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Bluebook Legal Citation System Guide

Getting started, six steps to creating a citation, bluebook navigation, bluebook troubleshooting, beyond the bluebook, citing & bluebooking faqs, getting help, what is the bluebook.

The Bluebook is a guide to a system of legal citation frequently used by law schools and law journals. This guide will introduce you to how to use the Bluebook. 

Print copies of the Bluebook are available in the Library in Reference and on Reserve at circulation. Copies can also be purchased in print or online at https://www.legalbluebook.com/ .

References to page numbers in this guide are from the 21st edition.

Before You Start

• There are other citation formats.
• Pick the correct one for your project.
• There are gaps in the Bluebook, particularly for non-traditional and non-U.S. sources.
• Use the closest analogous rule.
• Make sure that you are citing the same source or types of sources in the same way. 
• Keep in mind that the main goal for all citation systems is to make it easy for your reader to find the source you are citing. 

Six Steps to Your Citation

To create a Bluebook citation follow this six step process:

1. Identify the Type of Source

What  type of source do you want to cite?

• The Bluebook rules are organized by source type
• Common types include cases, statutes, books and book chapters,  journal articles, web pages, etc.

2. Find the Bluebook Rule

Go to the  Bluebook rule  for that source type. 

• Check the Quick Guides on the inside cover to identify major source types
• Use the index to find rules for other types of sources not included in the Quick Guides
• If you found a traditionally printed source online, review both the rules for the print source and the rules for online sources
• The print and online rules are often used together

3. Read the Rule & Examples

• Read the rule carefully
• Study any examples provided closely
• Examples are provided inside the front cover, at the beginning of each rule, and within the text of the rules
• Note which components are required to create a citation for a specific type of source

4. Gather the Citation Components

• Gather the required components of the citation from your source

5. Draft a Citation

• Draft a citation that looks like the most relevant example
• Do your best, but don't worry if your first draft isn't perfect

6. Edit the Citation

• Edit your draft citation using the Bluebook's style rules and tables
• Note typeface and punctuation conventions for different types of sources
• Note the rules for abbreviations and use the tables to abbreviate your citation

The Six-Step Process in Action

To see an example of how this process works with an article from the NY Times website, check out the powerpoint below.

• PowerPoint Slides: Six-Step Citation Creation Process

Organization & Blue and White Pages

The Bluebook is organized into sections:

• Style Rules
• Primary Law
• Secondary Law
• Internet & Electronic Sources
• Foreign & International Materials
• Tables: Jurisdictions & Abbreviations

Use the Bluepages   when drafting citations that will appear in documents like legal memoranda and court filings. 

Use the Whitepages  when drafting citations that will appear in legal academic publications.

Quick Guides

The Quick Reference inside front and back covers of the print include rule cross references and sample citations for common citation types:

• Inside Front: Quick Reference: Citations in Law Review Footnotes
• Inside Back: Quick Reference: Citations in Court Documents & Legal Memoranda

There is also a Quick Style Guide online for common citation types used in law reviews:

• Online: Quick Style Guide for Citations in Law Review Footnotes

Finding Aids

Consult the following to find the appropriate rule or table for your citation

• Back cover compact table of contents
• Full table of contents (pp. IX-XVI)
• Index (pp. 329-365)

Solving Citation Problems

The Bluebook isn't always clear.  Try the following if you're having difficulty with a citation:

• Make sure you have the correct rule for your type of resource
• If your type of resource isn't specifically included, find the one that is most similar
• If you are citing material for a country that isn't in the Bluebook, find a country with a similar legal system to base your citation on
• Search recent articles in law reviews on Hein, Westlaw and Lexis. Has anyone else cited this material?
• Check the resources linked in Beyond the Bluebook 
• Be consistent with the citation format you pick
• Make sure to include enough information for a reader to follow in your footsteps.

Library Help

We are not Bluebook experts, but we're happy to help guide you through the Bluebooking process.

• Provide access to Library copies of the Bluebook
• Assist you as you navigate Bluebook rules
• Help you locate supplemental citation guides and self-help materials

We cannot check footnotes for you, proofread your paper or provide authoritative Bluebook interpretations. 

Bluebook Orders, Comments & Corrections

• The Harvard Law School Library is not affiliated directly with  The Bluebook or the Harvard Law Review Association
• The Bluebook is compiled by the editors of the Columbia Law Review , the Harvard Law Review, the University of Pennsylvania Law Review , and the Yale Law Journal  and is published and distributed by the Harvard Law Review Association

Please contact the editors of The Bluebook directly ( https://www.legalbluebook.com/ ) with orders, questions, comments or corrections. 

Additional Bluebook Help

• Bluebook Guide (Georgetown Law Library)
• Foreign Law by Jurisdiction: Citation (NYU Law) List of citation guides and abbreviation dictionaries for foreign and international law sources.
• Cornell LII: Introduction to Basic Legal Citation

Over It? Here Are Some Other Options...

• ALWD Guide to Legal Citation The ALWD (Association of Legal Writing Directors) Guide to Legal Citation explains legal citation formats for all types of legal documents in a clear, pedagogically sound manner. The Guide’s plain language, numerous examples, and clear, integrated structure to explaining the legal system of citation for legal materials is easy for students, professors, practitioners, and judges to understand and use.
• The Indigo Book The Indigo Book is a free, Creative Commons-dedicated implementation of The Bluebook’s Uniform System of Citation. The Indigo Book was compiled by a team of students at the New York University School of Law, working under the direction of Professor Christopher Jon Sprigman.
• OSCOLA: Oxford University Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities The Oxford University Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities is designed to facilitate accurate citation of authorities, legislation, and other legal materials. It is widely used in law schools and by journal and book publishers in the UK and beyond.

