once said “Excellent legal workers who are educated by better teaching method may create the society ruled by law ”(93).

Bibliography
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Liu, Yigong, and Qu, Wensheng. Legal English Beijing, China Machine Press, 2003
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