Blue book citation style

Basic purpose of citation

• To let the reader locate a cited source accurately and efficiently

• It provides minimum amount of information necessary to find the cited source

Structure of bluebook

• The Bluebook contains three major parts:

1. First part (rules 1 to 9): general standards of citation and style to be used throughout the legal
writing.

2. Second part (rules 10 to 21): specific rules of citation for cases, statutes, books, periodicals etc.

Third part (tables T.1 to T.17): series of tables to be used in conjunction with the rules
Different kinds of authorities and signals used to cite them:

1. Authority directly stating a proposition (no signals).

2. Authority, not specifically stating but directly supporting a proposition (See).

3. Authority less directly supporting an author’s proposition (cf.).

4. Authority contradicting a proposition (Contra, But see, But cf.).

5. Authority providing general background information (See generally).

Signals of same type to be separated by semicolons and of different types to be separated by full stops.

Internal cross reference

• Supra: above

Citation form: author’s last name, supra note number.

E.g.: James & Hazard, supra note 8, at 6.

E.g.: Keeton et al., supra note 18, at 5.

• Infra: below

E.g.: See infra Part IV.A.

• Hereinafter: special shortened for can be used for some authorities:

E.g.: 34 Paul M. Bator et al., Hart and Wechsler’s The Federal

Courts and the Federal System 330 (3d ed. 1988)

[hereinafter Hart & Wechsler].

: 35 Hart & Wechsler, supra note 34, at 614.

• Note: footnotes within the same piece.

• Part: other parts within the same piece.

• Use “p.” and “pp.” for page number only in case of internal cross reference, e.g., See infra p. 50
and note 100.

Use of “Id.”

• Used when citing immediately preceding authority either when citing immediately preceding
authority :

- in same foot note or,

 - in immediately preceding footnote- when the preceding footnote contains only one authority.

Eg:1 Chalfin v. Specter, 233 A.2d. 562 (Pa. 1967).

2
Id. at 563.

Parenthetical information

• Information may be enclosed in parenthesis and added to the basic citation. It is generally
recommended when relevance of cited authority is not very clear. (rule 1.5)

E.g.,

See generally Akhil Amar, Reports of My Death: A Reply, 138 Harv. L. Rev. 1965 (1990) (arguing that the
author and the two-tier theory of federal jurisdiction are still visible.)

• When signals are used as verbs of ordinary sentences, matter that would be included in a
parenthetical explanation should be made part of sentence itself. Here, the signal is not
italicized (rule 1.2)

E.g.,

See Louis Touton, Note, The Property Power and Federalism, 80 Colum. L. Rev. 817 (1980), for a
discussion of the limits on the property power.

Quotation, alteration, omission

• Quotation:

- for fifty or more words: Block quotation

- for forty nine or fewer words: quotation marks

• Alteration:

- when changing case of a letter enclose it in brackets. E.g., “[P]ublic confidence…”

• Omission:

- insert an ellipsis: “ … ”

Secondary sources like books(Rule 15-18)…1

• Books, Pamphlets, and Other Nonperiodic Materials (Rule 15)

Citation format: Author’s, editor’s and/or translator’s name; title; serial number; page, section or
paragraph if only part of a volume is cited; edition; publisher, if not the original one; and date.

E.g., Charles Dickens, Bleak House 50 ( Norman page

 ed., Penguin Books 1971) (1853).

E.g., Mancur Olson, The Logic of Collective Action 53-65

(1965).

E.g., Allen Schick, The Changing Role of Central Budget

Office (Jon Blondal ed., 1977).

Citation of works by institutional authors:

E.g., Statistical Analysis Ctr., State Crime Comm’n, Crime in

Georgia 41 (1980).

Prefaces, Forewords, Introductions and Epilogues (Rule 15.6)…3

• By someone other than the author:

E.g., L. Maria Child, Introduction to Harriet A. Jacobs, Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl 3,3-4 (L. Maria
Child & Jean F. Yellin eds., Harvard Univ. Press 1987) (1861).

• By the author:

E.g., John Hart Ely, Democracy And Distrust, at vii (1980)

Shorter work in a Collection…2

• Shorter work by various authors:

E.g., Andrew G. Ferguson, Continuing Seizure: Fourth Amendment Seizure, in 15 NAT’L Lawyers Guild,
Civil Rights Litigation And Attorney Fees Annual Handbook 54-1 (Steven Saltzman ed., 1999).

• Shorter works by same author:

Oliver Wendell Holmes, Law in Science and Science in Law, in Collected Legal Papers 210, 210 (1920).

Note the use of small and big caps:

E.g., Oliver Wendell Holmes

Periodical Materials (Rule 16)

• Citation of particular pages in a law review article:

Citation format: author’s full name,-title of article,-journal article no.-abbreviation of journal-page on

which article begins-span of specific pages cited-(date of publication)-(parenthetical describing content
of pages cited).
E.g., Charles A. Reich, The New Property, 73 Yale L.J. 733, 737-38 (1964) (discussing the importance of
government largess).

• Entire magazine article:

E.g., Robert J. Samuelson, A Slow Fix for the Banks, Newsweek, Feb. 18, 1991, at 55.

- Different format for consecutively (rule 16.3) and non-consecutively (rule 16.4) paginated journals.

• Consecutively Paginated Journals

Format: author, title of work, volume no., periodical name, first page of the work and page(s) on which
specific material appears, (year).

E.g., Richard A. Epstein, The Supreme Court, 1987 Term-Foreward: Unconstitutional Conditions, State
Power, and the Limits of Consent, 102 Harv. L. Rev. 5, 14 (1989).

• Nonconsecutively Paginated Journals

Format: author, title, periodical name, date of issue, first page of work and page(s) on which specific
material appears following the word “at”

E.g., Barbara Ward, Progress for a Small Planet, Harv. Bus. Rev., Sept.-Oct. 1979, at 89, 90.

Newspapers (Rule 16.5)

• Signed articles:

E.g., Ari L. Goldman, O’ Connor Warns Politicians Risk Excommunication over Abortion, N.Y. Times, June
15, 1990 at A1.

• Unsigned articles:

E.g., Cops Shoot Tire, Halts Stolen Car, S.F. Chron., Oct. 10, 1975, at 43.

Special Citation Forms (Rule 15.7)

• Frequently cited works:

E.g., Black’s Law Dictionary 712 (7th ed. 1999).

• Shakespeare:

William Shakespeare, The Second Part Of King Henry the Sixth act 4, sc. 2.

Annotations

Format: author’s full name, “Annotation”, title of the work in italics.

E.g., William B. Johnson, Annotation, Use of Plea Bargain or Grant of Immunity as Improper Vouching
for Credibility for Credibility of Witness in Federal Cases, 76 A.L.R. Fed. 409 (1986).

Cases (Rule 10)….1

Full citation includes:

1. Name of the case.

2. Source where the case can be found.

3. Parenthetical including court and jurisdiction.

4. Year or date of decision.

5. Subsequent history of case, if any.

6. May include additional parenthetical information.

There are different citation formats for cases from different countries and courts.

Cases (Rule 10)….2

• US Supreme Court case citation:

party1-v.-party2,-reporter volume number-reporter abbreviation-first page of case,-specific page

referred to-date of decision.

E.g., Meritor Savings Bank v. Vinson, 477 U.S. 57, 60 (1986).

- refers to space.

Cases (Rule 10)….3

• Other US courts: deciding court is added

parties,-reporter volume no-reporter abbreviation-first page of the case-span of specific pages referred
to-deciding court-parenthetical phrase describing decision of Fourth Circuit-action of higher court-
citation of reversal.

E.g., United States v. MacDonald, 531 F.2d 196, 199-200 (4th Cir. 1976) (resting review of the
dispositive issue on the principal of judicial economy), rev’d, 435 U.S. 850 (1978)

Short form of this case: shortened case name in italics,-volume no and reporter abbreviation-at-specific
page.