All Citation/Bluebook FAQs

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• Last Updated: Dec 14, 2023 3:52 PM
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Bluebook 101

Introduction, quick style guide, slideshows & worksheets on selected topics, other guides.

• Bluebook Videos
• Bluebook Formats
• Basic Layout
• Major Changes in the 21st Edition
• Washington Practitioners
• Books and Other Resources to Help with the Bluebook
• Online Citation Generators
• Advanced Bluebooking
• Citing Foreign Law
• Citing Generative AI
• Example Citations
• Bluebooking Office Hours

The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation  is the commonly used system of legal citation in the United States. Students and lawyers are often expected to abide by its edicts but find it challenging because it is so densely packed with rules. This guide was developed to try to break down some of this density and help you try to make sense of it all. 

The producers of The Bluebook offer a Quick Style Guide with examples of many common citation types (cases, statutes, books, etc.). Registration is free. (You'll be invited to purchase a subscription to The Bluebook Online.)

• Summer 2020 21st Edition Major Changes Video covering all of the major changes to the 21st edition of the Bluebook, which was released in the summer of 2020.
• Case Names Worksheet
• Introduction to the Bluebook Walks through Bluebook's organization.
• Introductory Signals Discussion of commonly used signals ( see , cf ., etc.).
• Introductory Signals Worksheet Samples of statements and supporting footnotes from law review articles with the signals removed. You can decide which signals would work for the context.
• Parentheticals Gives published examples of the three styles of parentheticals (present participial phrase, quotation, short statement).
• Reporters & Jurisdictions Worksheet
• Short Forms ( id ., supra , hereinafter)
• Short Forms Worksheet
• Advanced Bluebooking WJLTA
• Worksheet for Using Bluebook Journals as Models
• Bluebook Citation for LL.M. Students Harvard Law Library guide aimed at foreign-trained lawyers. Offers accessible guidance in Q&A format.
• Word Tips for Legal Writers Clio guide with tips on formatting, keyboard shortcuts, and more.
• Citation Styles & Tools [UW Libraries] If you are writing in a field outside law, you might be asked to use another citation style (e.g., MLA, APA). This page will get you started.
• Next: Bluebook Videos >>
• Last Updated: Mar 5, 2024 9:06 AM
• URL: https://lib.law.uw.edu/bluebook101

Bluebook Citation 101 -- Academic Format

• Secondary Sources
• Constitutions, Statutes & Legislative Materials
• Administrative Materials
• Internet Citation
• Commercial Databases
• Citation Help
• Law Student Guide to Identifying & Preventing Plagiarism
• Law Library Useful Links
• Get Help & About the Author

Attribution

If writing a scholarly article, you will need to provide correct attribution to your sources. Failure to do so can result in plagiarism issues!

Citation Manuals

The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation is generally the default legal citation manual. It is compiled by the editors of the Columbia Law Review , the Harvard Law Review , the University of Pennsylvania Law Review , and The Yale Law Journal and began in 1926 . It is now in its 21st edition. Other general legal citation manuals include ALWD , and The Redbook . Additionally, each jurisdiction and court may have its own citation rules. Ohio, for example, has its own writing manual.

Bluebook Organization

• Quick Reference:  Law Review Footnotes
• Blue Pages (these are practitioner oriented)
• General Rules (R. 1 – 9)
• Specific Source Rules (R. 10-21)
• Tables (T. 1-16)
• Quick Reference: Court Documents and Legal Memoranda
• Next: Secondary Sources >>
• Last Updated: Nov 13, 2023 2:51 PM
• URL: https://guides.libraries.uc.edu/bluebooklawrev

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• Law Library

Workshops in the Library Research Series

• Learning to Bluebook
• Spring 2024
• Spring 2023
• Spring 2021
• Advanced Searching Techniques
• Beyond the Big Two: Alternative Legal Research Tools
• 1L Research Refresher Before the Graded Problem

About this Workshop

Watch the videos, follow along with the quiz, additional resources.

• Researching for Your SAW Paper or Law Journal Comment
• Complete Workshop List

This "Learning to Bluebook" workshop will cover important points of Bluebook citations and tips for navigating the rules. Make sure you have access to the current Bluebook (the 21st edition) as you watch the videos!

The online workshop is comprised of a series of brief videos that will guide you through citation exercises in an online quiz.  To participate fully in this asynchronous workshop, please follow the link below to the online quiz and have both the quiz and your Bluebook (online or print) open before you start the video. 

For further reference, selected resources are identified at the bottom of this page.

• Video 1 Intro to the Bluebook
• Video 2 Bluebook Quiz 1-6
• Video 3 Bluebook Quiz 7-12
• Video 4 Bluebook Quiz 13-18

The four videos available here are of different lengths, but together they total one hour of recorded instruction.  

Video #1 provides an introduction to the Bluebook, and Videos #2-4 walk through exercises in the interactive quiz available at the link in the box below.  

This workshop's videos and quiz are intertwined.  The videos walk you through the questions in this quiz, which are designed for you to answer while watching the videos.  You can access the quiz in this embedded window, or in a different window by following this link: 

https://law-ucla.libwizard.com/f/bluebookworkshop

Loyola Law School Los Angeles Library -- Bluebooking and Legal Citation Guide .  This user-friendly and detailed guide provides information on creating Bluebook and California Style Manual citations.

Georgetown Law Library -- Bluebook Guide .  This guide serves as a good introduction to The Bluebook and basic concepts of legal citation.

Introduction to Basic Legal Citation .  Cornell Law Professor Peter W. Martin offers this online guide for basic legal citation.

• << Previous: 1L Research Refresher Before the Graded Problem
• Next: Researching for Your SAW Paper or Law Journal Comment >>
• Last Updated: Mar 18, 2024 2:23 PM
• URL: https://libguides.law.ucla.edu/libraryresearchseries

© The Regents of the University of California. UCLA School of Law. All Rights Reserved.

