Introduction to Bluebook Citations

Introduction to Bluebook Citations

Caselaw & Constitutions

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Introduction

Bluebook Citations

Introduction to Bluebook Citations

The Bluebook was first published in the early 1920s and is almost 100 years old. It is the system of citation for U.S. legal professionals, those in practice and in academia. It was originally created by the Harvard Law Review and is now run by Harvard and three other top law schools. It has become a system of citation that is required to know if you plan to work or publish in the U.S. legal field.

Introduction

Bluebook Citations

Law Review Writing: No, You Can't Avoid Bluebook

Is there any way to avoid using Bluebook?

• No, not if you want to write for a law review in the United States.

• This is non-negotiable. Decisions about citation are not based on:
• Your personal writing style
• What is easiest
• Your preference for a different system of citation.
• What other undergraduate classes or schools do
• The requirement of Bluebook for this law review is about meeting the expected and high standards of legal scholarship.

Introduction

Bluebook Citations

Navigating the Physical Bluebook

• The Bluebook is split into the following:
• Bluepages - Provides guidance for legal professionals writing court documents.

• *Whitepages - provides guidance for writing legal scholarship, like law review.
• Tables - Used for abbreviations for courts, jurisdictions and general abbreviations of terms.

Introduction

Bluebook Citations

Where do citations go in my article?

In Law Review all citations are placed in the footnotes. There are no endnotes. Every fact or assertion of law requires a footnote. Not just when you quote something. Every sentence that is not: a heading, a topic sentence or your own argument, requires a footnote. When in doubt, cite it. There should not be any sentences asserting information from a source that does not have a footnote.

Caselaw

Bluebook

Caselaw Citations (Rule 10)

Year

United States Reporter

Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 437 (1803)

Pincite

Name

Page # it Starts On

Volume

Caselaw

Bluebook

Practice (Rule 10)

U.S. v. Mickey Mouse, et.al., 5 U.S. 137, 178 (1803)

United States v. Mouse, 5 U.S. 137, 178 (1803)

Caselaw

Bluebook

Caselaw Short Form (Rule 10.9)

Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. 137, 178 (1803)

Short Cites/Form:

• First Type:
• Marbury, 5 U.S. 137 at 140.
• Second Type:
• 5 U.S. at 140
• Third Type:
• Id. at 40
• Fourth Type:
• Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. at 140

Caselaw

Bluebook

Caselaw Short Form (Rule 10.9)

United States v. Mouse, 5 U.S. 137, 178 (1803)

Short Cites/Form:

• First Type:
• Second Type:
• Third Type:
• Fourth Type:

Mouse, 5 U.S. at 178.

5 U.S. at 178.

Id. at 178.

United States v. Mouse, 5 U.S. at 178.

Caselaw

Bluebook

Citing the Constitution (Rule 11)

Statutes

Bluebook

Citing Statutes (Rule 12)

Rule 16 - Periodical Materials

• Most Common Errors:
• Failing to italicize the title of article.
• Failing to write the name of periodical in small caps.
• Misuse of id. and supra.
• Id. is only used short form when the article has been cited in the immediately preceding footnote.
• If the article was cited a couple of footnotes previously you can use supra.

TIP: Check the Introductory Paragraph of Each Rule. Look past the examples in the Rules.

Periodicals

Bluebook

Practice Periodicals (Rule 16)

Periodicals - Short Cite

Bluebook

Short Cites of Periodicals (Rule 16.9)

Once a work in a periodical has been cited in full, use “id.” or “supra” to refer to it in subsequent citations. Different Rules from Caselaw

Short Cites/Form:

• First Type:
• Second Type:

Id. at 894.

Emens, supra note 1, at 894.

Periodicals - Short Cite

Bluebook

Practice Short Cites (Rule 16.9)

Short Cites/Form for Page 536:

• First Type:
• Second Type:

Id. at 536.

Vladeck, supra note 1, at 536.

Periodicals

Bluebook

Practice Periodicals (Rule 16)

When Do We Use Short Form?

(1) When the case is already cited in the same footnote. (2) Case is cited in one of the preceding 5 footnotes either by full or short form, including "Id."

What Reporter Is This Case In? What is the abbreviation?

The Federal and State Jurisdiction Table - T1 will tell you what reporter to use and the abbreviation. You also have the option to find a copy of the opinion. It will likely have the cite to the reporter at the top.

If you have the option to cite from the regular reporter, cite that. Do not go for the Lexis citation first.

If you have the option to cite from the regular reporter, cite that. Do not go for the Lexis citation first.

These issues are all discussed in Rule 10.3 or Table 1

Rule 10.2 and Rule 2

Things to remember:

• Only the first named party on each side of the v. should be cited.
• Do not include first and middle names. Leave the last names.
• Abbreviate all common words within Table T6 and geographical locations in T10.
• Don't abbreviated the United States. It is an exception.
• The first time you cite a case in the footnotes the name of the case is not italicized.
• The second time you cite it is italicized.
• Do not cite the full case in the main text of the article - it needs to be in the footnotes.
• If you mention the name of the case in your article the name should be italicized.
• Phrases like "in the matter of" should be abbreviated (In re).
• Phrases like (et. al) or (a.k.a) should be removed.

Rule 11 - Constitutions

Things to remember:

• Abbreviation of the State or United States and the word "constitution" should always be in "small caps."
• You can find "small caps" under the formatting button on Word.
• If the part of the constitution you are citing is currently in force - you do not need a date. If it is no longer in force or has been repealed, indicate that partenthetically. See below:

When Do We Use Short Form?

(1) When the case is already cited in the same footnote. (2) Case is cited in one of the preceding 5 footnotes either by full or short form, including "Id."