Keith Mack
When writing a law review article, it is essential to correctly cite the sources referenced in your work. The Bluebook contains rules that prescribe how to cite a variety of legal documents, including the U.S. Constitution and state constitutions. This article will provide a step-by-step guide on how to properly cite the Constitution in a law review article, ensuring that your work meets the academic standards and conventions. Whether you are using the MLA, APA, or Chicago style, accurate citations are crucial for the integrity of your article and to avoid plagiarism.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Style | MLA, APA, Chicago, Bluebook, etc. |
| Format | Author(s). (Year of Publication). Title of article: Subtitle of article. Journal Title in Italics, volume number(issue number), page numbers. https://doi.org/10.xxxxxxxxxx |
| Abbreviations | Use "art." for "Article", "amend." for "Amendment", and "sec." for "Section" |
| Numerals | Convert any Roman numerals to Arabic numerals (e.g. "XIV" becomes "14") |
| No Author or Page Numbers | Start with the source title for the Works Cited entry; use a shortened version for the in-text citation |
| No Page Numbers | Use an alternative locator (e.g. chapter number, timestamp) |
| No Numbered Divisions | Only cite the author's name or title |
| Author Already Named | No need for a parenthetical citation |
| Bluebook | Rule 16 covers how to cite law reviews and journals |
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What You'll Learn
Citing the US Constitution in MLA style
The MLA (Modern Language Association) style is commonly used to write papers and cite sources within the liberal arts and humanities. Here is a guide to citing the US Constitution in MLA style.
In-Text Citation
When citing the US Constitution in the body of your text, use article/amendment and section numbers instead of page numbers. For example: ("Constitution of the United States," art. 1, sec. 4). You can use the abbreviations "art." (Article), "amend." (Amendment), and "sec." (Section). Convert any Roman numerals used in the text to Arabic numerals (e.g., "XIV" becomes "14").
When mentioning the Constitution in your paper, you can generally refer to it as the Constitution without using italics or quotation marks.
Works Cited Entry
In your Works Cited list, include information about where you accessed the Constitution. For example, if you accessed an online version, provide the URL:
Constitution of the United States, with Case Summaries. https://www.constitution.gov/constitution-with-case-summaries.
If you are citing a published book version of the Constitution, write the title in italics and list any editors, annotators, or other main contributors:
Constitution of the United States. Edited by John Doe, Publisher, Year.
Note that if you are using a named edition, your in-text citations should help your readers locate the exact entry in the Works Cited list. Additionally, for citations of any constitution, including the US Constitution, specify the country of origin if the title does not indicate it. For example:
Constitution. France, 4 Oct. 1958, www.legifrance.gouv.fr/Droit-francais/Constitution/Constitution-du-4-octobre-1958.
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Citing a book version of the Constitution
The Bluebook contains rules that prescribe how to cite a variety of legal documents. The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation (18th ed., 2005; www.legalbluebook.com) is the go-to reference for the standard format of legal citations.
Rule 11 of the Bluebook lays out the citation method for constitutional sections. You should cite the United States Federal Constitution as "U.S. Const." followed by the article, amendment, section, and/or clause numbers as relevant. The terms article, amendment, section, and clause are abbreviated as "art.," "amend.," "§," and "cl..," respectively. Preamble is abbreviated as "pmbl." Article and amendment numbers are written in Roman numerals (I, II, III), while section and clause numbers are written in Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3). For parts of the Constitution currently in force, a date is not included.
> U.S. Const. art. I, § 3, cl. 1
If you are citing the Constitution of the United States in MLA style, you would include information about where you accessed it in the Works Cited entry. In the in-text citation, use article/amendment and section numbers instead of page numbers. When mentioning the Constitution in your paper, you can simply call it the "Constitution" without italicization or quotation marks. In the parenthetical citation, specify the version cited to match the first words of the Works Cited entry.
The Constitution has been published in book form in various editions. To cite one of these, write the title of the book in italics and list any editors, annotators, or other main contributors to the edition after the title.