Pritzker Legal Research Center

Legal citation & organizing research.

• Introduction

Bluepages vs. Whitepages

Tutorials & guides, no relevant examples.

• Other Legal Citation Manuals
• Abbreviations
• Word Tips & Tricks
• Copying References from Databases
• Citation Management Tools
• Organizing Your Research

If you are new to legal citations, The Bluebook can feel overwhelming and intimidating. The resources on this page will help you familiarize yourself with  The Bluebook and understand how to cite legal materials in proper Bluebook format. 

The publisher does not offer an institution-wide subscription to the  online version of The Bluebook , but you may be interested in purchasing it for personal use because it allows you to search The Bluebook by keyword and access it anywhere.

We also have print copies of The Bluebook available for checkout in our Study Aids section (located behind the circulation and reference desks). 

• Noteworthy Changes in the 21st Edition This document summarizes noteworthy changes between the 20th edition (2015) and the 21st edition (2020). The 21st edition was published in July 2020.

The Bluebook is primarily written for academics and practitioners. If you are writing a brief or motion that will be filed with a court, then follow the Bluepages. The Bluepages (located toward the beginning of The Bluebook and literally printed on blue paper) provide guidance on how to include in-text citations. Alternatively, if you are writing a law review article or research paper, then follow the Whitepages. The Whitepages provide guidance on how to use citations in footnotes. The numbering scheme for both the Bluepages and Whitepages correspond with one another ( e.g. , B10 and R10 both address how to cite cases, B16 and R16 both address how to cite periodical materials, etc.). 

The main difference between citations following the Bluepages and citations following the Whitepages is the typeface used. For instance, titles of books and articles are italicized in non-academic citations (Bluepages). In contrast, titles of books use large and small caps but titles of articles in periodicals use italics in academic citations (Whitepages). 

For convenience and easy reference, the front cover of the Bluebook provides examples of commonly used citation forms in law review footnotes while the back cover provides examples of commonly used citations forms in briefs and memoranda. 

The LexisNexis Interactive Citation Workstation is an online tutorial offering many exercises on how to correctly cite to material in Bluebook format. To access this workstation, click on the tiles in the upper left corner of Lexis  and then select "LexisNexis Interactive Citation Workstation."

The following resources are available in print at the law library. 

It is not uncommon for the  The Bluebook to lack a relevant example for how to cite a particular type of source. If you are a member of a journal and are cite-checking an article, first check your journal's internal guide ( e.g. , Purplebook) for guidance. Otherwise, look at the past practices of your journal to see how this source (or a similar source) has been cited in a previous issue. Alternatively, check the practices of other reputable law journals ( e.g. , Harvard Law Review , Columbia Law Review , and The Yale Law Journal ). 

• HeinOnline Law Journal Library Contains more than 2,400 law and law-related periodicals.
• Westlaw Law Reviews & Journals Provides access to over a thousand law reviews and journals. Publications can be "favorited" by clicking on the "Add to Favorites" link on the publication's main page for quick and easy access.
• << Previous: Introduction
• Next: Other Legal Citation Manuals >>
• Last Updated: Dec 2, 2020 2:11 PM
• URL: https://library.law.northwestern.edu/legalcitation

An Introduction to The Bluebook

• Short Citation Forms (Id., Supra, Hereinafter)
• Online Sources
• Books, Treatises, Encyclopedias, Reports

Consecutively Paginated vs. Nonconsecutively Paginated Periodicals

• Foreign and International Materials
• Additional Tutorials and Guides

Rule 16 governs citing to periodical materials. These include continuously published materials such as law reviews and journals, other academic journals, newspapers, magazines, and newsletters. This section has been updated to reflect content in the 21st edition of  The Bluebook .

Note the following:

• Rules 16.1 and 16.3 specify that article titles need to be formatted in italics, but  periodical titles should be formatted using both large and small caps. They must also be abbreviated according to Tables T13 (Institutional Names in Periodical Titles) and T10 (Geographic Terms) . 
• Rule 16.7 covers "Special Citation Forms". This addresses student-written law review articles, book reviews, symposia, commentaries, multipart articles, and more.
• Rule 16.8 discusses how to cite to periodicals available online or in commercial databases. 
• Rule 16.9 contains guidelines for using id. and supra when citing to periodicals.
• Rule 18.2 permits citation to online sources that are exact copies of printed sources.  HeinOnline contains PDFs of the print versions of a vast number of law reviews and journals.

Tip : HeinOnline produces Bluebooked citations for law review & journal articles in their digital collection. When viewing an article in Hein, click on the "Cite" button located above the journal table of contents.

The Bluebook distinguishes between "consecutively paginated" and "nonconsecutively paginated" periodicals:

• Rule 16.4 covers consecutively paginated periodicals, which include most law reviews. These are organized by volume and page numbers continue throughout all issues of the volume. For instance, Vol. 1, Issue 1 contains pages 1-100; Vol. 1, Issue 2 contains pages 101-200; and so forth. 
• Rule 16.5 covers nonconsecutively paginated periodicals, which include many magazines. These have page numbers starting at 1 for each new issue.

Rule 16.6 governs citations to newspapers, which are generally cited like nonconsecutively paginated periodicals (with a few exceptions).

Print news articles may be cited as follows:

Evan Halper,  Push Is On for Universal Voting by Mail , L.A. TIMES, Mar. 20, 2020, at A5.

Rule 16.6(f) governs citations to online newspapers, which may be cited instead of the print versions. Rule 18.2.2 also applies to these citations.

Evan Halper, Coronavirus Threatens the November Election. Can Vote by Mail Save It? ,  L.A. TIMES (Mar. 19, 2020), https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2020-03-19/calls-mount-making-november-mail-in-ballot.

