Citing legal sources accurately is crucial for legal writing and research. The Bluebook citation format is the standard reference guide used in legal documents and law reviews. This guide will provide you with practical examples of how to cite a law review article in Bluebook format, ensuring clarity and precision in your legal references.
In legal research, you might encounter articles authored by a single individual. This format is commonly used for scholarly discussions on legal theories or case law.
For instance, consider an article by John D. Smith titled “The Impact of Social Media on Privacy Law,” published in the Harvard Law Review in 2022. Here’s how you would cite it:
Smith, John D. The Impact of Social Media on Privacy Law. 135 Harv. L. Rev. 1234 (2022).
This citation includes the author’s name, the title of the article in italics, the volume number, the abbreviated name of the law review, the page number where the article begins, and the year of publication.
Notes: When citing a single-author article, always ensure to place the author’s last name first followed by their first name to maintain the correct format.
When citing articles co-authored by multiple individuals, the Bluebook format slightly changes to accommodate all authors. This is common in collaborative legal analyses or interdisciplinary studies.
Suppose you have an article authored by Jane A. Doe and Richard B. Roe titled “Innovations in Intellectual Property Law,” published in the Yale Law Journal in 2021. The citation would look like this:
Doe, Jane A. & Roe, Richard B. Innovations in Intellectual Property Law. 130 Yale L.J. 456 (2021).
In this case, both authors are listed, with an ampersand (&) between their names. It’s important to use the full names of the authors as they appear in the publication.
Notes: If there are more than two authors, list the first author’s name followed by ‘et al.’ in your citation. For example, for three authors, it would appear as Smith, John D., et al.
Citing articles with subtitles requires particular attention to punctuation and formatting. Subtitles often provide additional context to the article’s main title and should be included properly.
Consider an article titled “Understanding the Fourth Amendment: A Comprehensive Analysis of Search and Seizure Law” by Emily R. Green published in the Stanford Law Review in 2023. The citation would be:
Green, Emily R. Understanding the Fourth Amendment: A Comprehensive Analysis of Search and Seizure Law. 175 Stan. L. Rev. 789 (2023).
Here, the subtitle follows the main title, separated by a colon, and is not italicized while the main title is italicized. This format helps maintain clarity in the citation.
Notes: Always ensure that both the title and subtitle are accurately reflected in your citation to give proper credit to the author’s work.