It is important to note that many state courts and the. Jul 19, 2019 if a case is published in a reporter, the bluebook prescribes which reporter is the preferred one to cite table 1. The most common abbreviations for electronic case law services in canada include. Abbreviations and examples this libguide contains useful information for legal citation, some of which is not in the bluebook itself. Bluebook citation is the most commonly used legal citation system for law students in the us. For more on reporters, see our case law research guide or watch anatomy of a case, case citation, and the case law reporter system in our case law research tutorial on the right.
For more on reporters, see our case law research guide or watch anatomy of a. This guide presents bluebook exercises and instructions that are used in creighton law school. Set out below is a table of words and their abbreviations with links to examples. A uniform system of citation is a legal style guide. The most common abbreviations for electronic case law services in. Jan 15, 2019 abbreviations for foreign countries materials are found in table 2. For more indepth information about the parts of a case citation, please see citations. American legal citation lii legal information institute. These tables give the various abbreviations for the u. A citation to a district court case in the federal supplement includes the following six elements.
Kf 245 b58 2015 course reserves see the introduction to basic legal citation for a description of bluebook citation style with examples. Federal courts bluebook guide guides at georgetown law. Apr 12, 2019 part of doing legal research is citing your authorities properly and tracking down items with unfamiliar citations. For your legal research and legal writing classes you are to use the citation format used in documents being submitted to the court. Except when you are required to do a parallel citation, you do not cite to the arizona reports, only the pacific reporter. Alternative legal citation style guides exist, including the maroonbook and the alwd. The scope of the indigo books coverage is roughly equivalent to the. Aug 01, 2019 this is usually incorrect, but the citations these services produce look pretty good. Most are based in some way on the american association of law libraries aall universal citation guide, 2nd ed. This research guide lists citation manuals and dictionaries of legal abbreviations to help you with these tasks.
If you are writing a brief or memo, look at the blue pages, rule b10 or apply the citation rules of the jurisdiction. This will provide you with all of the information you need to cite the case but it will not be properly bluebooked. Cases bluebook legal citation tarlton law library at. Bluebook case guide bluebook citation generator legalease.
United states reports, supreme court reporter, lawyers edition and united. California has its own style manual for its state courts. Citations are to the 20th edition of the bluebook, a uniform system of citation rule 10 cases p. Citation machine helps students and professionals properly credit the information that they use. It is used for all federal court documents and legal scholarship. It is used in most united states law schools and court systems to properly cite and abbreviate court cases in parenthetical. West publishes seven 7 regional reporters as part of the national reporter system. Sep 04, 2019 a citation is a reference to a legal authority. The law library has many copies available at law reserve, reference, and at the reference desk, via call number kf 245.
Generations of law students, lawyers, scholars, judges, and other legal professionals have relied on the bluebook s unique system of citation in their writing. The bluebook is the oldest and probably the mostused system of legal citation. The following are lists of standard abbreviations for the major federal and california case reporters as well as for the u. This page will briefly covers the rule governing this citation. After a case is cited whether fully or using a short form, use a form of id. Part of doing legal research is citing your authorities properly and tracking down items with unfamiliar citations. For cases from the united states, use the abbreviations lexis. Name of the case underlined or italicized and abbreviated according to rule 10. In this bluebook cheat sheet, weve laid out the essential bluebook elements and bluebook examples for a few of the most common types of case citations. Nov 25, 2019 a guide to deciphering legal citations. In a diverse and rapidly changing legal profession. The scope of the indigo books coverage is roughly equivalent to the bluebook s bluepagesthat is, the indigo book covers legal citation for u. Legal abbreviations and legal citations are highly interrelated.
Attribution to identify the source of ideas expressed in the text, and. Abbreviations for case reporters can be looked up at the cardiff index to legal abbreviations. Case citation united kingdom law oxford libguides at. It is essential that citations to legal materials follow a standard format so that anyone using a law library may find the resources cited. The case name abbreviations, which are often different from those required by the bluebook. If the emphasis of your sentence is the case itself, make it the object. Canlii, ql for lexisnexis quicklaw, and wl can for westlawnext canada. Name of the case underlined or italicized and abbreviated according to. Jul 19, 2019 if a district court case is published in the federal supplement, the bluebook dictates that you cite to it table 1, p. Legal citation abbreviations understanding legal citations. Short forms for cases bluebook guide guides at georgetown. Kf 245 b58 2015 course reserves see the introduction. The law library has many copies available at law reserve, reference, and. Be sure to verify the components of a proper citation, especially the abbreviation.
The bluebook is a collaborative project by a handful of elite law schools. Bluebook citation for legal materials purdue writing lab. Since the growth of electronic sources there have been unreported transcripts also available on all the major legal databases. Because you will often cite a case and other legal materials multiple. Feb 27, 2020 the bluebook, a uniform system of citation is the standard style guide for legal citation in the united states.