• << Previous: Books, Treatises, Encyclopedias, Reports
• Next: Statutes >>
• Last Updated: May 16, 2024 9:48 AM
• URL: https://libguides.law.ucdavis.edu/bluebookintro

Bluebook Citation Style (20th ed.)

The Bluebook style is generally used for legal documents in the United States and is rare even for us, who work on many papers. It features detailed descriptions of how various documents such as judicial opinions, arbitrations, and other materials should be cited. It also features forms for most other resources, which makes it a fully functional citation style. This guide will help you understand the unique nature of Bluebook and apply it in your legal writing to impress educators.

This guide is developed in line with The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation (the Columbia Law Review Association, the Harvard Law Review Association, the University of Pennsylvania Law Review, and the Yale Law Journal ed., 20th ed. 2015).

• What is Bluebook Citation Style?

Why You Need to Cite Your Sources

• Notes on Citations
• Legal Citation
• Citation for Books, Reports, and Other Non-periodical Materials
• Article Citation
• Citation Websites and Electronic Media
• Citation for Other Sources

Tables and Figures in Bluebook Style

 what is bluebook citation style.

The Bluebook style is exclusively used for legal papers, and so it can be somewhat complicated due to its focus on easy citations of various court documents. The form is a blend between in-text and footnote-based formats, as its citations are located in the text but appear more similar to footnote-based ones. You have to provide the author’s full name, the name of the book, the year of publication, and the page number for the relevant quotation or citation. As such, Bluebook shares some similarities with most other citation styles while closely emulating few to none.

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. Here are some reasons why both of these aspects are critical for your writing and overall career:

• The point of a paper is to show your understanding of the topic and then reach additional conclusions from there. You show this awareness by citing works in the field that support or oppose your findings.
• The sources you use have to warrant the trust of a reader, meaning scholars should generally acknowledge them. Peer review is an essential practice that differentiates high-quality sources from inferior ones.
• When you reference a source, you have to identify what it is and where it may be found in a form that is easy for the reader to understand. Hence, you should adhere to the template lest you commit some mistake that makes the citation unusable.
• Ultimately, if you are caught plagiarizing, whether intentionally or not, you will be severely punished. You may even be expelled or fired from your organization, receiving a bad mark on your record that will severely tarnish it.

General Principles of Bluebook Formatting

• Use any acceptable professional font, such as Times New Roman, Courier New, etc.
• Italics are used in the body of the text for source names and stylistic purposes
•  Citations are designed to help the reader locate a source
• Bluebook citation style is designed for both students and researchers to be used in academic writing (The Whitepages) and practitioners (clerks, lawyers, and other legal professionals) to be used in non-academic legal documents (The Bluepages)
• Citation format of the Whitepages and the Bluepages differs in typeface and elements of citation
• Authors and titles of books, including institutional authors, titles of periodicals are written in Large and Small Caps
• Case names in text are written in Italics while in citations, they are written in normal font
• Case names in text and in citations also differ by the extent to which the case name is abbreviated
• If Whitepages guidelines fail to cover how to format the source, refer to Bluepages rules.
• If no information on citing a particular type of document is available, cite it in accordance with the format of the closest alternative

Notes on Bluebook Citations

•  In law reviews, all citations must be included as footnotes
• The footnote number should appear after the final punctuation of the quotation
• In some procedural documents, citations can be made in a citation sentence or a citation clause
•  Introductory signals, such as e.g., accord, see, see also, Cf., and others are used to indicate the relationship between the citation and the text or other citations.
• If no signal word is used, this means that the information was directly stated or cited by the chosen authority
• Id. and short names are used to refer to sources that were mentioned recently:
•  Same source and page in two or more footnotes: Id.
• Same source in two or more footnotes, different page numbers: Id., page number.
• Same source used within the past 5 citations: Short citation (different for each document type).

Bluebook Footnote Citation

Bluebook legal citation.

S. Pac. Co. v. Jensen, 244 U.S. 205, 225-26 (1917)

When citing legal cases, you need to include the following information (in order):

• First party vs. Second party
• Reporter volume number
• Reporter abbreviation
• First page of the case
• Specific page referred to
• Deciding court
• Date of decision

If a decision has not been reached yet, include as much information as you can in place of the date of decision. For example, if a case was filed but not decided, include the filing date. If the case involves an interim order, whether published or unpublished, include an appropriate mark (order granting preliminary injunction) at the end of the citation in parentheses.

Constitutions

U.S. Const. amend. §1. U.S. Const. art. I, § 9, cl. 2.

When citing constitutions, include the following information (in order):

• Abbreviation of the constitution cited
• Abbreviation for “amendment” (amend.), “article” (art.) or “clause” (cl.)
• Number of the amendment cited
• Section symbol and number
• If the cited provision has been repealed or amended, add amendment date in parentheses or in text

Note: a short form other than id. is not allowed when citing constitutions

National Emergency Management Act, 6 §§ 701-811 (2006)

Short form:

6 U.S.C. § 701

If you need to cite a statute, such as an act, use the following data (in order):

• Official name of the act
• Code title number
• Abbreviation of the code
• Section containing the statute (with section symbols)
• Date of code edition used

Bills and Resolutions

H.R. Res. 3452, 104th Cong. (1996) S. Res. 95, 115th Cong. (2017)

Short forms:

H.R. 3452 S.R. 95

For bills and resolutions, use the following:

• The name of the bill (if applicable)
• The abbreviation of the house
• Bill number
• Congress number
• Section number
• Year of publication

Challenges and Opportunities Facing America’s Schools and Workplaces: Hearing before the H. Comm. on Education and the Workforce, 113th Cong. (2013)

When citing committee hearings, you must include the following information:

• Full subject matter title
• Bill number (if applicable)
• Subcommittee name (if applicable)
• Committee name
• Session number (for State committee hearings)
• Page number (if citing a specific page)

Bluebook Citation for Books, Reports, and Other Non-periodical Materials

As a rule, when citing books, reports, and similar sources, you will need to provide:

• Author’s full name
• Editor(s) and translator(s) names (if applicable)
• Edition number

The following page contains some examples of different sources cited in the Bluebook format.