MacDonald,-531-F.2d-at-197

Cases (Rule 10)….4

 • Foreign cases: Rule 20 says that cite foreign cases in accordance with Rule 10 except for certain
modifications. Table T.2 enumerates citation style for different countries, jurisdictions, courts
and order of preference of law reporters:

Australia (Common Law)

Citation format: <case name> (<year>) <volume> <reporter> <page>.

E.g.Mabo v. Queensland [No 2] (1992) 175 CLR 1

Cases (Rule 10)….5

• India (Common Law)- Supreme Court

 High Court

Constitutions (Rule 11)

• Use table T. 17 to abbreviate names of document sub divisions like article, chapter, clause etc:

E.g., U.S. CONST. art. I, § 9, cl. 2.

• Citation format for an amendment: abbreviation of constitution cited-abbreviation for

“amendment”-number of amendment cited-section symbol-specific section cited

E.g., U.S. CONST amend XIV, § 2

Statute (Rule 12)

• US statutes citation format:

Official name of the Act,-U.S.C. title number-abbreviation of code cited-section symbols-span of sections
containing statute-(date of code edition cited)
Eg: Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 9601-9675
(1994).

U.S.C.: United States Code

Foreign Jurisdictions ( Table T.2)

• India

• Sessions laws and regulations

Citation format: <compilation> <part> (<year>), <name of law and issuing authority>, <place>, <date>.

C.I.S. Part I (1984), Order under Sec. 5 of XYZ Ministry of ABC, New Delhi, 28 Jan. 1984.

Magazines (Rule 16.5, p.150)

• This rule applies to magazines that are (1) non-consecutively paginated (i.e. the pages within
each issue start separately) and (2) are available only in print form

• For magazine references that are also available online, see Rule 16.8 (Electronic Media and
Online sources), infra

• RULE: <Author>, <Title of Work>, <Name of Magazine>, <Date of issue as it appears on the
cover>, at <first page>, <page at which specific reference appears>.

• If no author is listed, begin with the Title

• Note: Tables T-10 and T-13 provide the abbreviations periodicals (see infra).

Abbreviations:

• T-10: Provides a list of abbreviations for geographic locations (focusing on all US and Australian
states, along with major cities of the two countries; and abbreviations of other countries)

• T-13: List of abbreviations for select English Language periodicals, and words commonly used in
periodical titles

• Periodical/magazine abbreviations: Most commonly cited magazines in India do not feature in T-

13.

• In such cases (abbreviation of periodical title not in T-13), the rule is: structure the abbreviation
by looking up each word in T-13, and location in T-10. Omit “a”, “at”, “of”, “in” and “the”. Retain
 “on”. If the word is in neither T-10 nor T-13, use the full word. If the Title ends up consisting of
only one word after “a”, “at”, “of”, “in” and “the” have been deleted, do not delete the
remaining word.

Electronic Media and Nonprint Sources (Rule 18, p.151)

• Generally covers material available only on the internet. However, even if a print source is
available, a parallel citation to an electronic source is advisable if it will substantially increase
access to the source

• Covers (1) Widely used commercial electronic databases like Westlaw and Lexis (Rule 18.1); (2)
the Internet (Rule 18.2); (3) CD-ROMs (Rule 18.3); microforms (Rule 18.4); (5) Films, broadcasts
and non-commercial videotapes (Rule 18.5); and audio recordings (Rule 18.6)

• Here we elaborate on points (1), and (2) since they are the electronic sources most widely used
in legal work.

Electronic Media: (1) Electronic Databases (Rule 18.1)

Bluebook here gives examples only of Westlaw and LEXIS

(a) Citing the Electronic Source as a primary source, such as a case available only only LEXIS

Rule: <Case Name>, <Docket number>, <database identifier>, (<court name> <full date>). If a page
number is assigned, then put it before the court name, preceded by *. If a paragraph number is
assigned, precede it with ¶

Example: Gibbs v. Frank, No. 02-3924, 2004 U.S. App. LEXIS 2135, at *18 (3d Cir. Oct. 14, 2004).

Electronic Commercial Databases (contd.)

(b) Citing an online source as a secondary source to a print source, such as a magazine/periodical that is
simultaneously available on Westlaw

Rule: <Complete citation according to rules 15-17>, available at <electronic citation>.

