The bluebook method of citation gained its name from a manual aptly named the bluebook. Due to the complexity and the variety of rules, it is hardly possible to have a onestop tool for an automatic bluebook citation, and so it is important to know where to. There is a standard set of clarifying or qualifying words used with citations. When courts do not have specific style requirements, bluebook style is the safest, standard option. Given the lower weight given to citations following see also signals, it is generally best to include a parenthetical explaining why the source is relevant. Contra is used whenever the cited authority directly states a contradictory proposition and so is essentially the contradictory form of no signal. Citing cases bluebook guide guides at georgetown law.
Durlauf, growth empirics and reality, world bank economic research, vol. As you can see, using the bluebook style is not an easy endeavor and should not be approached lightly. The scope of the indigo book s coverage is roughly equivalent to the bluebook s bluepagesthat is, the indigo book covers legal citation for u. The bluebook, as it is commonly referred to, spans more than three hundred pages. But see is used when the citation clearly supports a proposition contradictory to the textual assertion, and. See also is commonly used to refer readers to authorities already cited or discussed e.
Many of the complicated variations on rules are not shown in these samples. Citing an authority without any preceding word to clarify or qualify its connection to the text represents that the citation directly states the proposition or identifies a quotation or authority with which the citation is associated e. Citing an authority without any preceding word to clarify or qualify its connection to the text represents that the citation directly states the proposition or. Signals bluebook citation 101 practitioner format research. Introductory signals guide bluebook citation generator. Signals are important because they indicate how a cited authority relates to the text. The bluebook does a pretty good job of giving examples of the particular statute you may be citing. Supplementary and illustrative sources are introduced by see, see also or see, for example. Do not include an initial the as part of the statute name. Always check for local court citation rules for court documents. Guide to cite using bluebook citation method with examples. There are circumstances in which a writer has already directly supported a statement they made in their writing with a citation but still wishes to add additional support.
Like the federal courts of appeals, cases from the federal district courts are not compiled in an official reporter. If the bluebook citation is not accurate, you can manually edit the citation. The title of the book, also in small caps, should follow. The bluebook s table bt2 summarizes the style requirements of courts throughout the u. The bluebook also has citation rules for legal memoranda and other practiceoriented materials the blue pages, which students in lrwa2 use for their memo assignments. Signals are used in front of citations to alert the reader as to how that citation is being used. It is permissible to use either an official or popular name.
Citation format examples for footnotes general rules times new roman, size 10, 1 line spacing, justified. A pinpoint citation directly follows the title, which designates the specific pages on which the cited material. Do not use a signal with a citation when you have directly borrowed someone elses words or have paraphrased her words or ideas. Often, the writer will include some parenthetical information after the see also citation. For generations, law students, lawyers, scholars, judges, and other legal professionals have relied on the bluebook s unique system of citation.
Use promocode youtube on our website and get 20% off in this video, we cover what it takes to properly write a bluebook citation. A uniform system of citation, a style guide, prescribes the most widely used legal citation system in the united states. Instead, many cases from the district courts are published in wests federal supplement. The following samples cover basic citation format for secondary sources. The development of the bluebook from its inception in 1926 as a twentysixpage pamphlet for use at harvard law. Statutes bluebook legal citation tarlton law library.
Cite to the name of the sourcedictionary, page number if pinpoint citing, edition and year. But if you begin a new sentence after a citation, that new sentence will be two spaces after the citation. A parenthetical is an explanatory phrase included in parentheses at the end of a legal citation. This will provide you with all of the information you need to cite the case but it will not be properly bluebooked. Unless the citation is a citation clause, every citation, whether in a footnote or in a brief, must end with a period. The authority provides additional material supporting the. Where the florida rules do not address a particular citation, the bluebook. In some procedural documents, citations can be made in a citation sentence or a citation clause introductory signals, such as e.
