How to Cite Legal Documents in Chicago Style

Citing Legal Documents in Chicago Style

Understanding how to properly cite legal documents in Chicago style is essential for clarity and credibility in academic writing.

Chicago Style Citation Systems

  • Chicago style has two main citation systems:
    • Notes and bibliography
    • Author-date
  • For legal documents, the notes and bibliography system is the most common, especially in academic writing outside of law journals.
  • Citations usually appear as footnotes or endnotes.
  • Sometimes, citation sentences are used within the text itself.

Elements of a Legal Document Citation

Court Cases

  • Key elements:

    • Case name
    • Volume number
    • Reporter abbreviation
    • Page number
    • Court abbreviation
    • Year

  • Example:

    United States v. Christmas, 222 F.3d 141, 145 (4th Circuit 2000).

  • Write the full name the first time; shorten it in later references.

Laws

  • Key elements:

    • Country
    • Institution that passed the law
    • Title of the law
    • Type of law
    • Law number
    • Date adopted
    • Relevant article or section number

  • Example:

    United States Congress, Civil Rights Act of 1964, Public Law No. 88-352, 78 Stat. 241 (1964).

Consistency

  • Maintain the same format throughout your work.
  • For a general academic audience, include a footnote or endnote for each legal citation.
  • When writing for a law journal, you may opt for citation sentences instead of footnotes; a bibliography is usually not necessary.

Specialized Terms

  • Reporter: A publication that collects court decisions or laws. Examples:
    • United States Reports (for Supreme Court cases)
    • United States Statutes at Large (for federal laws)
  • Citation sentence: A sentence within the text that provides the full legal citation, mainly used in legal writing.
  • Short form: A brief reference to a previously cited case or law used in subsequent citations.

Examples

  • First citation of a court case:

    United States v. Christmas, 222 F.3d 141, 145 (4th Circuit 2000).

  • First citation of a law:

    United States Congress, Civil Rights Act of 1964, Public Law No. 88-352, 78 Stat. 241 (1964).

  • Subsequent citations:

    Christmas, 222 F.3d at 145.

Additional Guidelines

  • Check if your assignment or publication requires Chicago style or a legal citation guide like The Bluebook.
  • Use footnotes or endnotes for legal citations in most academic writing.
  • For laws, include all relevant details: country, institution, title, type, number, date, and section if needed.
  • For court cases, include the full case name, reporter, page, court, and year.