Example: Hillary Rodham Clinton, Leading Through Civilian Power, Foreign Aff., Nov.-Dec. 2010, at 6, 10,
available at 2010 WL 2824844.

Electronic Media: (2) Internet (Rule 18.2)

• General Rule: Internet citations only when the source is (1) unavailable in traditional printed
format or on a widely available electronic database; or (2) available in traditional printed format,
but the content of the internet source is identical to the printed source, and a parallel citation to
the internet (preceded by available at) will substantially improve access to such source
 • Principles: (1) The URL should be complete, and lead directly to the source; (2) in cases of the
document being available in both HTML and other popular formats that preserve the
document’s pagination (eg., pdf., or a Word Document), the latter, and not the HTML format
should be cited

Internet: Direct Citations

• RULE: <Complete citation as it appears on the internet>, <URL> (<last visited date>).

Example: Paul Lavista, Privacy Rights and Cyber Crime, http://www.cybercrimes.com/1-xyz/lavista.htm

(last visited

Internet, Parallel Citations

• RULE: <Full Original Citation>, available at <URL>.

Example: Hillary Rodham Clinton, Leading Through Civilian Power, Foreign Aff., Nov.-Dec. 2010, at 6, 10,
available at http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/66799/hillary-rodham-clinton/leading-through-
civilian-power.

Unpublished and Forthcoming Sources (Rule 17, p.147)

Includes:

(1) Unpublished Materials (Rule 17.1): Refers to work that is not scheduled for publication by the
author, such as (a) Manuscripts; (b) Dissertations and Thesis; (c) Letters and Memoranda; (d)
Interviews; (e) Speeches

(2) Forthcoming Publications (Rule 17.2)

(3) Working Papers (Rule 17.3)

Unpublished Materials (Rule 17.1)

(a) Manuscript:

Rule: <Author>, <Title> <page number> (<full date>) (unpublished manuscript <where the work can be
found>).

Example: Anatoliy Bizhko, Capitalism and Democracy 25 (Feb. 29, 2000) (unpublished manuscript, on file
with The Yale Law Journal).

(b) Forthcoming Publications:

Rule: Cite it in the same manner as the published source would be cited. However, do not include the
pincite. Add: (Forthcoming <month> <year>). If month is not available, then just the year

Example (Forthcoming Publication)

 (a) Book:

Sarah Barringer Gordon, The Twin Relics of Barbarism (forthcoming 2001).

(b) Journal Article:

Sarah Greenberger, Enforceable Rights, No Child Left Behind, and Political Patriotism: A Case for Open-
Minded Section 1983 Jurisprudence, 153 U. Pa. L. Rev. (forthcoming Jan. 2005).

Working Papers

RULE: Cite in the same way as an unpublished manuscript. Include after the main citation: (<name of
sponsoring authority, using abbreviations>, <Working Paper Designation and Number>, <year>). If the
paper is also available online, then add after the parenthetical, available at <URL>.

Example 1: L.J. Kotlikoff, National Savings, Economic Welfare, and the Structure of Taxation 24–33 (Nat’l
Bureau of Econ. Research, Working Paper No. 729, 1981).

Example 2: Richard Briffault, The Political Parties and Campaign Finance Reform 16–17 (Columbia Law
Sch. Pub. Law & Legal Theory Working Paper Group, Paper No. 12, 2000), available at
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=223729.

Foreign Materials (Rule 20)

• Foreign Materials refer to sources that are not based in the US. They include foreign cases,
constitutions, statutes, and periodicals.

• Table T-2 provides jurisdiction specific examples of citations or foreign materials. India is
included in T-2. See supra slides 22-26 for examples of citation of foreign materials provided in
T-2.

For jurisdictions not contained in T-2, the general rules of citation are:

(a) Jurisdiction not evident from context: If the jurisdiction is not evident from the text of the main
citation, indicate the same in parenthetical after the citation.

Example 1: Weed v. Powell, [1978] S.C.R. 354 (Can.).