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Citing online sources
- Cite the same way you would cite a hard copy print material. If the material posted online is an exact copy of the print version, such as a PDF with page numbers, you can cite it as if it were the print source.
- Combine the print citation with the electronic citation. Any online source that shares the characteristics of the print source (such as a PDF) can be cited according to the Bluebook rule for the print version. Add the URL after the print citation if:
- The print source is obscure or difficult to access, or adding the URL will improve access.
- It is unknown whether the cited information is available in print, and the online source shares print characteristics and can be cited according to a Bluebook rule other than Rule 18.
Cite directly to the electronic version. If an electronic source does not fit the citation format of any other rule, you can cite directly to the electronic material itself.
When citing online sources, it is important to include the following information:
- Full author(s) name
- Title of the Article
- Newspaper title in small caps (abbreviated according to Tables 10 and 13 of The Bluebook)
- Full date (and time, if there is one)
- URL
Additionally, when citing online sources, it is important to use the correct typeface. Id. and supra should be in italics. Use id. when the work is cited immediately previously, either in the same footnote or as the only authority in a previous footnote. For supra, include the author's last name before the supra. If there is no author, use the title or establish a short name for the citation.
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Citing law journal articles
> Dan L. Burk & Julie E. Cohen, Fair Use Infrastructure for Rights Management Systems, 15 Harv. J.L. & Tech. 41 (2001)
Note that "J.L. & Tech." is an abbreviation of the full journal title, "Harvard Journal of Law and Technology". Most law reviews and academic journals are consecutively paginated, meaning the page numbers continue throughout a volume instead of starting at 1 for each issue.
For online sources, Rule 18 of the Bluebook provides guidance. However, citation formats for online sources vary greatly, so be sure to consult Rule 18 carefully. When citing an online source, include the URL. However, do not include URLs to library databases or any subscription not accessible to your reader. In this case, format the citation as you would for a print article.
> Author(s). (Year of Publication). Title of article: Subtitle of article. Journal Title in Italics, volume number(issue number), page numbers. https://doi.org/10.xxxxxxxxxx
For example:
> Fee, J. (2020). The freedom of speech-conduct. Kentucky Law Journal, 109(1), 81-126.
Other tips for citing law journal articles include:
- Using HeinOnline, which contains a collection of full-text law review articles.
- Browsing for the journal title in the Hein Law Journal Library and then narrowing by volume and page number if you can't find the article by copying and pasting the citation.
- Looking up abbreviations in the Cardiff Index to Legal Abbreviations.
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Citing law reviews as secondary sources
Law review articles are considered secondary sources as they analyse and interpret the law. Statutes and case documents are considered primary sources.
Law reviews are scholarly publications, usually edited by law students in conjunction with faculty members. They contain lengthy articles and shorter essays by professors and lawyers, as well as comments, notes, or developments in the law written by students.
There are several rules to follow when citing law reviews and journals, newspapers, and other periodic materials. A citation to a consecutively paginated journal article includes the following six elements:
- Author(s)
- Title of the article
- Subtitle of the article
- Journal title in italics
- Volume number and issue number
- Page numbers
For example:
Author(s). (Year of Publication). Title of article: Subtitle of article. Journal Title in Italics, volume number(issue number), page numbers. https://doi.org/10.xxxxxxxxxx
Or:
Author, Title, Volume Number, Abbreviation of the Periodical Name, First Page of the Article, and Specific Pages Cited (if any), and Year.
For instance, in Bluebook style:
> John Fee. "The Freedom of Speech-Conduct." Kentucky Law Journal, vol. 109, no. 1, 2020, pp. 81-126.
Note that if there is no DOI listed and the article was retrieved online, include the URL. However, do not include URLs to library databases or any subscription not accessible to your reader. In this case, just leave off this part and format it as a print article.
The typeface used for books is different from that used in academic writing. Rather than underlining the title, use small caps.
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