When in doubt, you can also consult legal writing guides, look at the style used in cases published by the court, or ask a more experienced attorney. Scan your paper for grammar mistakes and catch unintentional plagiarism. The indigo book isnt the same as the bluebook, but it does implement the same uniform system of citation that the bluebook does. A b c d e f gh i jk l m n o p qr s t u vwxyz show all. As a sentence by itself, it must also be separated by the next sentence by two spaces. When writers do not signal a citation, the cited authority states the proposition, is the source of the cited quotation or identifies an authority referred to in. The purpose of every parenthetical citation is to tell the reader to see a work, so the word see would almost always be redundant. Is it ever appropriate to use see or see also in a.
The following examples are for reference only, and you should still check if a printed version of a source is available before citing it as an electronic source. 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. In general, if one source is considered more authoritative than the others, place this one first in the string cite. Citation signals help a reader to discern meaning or usefulness of a reference when the reference itself provides inadequate. See also is commonly used to cite an authority supporting a proposition when authorities that state or directly support the proposition already have been cited or discussed. You can find and edit styles on the mendeley website. Federal courts bluebook guide guides at georgetown law. Whereas contra indicates a direct contradiction, but see indicates a very likely contradiction. But see wex us law lii legal information institute. The indigo book is a free implementation of the bluebook method, and is the preferred source for paralegal.
However, the bluebook method is taught and illustrated in numerous manuals, including the indigo book. The fastest way to collect all of the citation information for a case is to highlight the specific text you would like to cite and use the databases copy with citation feature. See also can be useful when you want to follow a source citation with a reference to a supplementary work. The style manual used by the new york state law reporting. If a district court case is published in the federal supplement, the bluebook dictates that you cite to it table 1, p. The editors published a new eighteenth edition in 2005 that encompasses several changes. Internet citation bluebook citation 101 practitioner. The use of a parenthetical explanation of the sources relevance rule 1. The bluebook citation handbook strongly advises against including electronic sources in the bibliography if they can be cited as a printed source. Introductory signals are placed before every citation to indicate how the citations relate to the preceding sentence or clause.
The following information regarding the bluebook citation format is an adapted version of the style and formatting guidelines found in the bluebook, 20th ed. Bluebook examples for common citations books rule 15. Introductory signals appear at the beginning of citation sentences. Always check the blue pages in the back of the bluebook table 1 to. A bluebook guide for law students suffolk university. Note that if a but see citation follows another cited source, the but see source will be construed as contradicting the previous source and not the statements in the present piece of writing. Also see whats the difference between a citation sentence, citation clause. But see is the strongest negative signal after contra. It also updates the superior court guide to the delaware rules of legal citation adopted in july 1997. The authorized exceptions from the bluebook system of citation are listed on pages 29 and 30 of this manual.
Bluepage rules are sometimes different but are always based upon the normal nonbluepage rules. 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. When citing an authority that supports the proposition after other authorities that state or directly support the proposition see also use of an explanatory. Authority is additional support for the proposition with which the citation is associated but less direct than that indicated by see or accord.
The bluepages section located at the start of the bluebook is a miniguide to court documents andor legal memoranda. Bluebook rules that should be used in opinions of the new jersey courts. Chicago manual of style 16th edition full note american psychological association 6th edition. In endnotes, citation sentences begin one space after a textual proposition. Citation forms are designed to provide the minimum amount of information necessary to lead the reader to the source and to convey key information concerning the source. Online citation generators bluebook 101 library guides. The bluebook, is the definitive style guide for legal citation in the united states. By embracing a broad understanding of eighth amendment. Signals are used in front of citations to alert the reader as to how that citation is. If a case is published in a reporter, the bluebook prescribes which reporter is the preferred one to cite table 1. This relation can be supportive, comparative, or contradictory. If your authority directly states the proposition or your cite clearly supports the text, you. For books, the authors name should appear as it does on the title page of the book, in small caps followed by a comma.