Example 2: (here the jurisdiction is evident from main citation): Guthrie v. Huff, [1980] 2 N.Z.L.R. 40.

(b) Cases—general rule:

Common Law case--If the reporter does not clearly indicate the court deciding the case, indicate the
court parenthetically; But if the court involved is the highest court in the jurisdiction, only the
jurisdiction needs to be identified unless the jurisdiction is otherwise clear from the main citation

Example (1)—court not indicated: R v. Lockwood, (1782) 99 Eng. Rep. 379 (K.B.).

Example (2)—highest court: Weed v. Powell, [1978] S.C.R. 354 (Can.).

Example (3)—Highest court, but jurisdiction evident from context: Guthrie v. Huff, [1980] 2 N.Z.L.R. 40.

Constitutions: Cite all constitutions by their given name in the foreign jurisdiction. If the nature of the
document is not evident from the main citation, add it in parenthetical after the name. If the jurisdiction
is similarly unclear, include the abbreviated name of the country (as per T-10) in parenthetical after the
pincite

Example: Grundgesetz [GG] [Constitution] art. 51 (F.R.G

International Materials (Rule 21)

• Can be broadly classified into:

(a) Treaties and Conventions; (b) International Law Cases; (c) International Arbitrations; UN
Sources; (d) Materials of Other International Organizations; (e) Materials of NGOs; (f) Digests

General Note: The rule regarding Jurisdiction not evident from context in foreign materials applies to
International Materials as well.

(a) Treaties and Conventions (Rule 21.4)

Rule 1 (for treaties among 3 parties or less):

<name of agreement>, <abbreviated name of parties>, <sub-division cited>, <date of signing>, <one U.S.
Treaty Source, if US is party>.

Rule 2 (Treaties among more than 3 parties): <name of agreement>, <sub-division cited>, <date of
signing>, <one U.S. Treaty Source>, <one international treaty source>.

Treaty Sources (Rule 21.4.5)—Table 4 lists the 3 kinds of treaty sources

(a) US Treaty Sources; (b) International Treaty Sources (including UN treaty sources and other
International Organizations’ treaty sources); and (c) unofficial treaty sources.

Rules applying to treaty sources: If US is a party to the agreement in question (less than 3 parties, or
multilateral), atleast one US source from Table 4 is required.

If US is not a party to the treaty—only one an international organization source from T4 is required to be
cited.

Unofficial sources (eg., ILM) should only be used if the the treaty is not found in any of the treaty
sources specified in T4.

Examples:

(1) Bilateral treaty with US as a party:

Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation, U.S.-Japan, art. X, Apr. 2, 1953, 4 U.S.T. 2063.

(2) Bilateral treaty without US as a party:

Treaty of Neutrality, Hung.-Turk., Jan. 5, 1929, 100 L.N.T.S. 137.

(3) Multilateral Treaty with US as party:

North Atlantic Treaty, art.5, Apr. 4, 1949, 63 Stat.2241, 34 U.N.T.S. 243.

International Law Cases: Examples:

(1) International Court of Justice—

<case name> (<parties>), <ICJ citation>, <pincite> (date).

Military and Paramilitary Activities, (Nicar. v. U.S.), 1986 I.C.J. 14, 26 (June 27).

(2) European Court of Human Rights—

<case name>, <ECHR Citation>, <pincite>, (<year>).

Kampanis v. Greece, 318 Eur. Ct. H.R. 29, 35 (1995).

International Materials-cases (contd.)

(3) Inter-American Commission on Human Rights

<case name>, <case number>, Inter-Am. C.H.R., <Report number>, <series and docket numbers>
<pincite> (<year>).

Tortrino v. Argentina, Case 11.597, Inter-Am. C.H.R., Report No. 7/98, OEA/Ser.L./V/II.98, doc. 7 rev. ¶
15 (1997).

(4) International Criminal Tribunals

<case name>, <case number>, <type of ruling>, <pincite> (<date>).

Prosecutor v. Tadic, Case No. IT-94-1-I, Decision on Defence Motion for Interlocutory Appeal on
Jurisdiction, ¶ 70 (Oct. 2, 1995).