Note: author name(s) and source titles are given in small and large caps.

Book with one or two authors

Rɪᴄʜᴀʀᴅ J. Lᴀᴢᴀʀᴜs, Tʜᴇ Mᴀᴋɪɴɢ ᴏғ Eɴᴠɪʀᴏɴᴍᴇɴᴛᴀʟ Lᴀᴡ 57 (2004).

Charles Alan Wright & Arthur R. Miller, Federal Practice And Procedure § 1006 (2d ed. 1987).

Book with more than two authors

Kᴀʀᴇɴ Wʜɪᴛᴇ ᴇᴛ ᴀʟ., Tʜᴇ Fᴏʀɢᴏᴛᴛᴇɴ Rᴏᴏᴍ 100 (2016).

Or you may list all authors:

Kᴀʀᴇɴ Wʜɪᴛᴇ, Bᴇᴀᴛʀɪᴢ Wɪʟʟɪᴀᴍs & Lᴀᴜʀᴇɴ Wɪʟʟɪɢ, Tʜᴇ Fᴏʀɢᴏᴛᴛᴇɴ Rᴏᴏᴍ 100 (2016).

Book with editor or translator

Cᴀsᴇs ɪɴ Oɴʟɪɴᴇ Iɴᴛᴇʀᴠɪᴇᴡ Rᴇsᴇᴀʀᴄʜ 30 (Janet Salmons ed., 2011).

Note: do not write editor or translator names in small caps, use a regular font

Book with no author

Lᴀᴡᴍᴇɴ ᴀɴᴅ Oᴜᴛʟᴀᴡs 49-50 (Great Mountain West Supply 1997).

Note: include a publisher in parentheses

Multiple editions of the book

Sᴛᴜᴀʀᴛ Bᴇʟʟ ᴇᴛ ᴀʟ., Eɴᴠɪʀᴏɴᴍᴇɴᴛᴀʟ Lᴀᴡ 187 (8th ed. 2013).

Chapter in an edited book

Sᴛᴜᴀʀᴛ Bᴇʟʟ ᴇᴛ ᴀʟ., International Law and Environmental Protection, in Eɴᴠɪʀᴏɴᴍᴇɴᴛᴀʟ Lᴀᴡ 136 (8th ed. 2013).30.

Bluebook Article Citation

Scholarly journal article

Bernard M. Bass & Paul Steidlmeier, Ethics, Character, and Authentic Transformational Leadership Behavior , 10Lᴇᴀᴅ. Qᴜᴀʀ. 181, 210-212 (1999). Short form: Bass & Steidlmeier, supra note 1 (first note cited), at page number.

For articles published in scholarly journals, include the following:

•  Author’s name
• Article title
• Journal volume number
• Abbreviated journal title
• First page of the article
• Specific page(s) cited

Magazine Articles and Newspapers

Declan Walsh & Eric Schmitt, Arms Sales to Saudis Leave American Fingerprints on Yemen’s Carnage, N.Y. Tɪᴍᴇs, Dec. 25, 2016, at 2. Short form: Walsh & Schmitt , supra note 1 (first note cited), at page number.

For magazine and newspaper articles, provide the information as listed below:

• Author’s name
• Magazine or newspaper title (shortened)
• Date of publication

Bluebook Citation Websites and Electronic Media

The Bluebook citation handbook strongly advises against including electronic sources in the bibliography if they can be cited as a printed source. The following examples are for reference only, and you should still check if a printed version of a source is available before citing it as an electronic source.

Aᴄᴄᴏʀ Hᴏᴛᴇʟs, Cᴏᴍᴍɪᴛᴍᴇɴᴛ, https://www.accorhotels.group/en/commitment (last visited Dec. 26, 2018).

PDF documents (corporate author)

Tʜᴇ Cᴏᴄᴀ-Cᴏʟᴀ Cᴏᴍᴘᴀɴʏ, 2017 Sᴜsᴛᴀɪɴᴀʙɪʟɪᴛʏ Rᴇᴘᴏʀᴛ (2018), https://www.coca-colacompany.com/content/dam/journey/us/en/private/fileassets/pdf/2018/2017-Sustainability-Report-The-Coca-Cola-Company.pdf

PDF document (individual author)

Xiao-Ping Chen, et al., Affective Trust in Chinese Leaders: Linking Paternalistic Leadership to Employee Performance , 40 J. Mᴀɴ. 796, 797 (2014), http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.908.4532&rep=rep1&type=pdf.

Dave Owen, The New WOTUS Proposed Rule and the Myths of Clean Water Act Federalism , Eɴᴠɪʀᴏɴᴍᴇɴᴛᴀʟ Lᴀᴡ Pʀᴏғ. Bʟᴏɢ (Dec. 13, 2018, 1:21 PM), https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/environmental_law/2018/12/the-new-wotus-proposed-rule-and-the-myths-of-clean-water-act-federalism.html.

Bluebook Citation for Other Sources

There are many other types of sources that you might be required to cite in the Bluebook format. Some examples will be included below. Sources that do not match any of the categories in the guide should be cited like the next best alternative included in the guide.

Note: Short forms for these sources should be created using the abbreviations “supra” or “id.”

Student-written law review materials

Abraham Bell & Gideon Parchomovsky, Article, The Case for Imperfect Enforcement of Property Rights , 160 U. Pᴀ. L. Rᴇᴠ. 1927, 1929-1930 (2012).

