Basic Legal Citation

Legal CitationLabeling the Parts of a Basic Legal Citation

Learning Objective

By the end of this presentation, you will be able to label the parts of a basic legal citation.

Common Legal Sources

The two most common legal sources that must be cited are judicial opinions and statutes.

Judicial Opinion - Defined

A judicial opinion is the written decision of

a court on a legal controversy.

For example, the photo on the right is the beginning of the

Supreme Court’s decision in the

controversy of District of Columbia v. Heller.

Judicial Opinion - Parts of Citation

There are five parts of a basic legal citation for a judicial opinion:

1. Case name

2. Reporter

3. Volume of the reporter

4. Page of the volume on which the opinion begins

5. Year of the decision

5

Judicial Opinion - Parts of Citation

Let’s define the less obvious terms:

1. Case name

2. Reporter

3. Volume of the reporter

4. Page of the volume on which the opinion begins

5. Year of the decision

Names of the parties, typically “Plaintiff v. Defendant”

Official publication in which the opinion is printed

Judicial Opinion - Parts of Citation

Here is a legal citation for the judicial

opinion we saw earlier:

On the next slide, we will label the parts of

this citation.

District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008)

Judicial Opinion - Parts of Citation

District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008)

Case name (District of Columbia v. Heller)

Volume of the reporter (Volume 554)

Reporter (United States Reports)

Page of the volume on which the opinion begins (Page 570)

Year of the decision (2008)

Judicial Opinion - Parts of Citation

Let’s practice with another legal citation:

Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966)

Case name (Miranda v. Arizona)

Reporter (United States Reports)

Volume of the reporter (Volume 384)

Page of the volume on which the opinion begins (Page 436)

Year of the decision (1966)

Knowledge Check!

Review the following citation and determine:

1. Case name

2. Reporter

3. Volume of the reporter

4. Page of the volume on which the opinion begins

5. Year of the opinion

Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643 (1961)

How Did You Do?

Here are the correct answers:

Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643 (1961)

Case name (Mapp v. Ohio) Reporter (United States Reports)

Volume of the reporter (Volume 367)

Page of the volume on which the opinion begins (Page 643)

Year of the decision (1961)

One More Time!

Review the following citation and determine:

1. Case name

2. Reporter

3. Volume of the reporter

4. Page of the volume on which the opinion begins

5. Year of the opinion

Laflamme v. Laflamme, 144 N.H. 524 (1999)

How Did You Do?

Here are the correct answers:

Laflamme v. Laflamme, 144 N.H. 524 (1999)

Case name (Laflamme v. Laflamme)

Reporter (New Hampshire Reports)

Volume of the reporter (Volume 144)

Page of the volume on which the opinion begins (Page 524)

Year of the decision (1999)

Statute - Defined

A statute is a written law passed by a legislative body.

For example, the photo on the right is the beginning of the

Endangered Species Act, a written law

passed by Congress in 1973.

Statute - Parts of Citation

There are three parts of a basic legal citation for a statute:

1. Code

2. Title of the code

3. Section of the code

Note: Because the parts of a legal citation for state statutes vary by state, we will learn the parts of a legal citation for federal statutes.

Once you learn this, you will have no problem recognizing the state variations.

3

Statute - Parts of Citation

Let’s define the terms:

1. Code

2. Title of the code

3. Section of the codeThe titles are divided

into sections.

The code is divided into titles.

Official compilation of federal statutes

Statute - Parts of Citation

Here is a legal citation for the

Endangered Species Act:

On the next slide, we will label the parts of

this citation.

16 U.S.C. § 1531

Statute - Parts of Citation

Title (Title 16)

Code (United States Code)

16 U.S.C. § 1531

Section (Section 1531)

Statute - Parts of Citation

Let’s practice with a legal citation for the Voting Rights Act:

Code (United States Code)

Title (Title 42) Section (Section 1971)

42 U.S.C. § 1971

Knowledge Check!

Review the following citation for the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) and label the code, title, and section:

42 U.S.C. § 12101

How Did You Do?

Here are the correct answers:

Code (United States Code)

Title (Title 42) Section (Section 12101)

42 U.S.C. § 12101

Recap: Parts of a Basic Legal Citation

Judicial Opinion Statute

• Case name • Code

• Reporter • Title of the code

• Volume of the reporter • Section of the code

• Page of the volume on which the opinion begins

• Year of the opinion

Congratulations! You can now label the parts of a basic legal citation. To recap your learning: