Part i of the slatebook modifies and adds to the bluebook s rules. The most frequently used are probably no signal, e. A pinpoint citation directly follows the title, which designates the specific pages on which the cited material. You may be familiar with the need to cite information, but many places also require you to follow a strict guide and a specific style while doing so. Also, its not clear to me whether you mean the actual words see, etc. The proper bluebook citation for nonconsecutively paginated journals and magazines is. If you are unsure of how to cite a case, shepardize the case and see how other courts have cited the case.
Typeface conventions bluebook legal citation tarlton. If the article is written by a student author, the designation of the piece see r. This will provide you with all of the information you need to cite the case but it will not be properly bluebooked. Those phrases such as cert denied, introducing a case citation for the action indicated by the explanatory phrase are followed by commas which are not italicized, see rule 2. The two most prominent citation manuals are the bluebook. Underlining also is acceptable and must be used exclusively in the unified writing competition. Presented by the academic achievement program october. Pamphlets see books and pamphlets panama see canal zone paragraph number, in services, r3. The vanderbilt journal of entertainment and technology law jetlaw conforms to the chicago manual of style 17th ed. You should use ordinary plain text for case names in full citations, except for procedural phrases like ex rel.
Cases bluebook legal citation tarlton law library at. The complete guide to bluebook introductory signals. However, the punctuation following the last element of the signal is neither underlined nor italicized, so that you would write, for example, see also. As such, bluebook shares some similarities with most other citation styles while closely emulating few to none. This can be used after a no signal cite to a see cite to give additional authorities. The authority is different from the main proposition but sufficiently analogous to lend support. Citing cases bluebook guide guides at georgetown law. If you are submitting legal documents to a state court, you may have to cite cases using state court reporters in addition to regional reporters. Some of the most obscure bluebook rules or how to really. The introductory signals should always be in italics. According to the bluebook, you must italicize the period in id. This bluebook rule conflicts with generally accepted scholarly practice in other disciplines e.
Note also that no comma follows see also or see generally. The bluebook states to cite the case docket number exactly as it appears. Bluebook formatting is a uniform system of citation for legal text. Generations of law students, lawyers, scholars, judges, and other legal professionals have relied on the bluebook s unique system of citation in their writing. Common bluebook citations for federal courts welcome. Please apply these vlr conventions to every piece that you edit. Looking to rule 12, the bluebook states that one always uses the title number first, followed by the abbreviation of the code cited.
However, the basic format of a case citation is as follows. Some statespecific style manuals also provide guidance on legal citation. Blog for to the point publications, llc, an online writing course for tax professionals accountants and attorneys. Bluebook examples for common citations books rule 15. The title of the book, also in small caps, should follow. Italics supra may be used to refer to certain types of previously cited materials as well as internal crossreferences. Additionally, there are a few rules that may take a little getting used to. Manual, you may default to the bluebook citation style. By 2011, the bluebook was the main guide and source of authority on legal references for the past 90 years. The bluebook says that signal phrases in footnotes or citations in text see, see also, accord, but see, compare, contra, see generally, cf. The editors provide authoritative guidance to reasonable questions on subjects covered by the bluebook. Plain meaning rule rn how to read and figure out the law or insurance policy provisions evidence of coverage rn read the statute, read the statute, read the statute. The process of editing legal text to conform to these standards is sometimes referred to as bluebooking.
The bluebook is also the mostused style guide for the united states legal profession at large. Note, however, that this instrument is not intended for legal documents. This typeface is also used in the main text of a document. The bluebook method is the most widely used legal citation system in the united states. The most useful answers are gathered here as blue tips, classified by subject. Italicize punctuation only when it falls within italicized material in a. With its help, you can cite academic sources like you would do it in any other style without having to consult the monstrously detailed style guide.
Italicize the signal if it is included in the citation sentence. No comma separates the signal from the rest of the citation, except for e. Posts about bluebook written by to the point publications, llc. This is a proposed citation style to adapt the bluebook to the unique needs of wikipedia. A rule of thumb used by many is to see if the formatting can be reproduced on a typewriterif so, it is used by practitioners, if it requires typesetting, it is used for academic articles. Do not use a signal with a citation when you have directly borrowed someone elses. The abbreviations, though latin, have been incorporated into the common english language and, thus, are not italicized. Any word over eight letters may also be abbreviated if substantial space is saved and the result is clear. Citations should appear in footnotesrather than endnotesand conform to the bluebook. California style manual csm basics bluebooking and. Dont throw away your bluebook just yet, however csm sometimes refers you to the bluebook for additional rules. Signals are used in front of citations to alert the reader as to how that citation is being used.
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. These tips are searchable and linked to the bluebook content they address. 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. Placed in front of a citation these words are italicized or underlined.
Journal conventions vanderbilt journal of entertainment. The bluebook is the most commonly used system for legal citations in the united states, especially for legal scholarship, but also with modifications by local rules in judicial opinions and party briefs. The following information regarding the bluebook citation format is an adapted version of the style and formatting guidelines found in the bluebook, 20th ed. European court of justice see court of justice of the european communities european parliament working document, r21. For books, the authors name should appear as it does on the title page of the book, in small caps followed by a comma. Using our bluebook legal citation generator can make legal citing much easier for you. When instead they form the verb of a sentence that includes the citation they are not italicized or underlined. In court documents briefs, motions and legal memoranda, a full case name is usually italicized or underlined.
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