If you are looking for a reported case you will usually have a full case citation. If a case is published in a reporter, the bluebook prescribes which reporter is the preferred one to cite table 1. Additionally, the chicago manual of style recommends its use for all citation of legal material. Apr 22, 2020 this is a citation to a california court of appeal case, published in volume 14 of the fourth series of california appellate reports as well as in volume 17 of the second series of california reporter. Rule 10 of the bluebook provides explicit rules on how lawyers should cite a state court case published in a state or regional reporter. The bluebook style guide is used in the american legal profession for citation of all relevant sources. Oct 11, 2019 includes a tab for electronic citation managers. Home bluebook guide libguides at university of illinois. This is usually incorrect, but the citations these services produce look pretty good. Mar 18, 2020 the primary authority for legal citation, and abbreviations, in the united states is the bluebook. In a diverse and rapidly changing legal profession, the bluebook continues to provide a systematic method by which members of the profession communicate important information to one another about the sources and legal authorities upon. Unlike the remainder of the bluebook, which is designed in a style and at a level of complexity commensurate with the needs of the law journal publication process, the bluepages provide easytocomprehend guidance for the everyday citation needs of firstyear law. Introduction to sample bluebook citations sample bluebook. It is a composite of those contained in the bluebook and the alwd guide to legal citation.
Citing cases bluebook guide guides at georgetown law library. This page provides bluebook a uniform system of citation, 19th ed. The bluebook also tells you which reporter to cite, if the courts opinions are printed in more than one reporter. A citation copied directly from westlaw, in particular, is easy to identify, because the source name will be an abbreviation, but not one approved by the bluebook. A citation to a district court case in the federal supplement includes the. For more information, see the bluebook s front inside cover and rule 2. There are also several house citation styles used by legal publishers in their works. It is used in most united states law schools and court systems to properly cite and abbreviate court cases in parenthetical citation sentences of legal documents. A citation to a judicial opinion is typically referred to as a case or court case citation. For example, the compacting principles of citation, which reduce the space taken up by the information items included. In legal writing, one of the most commonly cited types of sources are judicial opinions. Abbreviations for foreign countries materials are found in table 2. Abbreviate the listed words wherever they appear in a partys name that is part of a citation. Bluebook rule 10 covers how cases should be cited in legal documents.
The bluebook is taught and used at a majority of u. The bluebook, a uniform system of citation is the standard style guide for legal citation in the united states. Citing the law student legal services libguides at. A list of federal court abbreviations can be found here, and state court abbreviations can be found here. Feb 01, 2020 if you are looking for a reported case you will usually have a full case citation.
Citing cases bluebook guide guides at georgetown law. Mar 27, 2020 west publishes seven 7 regional reporters as part of the national reporter system. Follow the bluebook on abbreviations for the published source, court, dates,and the proper form to signal the various stages in the case s history. A list of federal court abbreviations can be found here, and state court abbreviations can. When filing legal documents with a court, court rules of citation apply.
Abbreviations and examples this libguide contains useful information for legal citation, some of which is not in the. To find what legal abbreviations stand for see the box on the left. The bluebook offers a uniform system of citation which is standardized for most law essays in college. The indigo book isnt the same as the bluebook, but it does implement the same uniform system of citation that the bluebook does. For more indepth information about the parts of a case citation, please see citations explained in tarltons finding a case guide. Case western reserve journal of international law, case w. In addition, abbreviate any state or smaller geographic unit included in a. The scope of the indigo books coverage is roughly equivalent to the bluebooks bluepagesthat is, the indigo book covers legal citation for u. For example, for the arizona supreme court it says, cite to p. It informs students how to cite all types of law documents. Legal abbreviations gonzaga university school of law. These regional reporters contain appellate case law from all 50 states plus the district of columbia. This research guide lists citation manuals and dictionaries of legal. Basics of legal citations introduction to legal citation.
Additionally, the chicago manual of style recommends its use for. If a district court case is published in the federal supplement, the bluebook dictates that you cite to it table 1, p. A uniform system of citation, 20th ed cambridge, mass. Case name abbreviations table 6 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z. Supreme court do not abbreviate the first word in a party. West also publishes the california reporter and the new york supplement, which contain appellate case law from california and new york. The central function of a legal citation is to allow the reader to efficiently locate the cited source. Words in case names basic legal citation cornell university. The primary authority for legal citation, and abbreviations, in the united states is the bluebook. Dec 19, 2019 below is an example of a case citation. Unlike the remainder of the bluebook, which is designed in a style and at a level. Alternative legal citation style guides exist, including the maroonbook and the alwd citation manual. Basic layout bluebook 101 library guides at university of. Although it is intended to highlight the bluebook, and not substitute for it, we hope this guide provides a.
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