Proceedings, regular publications by institutes, and ABA section reports

Sarah Zappe et al., Flipping the Classroom to Explore Active Learning in a Large Undergraduate Course , 116 ASEE Aɴɴ. Cᴏɴғ. Exᴘ. Pʀᴏᴄ.284 (2009).

Unpublished and forthcoming sources

Stephen B. Burbank & Tobias Barrington Wolf, Class Actions, Statutes of Limitations and Repose, and Federal Common Law , 167 U. Pᴀ. L. Rᴇᴠ. (forthcoming Dec. 2018)

E-mail correspondence

E-mail from Anna Smith, Dir. of Operations, Organization, to Jayden Smith, Assoc. Prof., Organization (Dec. 25, 2018, 09:55 EST) (on file with author).

Telephone interview with Margaret Wilson, Editor, Organization (Nov. 19, 2016). Interview with Margaret Wilson, Editor, Organization, in City, State (Mar. 24, 1998).

Working papers

Jay P. Greene & Greg Forster, Public High School Graduation and College Readiness Rates in the United States 1 (Ctr. for Civic Innovation, Working Paper No. 3, 2003).

Note: “Ctr. for Civic Innovation” is the name of the sponsoring organization.

Intergovernmental Organizations

Ahmad Reza Hosseinpoor et al., Sᴛᴀᴛᴇ ᴏғ Iɴᴇǫᴜᴀʟɪᴛʏ: Rᴇᴘʀᴏᴅᴜᴄᴛɪᴠᴇ, Mᴀᴛᴇʀɴᴀʟ, Nᴇᴡʙᴏʀɴ ᴀɴᴅ Cʜɪʟᴅ Hᴇᴀʟᴛʜ, Wᴏʀʟᴅ Hᴇᴀʟᴛʜ Oɢᴀɴɪᴢᴀɪᴛɪᴏɴ [WHO] (2015), http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/164590/9789241564908_eng.pdf.

lnt’l Civil Aviation Org. [ICAO], 2012 Annual Report of the Council , ICAO Doc. 10001 (2012), https://www.icao.int/publications/Documents/10001_en.pdf.

The Bluebook citation style is somewhat unique in its laissez-faire approach to the formatting of your paper. It exists to ensure that your citations are accurate and precise and limits itself to that task. As such, you are free to format tables and figures however you see fit. Nevertheless, it is probably best to follow some other styling format, so this guide will provide an example using the Chicago style of formatting (see figure 1).

Figure 1: Glass World.

Source: Environmental Science, Careers in Environmental Science, Nepa Ceqa Manager, https://www.environmentalscience.org/careers (last visited Jul. 19, 2019).

Notably, Bluebook does not require the use of a bibliography, so a single mention of the reference in the text is sufficient. However, it has remarkably strict rules about referencing that you can find in the book that gives its name to the style. As many images and figures will be taken from online sources, you should remember a few basic guidelines. First, the format discourages the use of any strictly online resources. Second, if you are citing an electronic version of a print document, you can mention it as though you were using that print document. However, if that document would be challenging to obtain, you should make it clear that you are using an electronic version in the reference. Lastly, you should think carefully before inserting tables or figures into a legal document, as they usually only contain formatted text.

Reference List

1.    Glass world [image on the Internet] 2018. [cited August 18, 2019]. Available from: https://www.environmentalscience.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/NEPA-CEQA-640×425.jpeg

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The Bluebook contains rules that prescribe how to cite a variety of legal documents. There are too many rules for this introductory guide to cover.  However, the following are rules and examples for other types of legal documents that many first-year law students may need to cite in addition to cases and statutes.

Constitutions

Rule 11 covers how to cite the U.S. Constitution and state constitutions.

A citation to a constitution includes three elements:

• U.S. or the state abbreviation (see Table 10)
• Const. ( The Bluebook 's abbreviation for constitution)
• Section or subdivision 

For example, here is how you would cite the provision of the U.S. Constitution that says that each state shall have two Senators:

U.S. Const. art. I, § 3, cl. 1

Regulations

Rule 14 covers how to cite administrative and executive materials, including U.S. federal regulations. For more information on federal regulations and other types of administrative (i.e., agency) materials, see our Administrative Law Research Guide . 

A citation to a U.S. federal regulation in the  Code of Federal Regulations  (C.F.R.) includes four elements:

• C.F.R. title number
• C.F.R. ( The Bluebook 's abbreviation for the Code of Federal Regulations)
• Section symbol and specific section cited
• Date of code edition cited

For example, here is how you would cite a federal regulation that prescribes rules for pets in National Parks in the United States:

36 C.F.R. § 2.15 (2017)

For state regulations, follow the citation format provided for the state in Table 1.

Books and Reports

Rule 15 covers how to cite books, reports, and other non-periodic materials, such as encyclopedias.

A basic citation to a book includes the following six elements:

• Volume number (for multivolume works)
• Author's full name as it appears on the title page
• Title of the book (italicized or underlined)
• Page, section, or paragraph cited
• Edition (for works with multiple editions)
• Year of publication

For example, here is a citation to a section in a well-known treatise on federal procedure:

9C Charles Alan Wright & Arthur R. Miller, Federal Practice and Procedure  § 2552 (3d ed. 2008)

Citations to books vary based on the features of a particular publication. For example, the format is slightly different if a book has an editor rather than an author (Rule 15.2). Be sure to carefully review the publication and consult Rule 15 in order to cite it correctly. Additionally, the typeface used for books is different in academic writing. Rather than underlining the title, use small caps (Rule 15).

Tip : Rule 15.8 provides citation formats for several publications commonly used by first-year law students, such as Black's Law Dictionary and legal encyclopedias.

