Legal Citation in the United States

Legal citations are the references in the text or in footnotes to the primary source of the rule being used, the source of proof or authority.

In the United States

In the United States, if you are searching for a legal citation you must use the precise format shown below, including exact punctuation. For other types of references such as newspaper and magazine articles, see the article on References Citation.

Legal citation of Lawi Encyclopedia

Because Lawi is an electronic source, the citations of Lawi and other legal source of information which are only available electronically should end with the web address (URL) in angled brackets < > followed by the date of most recent access.

Cite the Lawi encyclopedia as you would a book, but exclude the author or editor and publisher and include the edition and year of issue or reissue. Pinpoints to paragraphs come after the publication information.

Remember that some of the publication details (such as page numbers) are not be available. Citation advice is offered by the Lawi Encyclopedia. Please follow it.

Guides

General Legal Citation Guides

1. New York University School of Law, Guide to Foreign and International Legal Citations, First Edition (2006). (Superseded by Second Edition)
2. Cardiff University, Cardiff Index to Legal Abbreviations, (2011).
3. University of Chicago Law Review, The Maroonbook: The University of Chicago Manual of Legal Citation, (2016).
4. Peter W. Martin, Introduction to Basic Legal Citation, (2015).
5. University of Washington School of Law, Acronyms & Abbreviations, (2015).
6. Washington University in St. Louis Global Studies Law Review, International Citation Manual.
7. American Association of Law Libraries, AALL Universal Citation Guide, Edition 2.1, (2008) (Superseded by Edition 3.0)

State and Jursisdiction-Specific Legal Citation Guides

1. Arkansas Reporter of Decisions, House Style Guide, (2010).
2. Edward W. Jessen, California Style Manual, 4th Edition, (2000).
3. Office of the Reporter of Judicial Decisions, The Manual of Style for the Connecticut Courts (Third Edition), (2013).
4. Superior Court of Delaware, Guide to the Delaware Rules of Legal Citation (Second Edition), (2004).
5. Supreme Court of Illinois, Style Manual for the SUpreme and Appellate Courts of Illinois, Fourth Edition (2012).
6. Massachusetts Reports, Style Manual Prepared by the Office of the Reporter of Decisions, 2015–2016.
7. Supreme Court of New Jersey, New Jersey Manual on Style for Judicial Opinions, (2004).
8. Law Reporting Bureau of the State of New York, New York Official Reports Style Manual, (2015).
9. U.S. Army Court of Criminal Appeals, Citation Guide, Seventh Edition, (2012).
10. District of Columbia Court of Appeals, Citation and Style Guide, (2009).
11. Department of Justice, United States Department of Justice, Office of the Solicitor General Citation Manual, (2014).