The purposes of Legal Citations are:
- Show the reader where to find the cited material in the original case, statute, rule, article, or other authority.
- Indicate the weight and persuasiveness of each authority, for example, by specifying the court that decided the case, the author of a document, and the publication date of the authority.
- Convey the type and degree of support the authority offers, for example, by indicating whether the authority supports your point directly or only implicitly.
- Demonstrate that the analysis in your document is the result of careful research.
There are two major legal citation formats.
- The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation
- ALWD Citation Manual
See the Bluebook and ALWD tab for more detailed information.
NOTE: If you can't get to the library for the Bluebook and just need quick information on how to cite legal documents, check out the sites below.