Law Reviews & Other Periodicals

Rule 16 covers how to cite law reviews and journals, newspapers, and other periodic materials.

A citation to a consecutively paginated* journal article includes the following six elements:

• Author's full name as it appears on the article
• Title of the article (underlined or italicized)
• Volume number
• Journal title abbreviation (see Table 13)
• First page of the article
• Date of publication

*A consecutively paginated journal is one in which the page numbers continue throughout a volume as opposed to starting at the number one for each issue.  Most law reviews and academic journals are consecutively paginated.

Here is an example of how to cite an article in the Harvard Journal of Law and Technology:

Dan L. Burk & Julie E. Cohen, Fair Use Infrastructure for Rights Management Systems , 15 Harv. J.L. & Tech. 41 (2001).

For more information on citing law journal articles, watch our  Law Review Citations  tutorial.

Tip : Rule 16.7.6 describes how to cite annotations in American Law Reports (A.L.R.) . 

Online Sources

Rule 18 covers when and how to cite online sources as well as other non-print sources (e.g., films). The rules for specific types of documents often also include a section on how to cite the online version.  For example, Rule 12.5 describes how to cite statutes on Westlaw and Lexis.

Citation formats to online sources are too varied to provide meaningful examples here, so be sure to consult Rule 18 carefully.

Citing to the Record

First-year law students will likely need to cite to depositions, interrogatories, or trial transcripts in the record in order to develop facts for briefs.  As a general rule of thumb, you must cite to the record for every factual assertion you make in a brief.

Bluepages Rule B17 covers how to cite to the record, and the abbreviations that are used in citing to the record are listed in Bluepages Table BT1  (e.g., brief = br.)

The key elements of a citation to the record are as follows:

• Name of the document (abbreviated according to BT1)
• Page number where the fact can be found in the document
• Date of the document, if required (see Rule B17.1.3)

For example, suppose you are asserting as a fact in your brief that a witness, Mr. Dames, saw a blue car speeding through the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue NW and New Jersey Avenue NW in Washington, D.C. The source of this fact is Mr. Dames' deposition testimony.

Your citation for this fact would approximate the following example:

According to Mr. Dames, he was waiting to cross New Jersey Avenue NW outside the Edward Bennett Williams Law Library at approximately 6:15 p.m. on Sept. 3, 2009, when he saw a blue car traveling at approximately 70 miles per hour through the intersection of New Jersey Avenue NW and Massachusetts Avenue NW. Dames Dep. 12, Aug. 7, 2002.

Writing "at" before the page number is generally not required, although it is generally used when citing documents in an appellate record (see Rule B17.1.2).

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Blue Book on AI and the Rule of Law in the World (2022) Research Questionnaire and Analysis

• First Online: 01 June 2024

Cite this chapter

• Cui Yadong 3  

Part of the book series: Artificial Intelligence and the Rule of Law ((AIRL))

In August 2018, President Xi Jinping pointed out in his congratulatory letter to the 2018 World Conference on Artificial Intelligence that “a new generation of AI is flourishing globally, injecting new momentum into economic and social development and profoundly changing people’s production and lifestyle. Grasping this development opportunity and dealing with the new issues raised by AI in law, security, employment, ethics and government governance require deepening cooperation and joint discussion by all countries.” Around how to deal with the new topic of risks and challenges brought by AI, AI rule of law has come into being. It has become a social consensus to build a rule of law system for AI, create an AI rule of law environment, regulate and guarantee the safe, reliable and controllable healthy development of AI. In order to reflect the current situation of AI rule of law development in a more comprehensive, objective and detailed manner, we designed this questionnaire and analysed corresponding results.

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Yadong, C. (2024). Blue Book on AI and the Rule of Law in the World (2022) Research Questionnaire and Analysis. In: Yadong, C. (eds) Blue Book on AI and Rule of Law in the World (2022). Artificial Intelligence and the Rule of Law. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-97-1060-7_11

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Bluebook Legal Citation

• Intro signals: E.g., See, See also, Cf., etc.
• Order of authorities
• Pages, Paragraphs, and Pincites
• Short form: Id., Infra, Supra, Hereinafter
• Typeface conventions
• Constitutions
• Legislative Materials
• Administrative Materials
• Books, Reports, Treatises
• Law Reviews, Magazines, and Newspapers

Periodical Examples

Author rules, title rules, consecutively paginated periodicals, non-consecutively paginated periodicals, short form rules.

• Digital Materials
• The Greenbook
• Other Citation Manuals
• Additional Resources

Consecutively Paginated Periodical Example (including most law journals):

Pamela Samuelson,  Functionality and Expression in Computer Programs: Refining the Tests for Software Copyright Infringement , 31  Berkeley Tech L.J. 1215 (2016).

Non-Consecutively Paginated Periodical Example (including most newspaper and magazines):

Adam Satariano,  Law Bolsters Copyrights in Europe , N.Y. Times , Mar. 27, 2019, at B1.

Bluebook Rule (21st): 16.2

Law Review Typeface: Ordinary

Authors of periodical articles are cited in much the same way as the Bluebook rule for authors of books and treatises, as discussed here in this guide. 

If an article has two authors, list both authors connected by an ampersand in the same order as they are listed in the original source:

Yuval Karniel & Stephen Bates , Copyright in Second Life , 20 Alb. J.L. Sci. & Tech. 433 (2010).

If an article has three or more authors, it is permissible to either give the first author's name followed by " et al. " or list all authors as they appear.

Melissa L. Tatum, et al. , Does Gender Influence Attitudes Toward Copyright in the Filk Community? , 18 Am. U. J. Gender Soc. Pol'y & L. 219 (2009).

Typically, it is only necessary to list all authors when the identity of each author is important.

