How do you cite statutory authority?
Andrew Mclaughlin
Published Apr 10, 2026
Therefore, the proper citation format is:
- The title number.
- The abbreviation of the code used (here, U.S.C.A. or U.S.C.S.)
- The section symbol (§) followed by a space and the section number containing the statute.
- The name of the publisher (West or LexisNexis)
- The year of the code.
How do you find the preamble to regulations?
To find this information, you will want to flip back to the beginning of the final rule and find a section called the “preamble” (fair warning, for very long rules, the preamble can be located a hundred or more pages before the page on which your provision appears).
How do I find CFR?
You can read the full text of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) on the web, find them in libraries, or purchase them from the Government Printing Office (GPO). The full text of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) are on GPO’s website.
What is the statutory citation?
What’s in a Statutory Citation? Session laws are the chronological compilation of laws enacted in a legislative session. A code citation usually ends with the date of publication of the code volume or pocket part you found it in or the latest update date of the database you used to find it.
What is authority citation?
Citation of Authorities is the practice of reading, or production of or reference to, legal authorities and precedents in a proceeding before a court. Citations can be made from constitutions, statutes, reported cases, and treatises. Citation of authorities assists courts in decision making.
How do you read a CFR citation?
Citations to the Code of Federal Regulations in the Federal Register are cited with the title number, the abbreviation CFR, the word “part” or the symbol “§” for section, and the number of the part or section, as in “12 CFR part 220” or “12 CFR §220.1.” The Bluebook citation method is similar to the above, but it …
What do you use to find a former version of a regulation?
Finding Past Versions of a Regulation Researching a prior version of a CCR section is done through the use of the California Code of Regulations Supplement (previously known as the California Regulatory Code Supplement, but commonly referred to as the “Register” or “CCR Supplement”).
Where can I find old versions of CFR?
HeinOnline
HeinOnline is the most comprehensive source to find older versions of the CFR.
How do you read CFR citations?
Which citation is considered to be a statutory citation?
A citation to a federal statute in one of the unofficial codes is essentially the same as a citation to the United States Code with the addition of the publisher (Rule 12.3. 1(d)) and Table 1). Under the rule, authors should cover these following elements respectively: Title number, U.S.C.A. or U.S.C.S.
How do you read a statutory citation?
A federal statutory citation generally contains the following elements:
- the title or chapter number of the code.
- the abbreviated name of the code.
- the section or part number of the title or chapter; and.
- the year of the code.
What is a pinpoint citation?
A pinpoint citation, often called a pincite, is necessary to point the reader to specific the page(s) within the case. Pincites are placed after the page on which the case begins, separated by a comma and a space. A pincite may consist of a page range or multiple pages that are not consecutive.
What’s the difference between USC and CFR?
Short version: USC = the laws passed by congress CFR = the interpretation of the USC by the relevant departments. Often includes more information about the implementation of the laws. Here you go all the laws of the land. And not technically, the collection of every federal law in the land is called Statutes at Large.
What is a citation in legal terms?
A citation (or cite) in legal terminology is a reference to a specific legal source, such as a constitution, a statute, a reported case, a treatise, or a law review article. A standard citation includes first the volume number, then the title of the source, (usually abbreviated) and lastly, a page or section number.
How do you reference a section and subsection?
If you are specifying a paragraph or subsection as part of a section, use just the abbreviation for the section. For example, paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of section 15 of the Human Rights Act 1998 is expressed as: Human Rights Act 1998, s 15(1)(b).
Which is the correct way to cite a statute?
In addition to Rule 12, you will need to consult Table 1 in order to format a citation to a statute. Table 1 provides a list of statutory codes and abbreviations for federal statutes and state statutes as well as the preferred statutory code to cite for federal statutes and each state’s statutes.
Where can I find a statutory citation for Texas?
Upon finding the appropriate jurisdiction, consult the ‘statutory compilations’ section. Most will provide the proper citation for both official and unofficial codes, and which to use first . Some larger jurisdictions, like Texas, employ subject-matter codes, e.g. Tex. Agric. Code Ann. § 190 (Vernon 2006).
How to cite a statute in the Bluebook?
You should review the rest of this section on citing statutes (and the relevant rules in The Bluebook) before trying to format a statutory citation for the first time. However, the basic format of a statutory citation is as follows: Rule 12 (and Rule B12 in the Bluepages) governs how to cite statutes.
Where can I find list of statutory codes?
Table 1 provides a list of statutory codes and abbreviations for federal statutes and state statutes as well as the preferred statutory code to cite for federal statutes and each state’s statutes.