Bluebook Citation Guide with Examples
The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation is the standard legal citation guide in the United States, used by law schools, law reviews and many courts. This guide covers the citations students need most, with worked examples you can follow.
Updated 21 October 2026 · EssayWriting.com editorial team
- The Bluebook is the standard legal citation system in the United States.
- Bluepages cover practitioner documents; whitepages cover law review typeface conventions.
- A case citation gives the case name, volume, reporter, first page, pinpoint and year.
Edition note: the 21st edition was published in 2020 and a 22nd edition in 2025. Check which edition your school, journal or court requires, and confirm local court rules, which can override the Bluebook.
How Bluebook citations work
Unlike APA or MLA, legal writing cites sources in the text or in footnotes, not with a reference list at the end. Each citation points the reader to an exact location (a "pinpoint" page). The Bluebook has two sets of typeface conventions:
| Bluepages (practitioners) | Whitepages (law reviews) | |
|---|---|---|
| Used for | Court documents, memos, legal writing classes | Academic law journal footnotes |
| Typeface | Italics or underlining for case names and certain titles | Large and small capitals for some sources (books, periodicals), italics in specific places |
| Location | Citations in text sentences or clauses | Mostly footnotes |
Most first-year legal writing courses teach the Bluepages format, which is what the examples below use.
Citing cases
A full case citation has: case name, reporter volume, reporter abbreviation, first page, pinpoint page, and a parenthetical with the court (if not obvious from the reporter) and year.
U.S. Supreme Court: Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483, 495 (1954).
Federal court of appeals: Party A v. Party B, 123 F.4th 456, 460 (9th Cir. 2024).
Federal district court: Party A v. Party B, 123 F. Supp. 3d 456, 459 (S.D.N.Y. 2020).
Only the Brown citation is a real case. The others show the pattern with made-up names and numbers.
Abbreviate words in case names according to the Bluebook's tables when the citation appears in a citation sentence, but not when the case name is part of your textual sentence.
Citing statutes and constitutions
Federal statute (U.S. Code): 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (2018).
U.S. Constitution: U.S. Const. amend. XIV, § 1.
State statute: follow the format for that state in the Bluebook tables.
The year in a statute citation refers to the edition of the code, not the year the law was passed. Constitutions in force are cited without a date.
Citing secondary sources
Law review article: Jane Author, Title of Article, 98 Example L. Rev. 101, 115 (2023).
Book: Jane Author, Title of Book 45 (2d ed. 2021).
Website: Author or Organisation, Title of Page, Website Name (Month Day, Year), URL.
Article and book entries are illustrative examples.
Short forms, id. and supra
After the first full citation, use a short form:
- Short case form: Brown, 347 U.S. at 494.
- Id. refers to the immediately preceding authority: Id. at 495. Use it only when the previous citation is to exactly one source.
- Supra is used for secondary sources previously cited, not for cases or statutes.
Introductory signals
| Signal | Meaning |
|---|---|
| (no signal) | The source directly states the proposition or is quoted |
| See | The source clearly supports the proposition but does not state it directly |
| See also | Additional support |
| Cf. | Supports by analogy |
| But see | The source clearly supports a contrary position |
| See generally | Helpful background material |
Worked example: citations in a short memo paragraph
Segregated public schools violate the Equal Protection Clause. Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483, 495 (1954); see U.S. Const. amend. XIV, § 1. The Court reasoned that separate facilities are "inherently unequal." Brown, 347 U.S. at 495. Id.
Notice how the first reference is full, the second uses the short form with "at", and id. repeats the immediately preceding source.
Common Bluebook mistakes
- Forgetting the pinpoint page.
- Using id. when the preceding citation contained more than one source.
- Using supra for cases.
- Leaving out the court in the parenthetical when the reporter does not identify it.
- Mixing Bluepages and whitepages typeface in one document.
Related
Citing cases in textual sentences vs citation sentences
When a case name is part of your own sentence, write it in full and do not abbreviate words like "Board" or "Education": In Brown v. Board of Education, the Court held... When the citation stands alone as a citation sentence after your proposition, abbreviate words in the case name using the Bluebook's abbreviation table (for example "Education" becomes "Educ." and "Board" becomes "Bd.").
Parentheticals that explain
An explanatory parenthetical tells the reader why a source matters, using a present participle: See Party A v. Party B, 123 F.4th 456, 460 (9th Cir. 2024) (holding that ...). Use them when the relevance of a "see" citation would not be obvious.
Subsequent history
If a case was later affirmed, reversed or otherwise acted on by a higher court, the full citation may need to include that subsequent history, for example aff'd or rev'd, followed by the later citation. Check the Bluebook rules on which history must be shown.
Bluebook checklist for a legal writing assignment
- Every proposition from a source has a citation with a pinpoint.
- First references are full citations; later ones use correct short forms.
- Id. is used only for the immediately preceding single authority.
- Signals are italicised (in Bluepages) and chosen accurately.
- Court and year parentheticals are complete.
- Case names are abbreviated in citation sentences but not in textual sentences.
- Your instructor's or court's local rules have been checked.
Quick answers to common questions
Do law students use footnotes?
Law review articles use footnotes; legal memos and briefs usually put citations in the text.
Frequently asked questions
What is Bluebook citation?
The Bluebook is the most widely used legal citation system in the United States, covering cases, statutes, constitutions and secondary sources.
What is the difference between Bluepages and whitepages?
Bluepages give conventions for practitioners and court documents; whitepages give the typeface conventions for law review footnotes.
How do I cite a Supreme Court case in Bluebook?
Case name in italics, volume, U.S., first page, pinpoint page, and year: Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483, 495 (1954).
When do I use id. in Bluebook?
Use id. to refer to the immediately preceding authority when that citation contained only one source.
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