List of all most popular abbreviated plaintiff terms defined. Citing cases bluebook guide guides at georgetown law. A reporter is a collection of cases bound together in a book. 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.
If there is more than one plaintiff or defendant, use only the first party on each side. These tables give the various abbreviations for the u. The regional reporters are multivolume sets published by west. In some cases, it indicates that a word should not be abbreviated. Any word over eight letters may also be abbreviated if substantial space is saved and the result is clear. In the trial court, the first name listed is the plaintiff, the party bringing the. Having a common set of abbreviations is very important because it allows everyone reading a legal document to understand what is being presented in writing without having to spell out terms that are frequently utilized. The light abbreviation system is used for case names appearing in the grammatical part of textual sentences and in complete sentences in footnotes. Defendant, but there are exceptions, such as in re menna meaning in regards to mennas case or mennas petition.
The case name occurs at the beginning of the citation. Below is a basic list of very common abbreviations. Bluebook rule 10 covers how cases should be cited in legal documents. The precise format of a case citation depends on a number of factors, including the jurisdiction, court, and type of case. The first named plaintiff or petitioner and the first named defendant or respondent are listed as the case name. This is a proposed citation style to adapt the bluebook to the unique needs of wikipedia. There are too many rules for this introductory guide to cover. Abbreviations may also be found for common words or legal phrases. This table gives suggested abbreviations for citations of court documents and legal memoranda not in the other forms. Name of the case underlined or italicized and abbreviated according to rule 10. Such citations and abbreviations are found in court decisions, statutes, regulations, journal articles, books, and other documents. Short forms for cases bluebook guide guides at georgetown. It is a composite of those contained in the bluebook and the alwd guide to. Legal citation presented by elisabeth mckechnie mabie law library in common use in the u.
Sep 06, 2019 for california statutes, csm skips the cal. Jul 19, 2019 the precise format of a case citation depends on a number of factors, including the jurisdiction, court, and type of case. Check the bluebook for common abbreviations common abbreviations. Legal abbreviations are commonly found in anything from a book to court documents. A b c d e f gh i jk l m n o p qr s t u vwxyz show all. The style manual is intended to assist all justices, judges, law clerks, and support staff. Citing to the record in briefs marquette university law. Legal abbreviations are shorthand notations that represent larger legal terms and law terms. However, the following are rules and examples for other types of legal documents that many firstyear law students may need to cite in addition to cases and statutes. Abbreviations should be followed by a period unless the last letter of the abbreviation is set off by an apostrophe.
In the bluebook, all abbreviations are listed in the tables, which begin on page 233. California style manual csm basics bluebooking and legal. I recently had a disagreement with a coworker about the use of punctuation preceeding record citations in a compound sentence with compound citations as in your jones lived in chicago example above. How to cite a complaint according to bluebook pen and.
Citations are to the 20th edition of the bluebook, a uniform system of citation. Nov 19, 2010 blue book citation for depositions study tips, dealing with stress, maintaining a social life, financial aid, internships, bar exam, careers in law. A uniform system of citation and interactive citation workbook for alwd guide to legal citation new york debbie lanin law clerk to the honorable arlene r. Court document abbreviations table 8 of 17th edition this table gives suggested abbreviations for citations of court documents and legal memoranda not in the other forms of legal writing for the words most commonly found in the titles of court documents. Words in case names basic legal citation cornell university. Any information about state and court that is clear from the reporter name should be deleted from the parenthetica l. Blue book citation for depositions top law schools. Plaintiff, defendant, appellant, appellee, guardian, etc. Browse the list of 4 plaintiff acronyms and abbreviations with their meanings and definitions.
The bluebook contains rules that prescribe how to cite a variety of legal documents. Case name abbreviations table 6 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z. They include the atlantic, pacific, north eastern, south eastern, southern, north western, and south western reporters. Citing cases bluebook guide guides at georgetown law library. Interpreting citations supreme court of the united states research.
The page number of the volume on which the case first appears is next. While legal abbreviations will save you time and money, make sure to use the original term within all professional documents. Apr 24, 2012 hello, thank you for this helpful blog giving further clarification on the bluebook. The volume for a reporter is given first, then the abbreviation of the title.
Because publishers adopt different practices regarding how abbreviations are printed, one may find abbreviations with or without periods for each letter. In the appellate courts, the first name is the appellant the party bringing the appeal, and the name of the appellee is after the v. There are a different kinds of party names, and the type of name will determine format. California style manual for many years, the california style manual has served as the official guide for styling citations to legal materials in documents filed with state courts in california. Oct, 2017 the case name occurs at the beginning of the citation. Jun 25, 2017 often the only source you have to cite for a state court case is a regional reporter. The guidelines contained in the manual of style for the connecticut courts have been drafted by the office of the reporter of judicial decisions in accordance with the preferences of the justices of the supreme court and the judges of the appellate court. Bluebook is a citation style guide used for legal citations. The bluebooks rules for court documents are particularly annoying because theyre clunky and do litigants no favors. Set out below is a table of words and their abbreviations with links to examples. If you are writing a brief or memo, look at the blue pages, rule b10 or apply the citation rules of the jurisdiction.
The bluebook has two different systems for abbreviating. It is common practice in legal documents to cite other publications by using standard abbreviations for the title of each source. The following information regarding the bluebook citation format is an adapted version of the style and formatting guidelines found in the bluebook, 20th ed. Citation machine helps students and professionals properly credit the information that they use.
Sep 14, 2009 proper way to cite to complaint if attached as exhibit post by blong43 sun nov 04, 2012 7. Bluebook requires a citation to include the name of the document with bluebookapproved abbreviations, along with the page number, date if necessary, and the docket number. Basics full name of document amended complaint and demand for jury trial at 24, rubio v. I hope you will enjoy baby blues manual of legal citation and that you will join me in extending my congratulations to professor sprigman and his students on the excellent job they have performed in recoding those rules. Court documents bluebook citations libguides at william s.
However, the basic format of a case citation is as follows. Abbreviations longer than a single letter, such as supp. The bluebook is the most commonly used system for legal citations in the united states, especially for legal scholarship, but also with modifications by local rules in judicial opinions and party briefs. This page provides bluebook a uniform system of citation, 19th ed. In your research you can use whichever set is most convenient for you. Bluebook citation for legal materials purdue writing lab.
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