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. You should give the statute s name and original section number only if it is commonly cited that way or if it would aid the identification of the statue. Citations are to the 20th edition of the bluebook, a uniform system of citation rule 12 statutes p. Generations of law students, lawyers, scholars, judges, and other legal professionals have relied on the bluebook s unique system of citation in their writing. Citing statutes bluebook rule b12 pages 18 21 see rule 12 pages 1204 for more guidance.
The statute number containst the title number, the chapter number, and the section or statute number. There are also two unofficial codes for federal statutes. However, the basic format of a statutory citation is as follows. The pennsylvania code is an official publication of the commonwealth of pennsylvania. When creating legal references in apa style, most legal materials are cited using the standard legal citation style found in the bluebook, 20th edition legal materials include federal and state statutes, court decisions and court cases, executive orders, legislative materials, federal hearings and testimony, federal regulations, patents, constitutions and charters, treaties, and. Note the publisher designation and the year of the cited code in the end. Statutes bluebook legal citation tarlton law library. For example, i believe the current edition of the revised code of. Both the bluebook and the alwd guide to legal citation call for. So regarding this site, can i just post questions on here whenever i have them. The precise format of a statutory citation depends on a number of factors.
If you are using the bluebook for a citation guide then it is very likely that you will need to cite a statute. Acts page number if citing to an act only found in baldwins kentucky revised. Use full citation if you cite 28 usc 11 for 1st time. Name and original section number as it appears in the session laws only if the statute is commonly cited that way title, chapter, or volume see t. The state statutes section of the bluebook is a bit weak though, and its something that hopefully will be beefed up in the next edition. Bt2 jurisdictionspecific citation rules and style guides. If you are citing a federal statute currently in force, the bluebook dictates that you cite to the united states code if it contains the current version of a statute rule 12. Legal materials citation help for apa, 7th edition. Else, cite to an unofficial code usually the annotated version, then. Additionally, the chicago manual of style recommends its use for all citation of legal material. In new mexico, you will see the following statutory citations.
For california statutes, the bluebook allows citations to deerings california codes annotated available in print and on lexis or wests annotated california codes available in print and on westlaw. First, appellate courts in missouri dont follow the forms suggested in the bluebook for citing to missouri cases and statutes. For a statute without a common name, list the source, ch. Citing statutes bluebook guide guides at georgetown law library. The bluebook s requirement for the year of a statute. Any information about state and court that is clear from the reporter name should be deleted from the parenthetica l. If possible, you should cite to the current official code or the supplement. Wyoming statutes on westlaw wests wyoming statutes annotated use t1 to find the basic template for your state statutory code set replace with. All citations of kentucky statutes shall be made from the official edition of the kentucky revised statutes and may be abbreviated krs. The laws in the new mexico statutes are passed by the new mexico legislature, which consists of the new mexico house of representatives and the new mexico senate. The bluebook style guide is used in the american legal profession for citation of all relevant sources. For further information on federal statutes, please click here.
When researching similar laws in more than one state, such as child support laws, consult compilations of state laws. A new edition of the official united states code is published every six years, with a cumulative supplement published annually. Bluebooking california statutes bluebooking and legal. Citations to state and federal statutes circuit riders libguides at. Federal statutes bluebook guide guides at georgetown. A uniform system of citation and the association of legal writing directors alwd citation manual supreme court ky. Bills truly agreed to and finally passed are signed in open session by the speaker of the house and the president pro tem of the senate. The title, section, and text of the statute are almost always identical no matter which version you use but, to find the correct year, you will. Like federal statutes, state statutes may be published in both an official code and an unofficial code, and the bluebook requires you to cite to the official code, if possible rule 12. Statutes bluebook legal citation tarlton law library at tarlton. Some states publish their official statutes only online. Do not add the year in parentheses after a citation to a presently effective version of a statute or code.
For further information on state statutes, please click here consult the blue pages, rule b12, if you are writing a brief or memo. You can find rule 12 in the white pages on page 120. Statutes online bluebook guide guides at georgetown. You should cite to the united state federal constitution by u. Statutes library guides at university of missouri libraries. How do i cite a state statute or law in the apa style. Citing legislative related materials statutes rule 12 1.
