Research Assistant Resources

There have been several noteworthy changes to The Bluebook for its 20th Edition. Some of the biggest include: 

• Rule 1.4 has been updated to requiring listing authorities in a logical order rather than in a prescribed order.  
• parenthetical use of "hereinafter" and "last visited" has been clarified in Rule 1.5(b)
• Case docket number citation guidance has been clarified in Rule 10.8.1(a).
• Rule 12 has been modified to simplify statutory citation, including removing date requirements, allowing for citation to online sources for official state and municipal statutes whenever available online.
• Rule 18 has been updated to provide guidance on time markers in audio and video.
• Rule 18.8 has been added to provide guidance on citing photographs and illustrations.
• Rule 21 has been updated to reflect the availability of online materials in international law.

For a more detailed list of changes, see the Preface of the 21th Edition.

It's always a good idea to become more proficient in using the Bluebook, but it's even more important when you're working for faculty. Most of our faculty's work must conform to the Bluebook, and you may be asked to check that their citations are properly formatted. Unless the faculty member for which you are working says otherwise, it is also a good practice to make sure that any bibliographies or other lists of sources that you give to the faculty are properly formatted in Bluebook style. This will help when any of these sources need to be cited later.

The following sites contain some helpful information and guides to properly formatting Bluebook-style citations.

1. Tab your Bluebook. 

Tab rules or sources that you use often. 

2. Look up every rule.

There is a rule of almost every little nuance, so even when not in doubt, look it up. 

3. Use the Index. 

The index is your best friend. It's like having a librarian at your side. Most of the sources you will have questions about can be found in the index.  

4. Unable to locate source in Bluebook? 

If you are unable to locate an exampe of how to locate a source in the Bluebook, do a search to see how the source was cited in the Harvard, Columbia, Yale, and UPenn law reviews. Where better to find the answer than from the editors of the Bluebook.  

• Bluepages (p. 3-51) provide an abbreviated introduction to the Bluebook. Start your citation search within this section for practitioner legal writing: court documents and legal memoranda.
• Whitepages (p. 52-214) supplement the Bluepages, and are helpful in areas that the Bluepages may not address. This section is for academic legal writing: journals and law reviews.

RULES

• Rules 1 - 9: Style and Order 
  • Rule 2: Typefaces for Law Reviews provides information on when to use ordinary roman type, underlines, italicized, or Large and Small Capitals in Citations and textual material. 
• Rules 10 - 14: U.S. Primary Sources 
• Rules 15 - 17: Secondary Sources 
• Rule 18: Internet, Electronic Media, and Other Nonprint Resources 
• Rules 20 - 21: Foreign and International Sources 

TABLES

• Tables 1 – 5: Jurisdictional sources
• Tables 6 – 16: Abbreviations
  • Table 10: Abbreviations in case names
  • Table 13: Abbreviations in periodical names
  • Table 16: Subdivision abbreviations

• The Bluepages Tables (BT1 and BT2): (p. 29)
  The Bluepages Tables are the go-to for initial citation formation, and includes abbreviations for words commonly found in court documents and jurisdiction-specific citation rules.
• ​T6 Case Names: (p. 304)  
  This table provides all of the ways the Bluebook wants you to abbreviate case names.  By far the most referenced Bluebook table.
• T7 Court Names: (p. 307)
  Provides abbreviations for court names to be used in citing cases according to Rule 10.4.
• T10 Geographical Terms: (p. 312)
  Gives abbreviations for geographical locations for use in case citations, names of institutional authors, periodical abbreviations, foreign materials, and treaty citations.  
• ​T2 Foreign Jurisdictions: (p. online)
  Provides correct citation and abbreviation for foreign jurisdictions, basic information about the legal system of various countries, and websites for additional information.  
• T13 Periodicals: (p. 312)
  Contains an alphabetical list of abbreviations for select periodicals and individual words commonly found in periodicals.  
• T1 United States Jurisdictions: (p. 227)
  Provides correct citation and abbreviation information for all United States jurisdictions, including federal, state, and territories.

The following list most of the abbreviations you're likely to come across.

Citation software can help organize, store, and format citations in a variety of citation styles, including Bluebook. Some software allows sharing among a group of researchers, which can be helpful for you and your faculty member. The following citation managers all work with Bluebook format.