NOTE: When listing three or more authors, separate each name with a comma except for the final name, which is separated only by an ampersand without a comma.

Melissa L. Tatum, Robert Spoo & Benjamin Pope , Does Gender Influence Attitudes Toward Copyright in the Filk Community? , 18 Am. U. J. Gender Soc. Pol'y & L. 219 (2009).

Bluebook Rule (21st):  16.3

Law Review Typeface: Italics

A periodical article's title should be included in full, just as it appears in the original source, but should be in italics and capitalized according to Bluebook rule 8 .

If a word (such as a case name) is italicized in the title in the original source, this word should appear in ordinary Roman type in the citation.

Kristina N. Spencer, Using Copyright Remedies to Promote Efficiency in the Open Source Regime in Wake of Jaobsen v. Katzer , 6 J.L. Econ. & Pol'y. 63 (2009) .

NOTE: Additional guidance as to which words should appear in ordinary Roman type is found in Bluebook rule 2.2 .

Bluebook Rule (21st):  16.4

The proper Bluebook citation for articles appearing in consecutively paginated journals is author, title,  volume number , abbreviation of the periodical name , first page of the article , and specific pages cited ( if any), and year:

Pamela Samuelson,  Functionality and Expression in Computer Programs: Refining the Tests for Software Copyright Infringement , 31  Berkeley Tech L.J.  1215, 1258–67 (2016).

If a journal does not otherwise indicate the volume number, but does continuous pagination across issues, use the year as the volume number.

Volume numbers should always be given as Arabic numerals even if the original source uses Roman numerals.

Indicate special issues and publications if they do not conform to the consecutively paginated publication schedule.

Note: Issue numbers are never included in Bluebook citations, even if readily indicated in the original source.

Example:  Paul D. Clement,  Theory and Structure in the Executive Branch , 2011  U. Chi. Legal. F. 1.

Journal Name

The name of the journal should be written using small caps type face.

Example:   Tex. L. Rev.

Journal names are always abbreviated according to tables T6 ,  T10 , and T13 .

NOTE : Previous editions of the Bluebook sometimes included multiple abbreviations for the same word, depending on the context. Abbreviations intended for use in case names appeared in table T6 , but a different abbreviation for the same word might appear in table T13  for periodical titles. The 21st edition of the Bluebook has brought these tables into alignment, creating a unified set of abbreviations across T6 , T10 , and T13 , with one abbreviation per word. 

Pages and Pincites In your citation to a journal article, immediately following the name of the journal, you should indicate the page on which the article begins. Immediately after the first page, you should place a comma followed by a pinpoint citation to specific pages after a comma. 

Bluebook Rule (21st):  16.5

The proper bluebook citation for nonconsecutively paginated journals and magazines is:  author , title of work (in italics) , periodical name (in small caps) , date of issue as it is on the cover , the word at , first page of the work . 

Adam Satariano, Law Bolsters Copyrights in Europe , N.Y. Times , Mar. 27, 2019, at B1. 

If there is no author, you should begin the citation with the title.

Bluebook Rule (21st):   16.9

Law Review Typeface: Id . and supra should be in italics.

Use id.  when the work is cited immediately previously, either in the same footnote or as the only authority in a previous footnote.

For  supra , include the author's last name before the  supra . If there is no author, use the title, or use "hereinafter" to establish a short name for the citation. 

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New research upends what we’ve been told about tech before bed

Doomscrolling in bed can ruin a good night of sleep — right?

Maybe not, according to recent research that says tech-before-bed may not be as detrimental to slumber as previously thought.

Researchers suggest that sensitivity to blue light and digital stimulation varies from person to person. For some, screen use might even assist sleep while for others reading an old-fashioned analog book is enough to keep them up.

Shelby Harris, a clinical psychologist specializing in behavioral sleep medicine, said to the Wall Street Journal , “It is becoming more evident that the tech in and of itself isn’t always the problem. We need to figure out how to tailor the recommendations to the person.”

The thinking that blue light equals bad sleep is based heavily upon a 2010 study that suggested the bright light from screens at night  could delay the circadian rhythm .

Yet recent research seems to counter these findings. One study, published in the National Sleep Foundation’s journal, Sleep Health , investigated iPhone use in young adults before bed and found no significant differences in sleep outcomes regardless of whether subjects used a phone with a less-blue display, a normal display or no phone at all.

Several studies have suggested blue light emissions suppress the production of the sleep-promoting hormone, melatonin . But researchers now say these effects are not as extreme as previously believed, amounting to, at most, a 10-minute delay due to screen use .

Unswayed, the folks at the National Sleep Foundation still advise, “Your bed at bedtime should be a screen-free zone.” They suggest turning off the lights on your devices at least an hour before hitting the hay.

While there is no one-size-fits-all all approach to better slumber, it is possible to tailor your habits for optimal sleep. To find what works best for you, experts like Harris recommend a few strategies.

Top among these strategies is setting, and sticking to, a bedtime alarm. Establishing a firm cutoff time for tech is a safeguard against habits like doomscrolling , which can impair memory, information retention and mental health.

Sleep experts also suggest turning off notifications on your phone before you sleep to eliminate disruption or the anticipation of it. This recommendation is echoed by this influencer who says turning her phone to airplane mode at night helps her sleep and has been a true boon to her mental health.

Those who struggle with sleep don’t necessarily have to cut out their screen time entirely but Harris suggests they limit their nighttime intake to passive content that requires no interaction and very little anticipation — a TV show rerun for example.

While the jury is still out on the exact effects of blue light exposure on sleep, regular exposure to sunlight early and throughout the day is proven to regulate circadian sleep cycles.

To get a better hold of your sleep personality, Harris recommends keeping track of your sleep habits with a weekly journal. That means logging your tech use and how you slept that night — and how you felt the morning after.