A uniform system of citation, a popular legal citation style, to cite legal materials. The remainder of the bluebook employs a more complex array of typeface conventions, including ordinary roman type, italics, and l. Show me citations attempts to solve two problems with using the bluebook. For instructions on how to cite a state statute generally, see rule b12. Detailed citation formats for statutes and other legal and legislative materials can be found in the bluebook. Second, there is so much information in the bluebook, it is hard find some of the details a lawyer needs to know for legal writing. Remember that when citing to an annotated code, cite only to the text of the statute, not to any of the annotations or other editorial enhancements. Cite state codes and legal statutes in apa style for college research or professionally written papers and reports. In documents submitted to kentucky courts, cite to ky. Statutes bluebook basics libguides at university of. Table 1 provides a list of statutory codes for each state and indicates which is the officialpreferred code to cite as well as the abbreviations for each code. It is important to note that just because a state legislature or other state government entity makes state statutes available online, it does not mean the online version is official for the purposes of citation. The statute number can be found at the head of every statute. State statute citations are generally composed of three parts.
Cite title 21 of the united states code, section 331a from the official united states code in print. Chapters 5, 7 and 9, known as the commonwealth documents law cdl. Apa style is a method of citing references developed 80 years ago by the american psychological association and is designed to augment a straightforward, precision approach to academic and professional writing. Some official print state statutory codes are published biennially with annually supplements. Properly formulating state statute citations based on local rules. Citation examples use nonacademic citation format i. Legal researchers will often come across citations to state statutes. The correct form for citation to state code varies, depending on the state. Bluebook citation for legal materials purdue writing lab. In wi, the official code is the wisconsin statutes. State statutes bluebook guide guides at georgetown law.
It is permissible to use either an official or popular name. How to cite state codes or statutes in apa style pen and. State statutes bluebook guide guides at georgetown law library. Citing a state statute follows the same format used to cite a federal statute. Citing statutes bluebook guide guides at georgetown. Wa state constitution blue book citation top law schools. Where the bluepages and local court rules are silent regarding the.
In states where a citation variant appears against a different background there is a distinct statute citation format used within the jurisdiction by state courts and those submitting memoranda or briefs to them. Do not include an initial the as part of the statute name. There is a statutory code containing federal statutes enacted by congress and a statutory code for each states statutes enacted by the state legislature. Note that per bluebook rules, the code cited should be in small caps. If there is an intervening citation statute x case y or statute y statute x if the previous citation was to a statute from different title or chapter 17 u. Citing statutes bluebook legal citations research guides at. The intext citation for a state statute gives the name of the act and the year.
Uniform maine citations university of maine school of law. Note that heinonline has digital copies of historical s tate statutes. Statutes are published in books called codes, which present laws for a particular jurisdiction arranged by subject. A short primer on bluebook citation formats for federal and state cases and statutes, as well as books, journals, and other secondary sources. However, state codes a code is a subject arrangement of the laws for that state differ. The house of representatives contains 70 members, while the senate contains 42 members. Citing legislative related materials according to the bluebook, nineteenth edition statutes rule 12 1.
Citus legalus is an automated bluebook citation generator for lazy law students. Revised civil statutes of texas 1879, 1895, 1911, and 1925 texas code of criminal procedurepenal code 1856, 1879, 1895, 1911, and 1925 texas administrative code west. It contains regulations and other documents filed with the legislative reference bureau under the act of july 31, 1968 p. Bluebook rule 12 covers how statutes should be cited in legal documents. In this case, the statute can be found in title 30, chapter 3, section 5 of the utah code annotated. Many codes are published in two editions the official edition and an annotated edition with notes about related cases and articles. Like federal laws, state laws are available in three basic formats. Dates vary by state, and reach back as far as 1775 for original colony states. In general, the bluebook requires that you cite to the current official statutory code when you cite a statute currently in force. Codes contain the statutes currently in force in a jurisdiction and are arranged topically. Chapter 12 citation of kentucky legal materials kurt x. In states where a citation variant appears against a different background there is a distinct. Rule 12 explains situations in which you would cite other sources, including unofficial codes. The bluebook provides details on state statutes in table 1.
The following examples are specific to the general statutes of connecticut. Like federal statutes, state statutes may be published in both an official code and an unofficial code, and the bluebook. Here the law was passed by the legislature in 20, it is published in bound books called laws of new mexico, and can be found in chapter 31, section 1. This page will give you a basic overview on citing statutes using bluebook format. Smallcaps rule 11 lays out the citation method for constitutional sections. Subsequent history see history of cases, history of statutes successive citations, short forms, r4 superseded by statute, in case history, r10. Statutes bluebook citations libguides at william s. When citing to one of the unofficial annotated codes you need to indicate which set you used by identifying the publisher at the end of the cite. If possible, cite to the official code andor its supplement.
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