Cecily Zamora
Students of the University of South Australia (UniSA) and the University of South Africa (UNISA) can refer to their respective guides on how to reference case law. UniSA students should refer to the Australian Guide to Legal Citation (4th ed., 2018) and the AGLC style, which requires words to be spelled as they appear in the Macquarie Australian Dictionary. UNISA students should refer to the OSCOLA style guide, Tutorial Letter 302, which outlines the university's preferred referencing style. Both guides emphasise the importance of consistency in referencing style and provide specific instructions for citing cases, such as the use of square brackets for dates and the order of multiple citations in footnotes.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Referencing Style | OSCOLA |
| Title | Centred in ALL CAPS and bold |
| Title Page | Required |
| Multiple citations in a single footnote | Separate with semi-colons |
| Multiple sources in a single footnote | Put in chronological order with the oldest source first |
| Citing legislation and case law in support of a particular statement | Put legislation first, followed by the cases |
| Citing sources in footnotes | Provide the full reference the first time and then use a shortened version in subsequent footnotes |
| Date in case citation | Use square brackets |
| Jurisdiction | Mention the jurisdiction of the court |
| Citing section of a book | Use Roman numerals |
| Citing a section sign | Do not use the section sign if the author uses it for a subdivision |
| Spelling | Follow the Macquarie Australian Dictionary |
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What You'll Learn
The University of South Africa (UNISA) School of Law referencing style
The University of South Africa (UNISA) School of Law has introduced a new referencing style based on the OSCOLA style. This style is outlined in Tutorial Letter 302 and applies to all undergraduate assignments, postgraduate research proposals, dissertations, and theses.
When referencing case law, the University of South Australia (UniSA) recommends the following format: "Title of the Case (year) Case number". For example, "Mabo v Queensland (no. 2) (1992) 175 CLR1". It is important to note that square brackets around the date are significant when citing a case.
The UNISA School of Law referencing style guide also provides specific instructions for citing old authorities in the bibliography. For instance, when citing a Latin title such as "Johannes Voet Commentarius ad Pandectas," the reference "Voet 18.1" in a footnote indicates book 18, title 1, and section 13 of the book.
Additionally, when using the UNISA School of Law referencing style, students should follow these guidelines:
- Use semi-colons to separate multiple citations within a single footnote reference.
- List multiple sources in a single footnote in chronological order with the oldest source first.
- When citing legislation and case law together, list the legislation first, followed by the cases.
- Generally, place primary sources before secondary sources.
- Provide the full reference to a source the first time it is cited in a footnote, then use a shortened version in subsequent footnotes.
It is important to maintain consistency when using a particular referencing style and to refer to the appropriate style guide for detailed instructions.
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Citing legislation and case law
The University of South Australia (UniSA) provides guides on its website for students to refer to when citing case law and legislation. The guides outline the Australian Guide to Legal Citation (4th ed, 2018) published by the Melbourne University Law Review Association as the standard for referencing legal materials. This guide is also referred to as the AGLC4 style.
For citing federal laws in APA style, the following elements are required: the name of the law, "U.S.C." (short for United States Code), the title of the law, the section of the code where the law appears, and the year. It is also optional to include a URL. An example of a court decision reference is: *Brown v. Board of Education*, 347 U.S. 483 (1954).
When citing case law, UniSA recommends the use of square brackets when the date is necessary to locate the decision. For example, a reported decision would be formatted as: *Beattie v Ball [1999] 3 VR 1*. An unreported decision would look like: *Commissioner of Police v Coroners Court of South Australia [2018] SASCFC 26 913 April 2018*.
UniSA also provides guidance on the structure of legal arguments, which typically follow the IRAC method. This involves laying out the issue to be discussed, identifying the relevant legal rule, applying or analyzing the material facts based on that rule, and presenting the overall conclusion.
The University of South Africa (UNISA) also provides resources for law and criminal justice students on legal referencing. Law students at this university are advised to refer to Tutorial Letter 302 for the Oscola citation style, while criminal justice students are directed to Tutorial Letter 301 for the Harvard citation style.
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Referencing old authorities
When referencing old authorities, there are several key points to keep in mind. Firstly, it is important to maintain consistency in your chosen referencing style. Different institutions may have specific requirements, so be sure to consult the relevant guides. For example, the University of South Australia (UniSA) refers to the Australian Guide to Legal Citation, while the University of South Africa (UNISA) School of Law uses the OSCOLA citation style.
The specific format for citing old cases may vary depending on the style guide you are using. For instance, the OSCOLA guide recommends using italics for the name of the case, with an unpunctuated italic "v" to separate the names of adverse parties. Here is an example of an OSCOLA citation:
> Case name | [year] OR (year) | volume | report abbreviation | first page | (court)
> Page v Smith [1996] AC 155 (HL)
Note that the court abbreviation is placed in brackets at the end of the citation.
When citing old authorities, it is also important to separate references by jurisdiction. List international materials first, followed by regional materials, and then by each national jurisdiction. For instance, you would list European Union sources before United Kingdom sources. Additionally, pay attention to the specific requirements of your chosen style guide regarding the use of square brackets, punctuation, and abbreviations.
Remember that referencing old authorities is crucial for acknowledging your sources, demonstrating the range of your research, and providing authority to your arguments. Always refer to the specific guidelines provided by your institution and the style guide you are using to ensure accurate and consistent referencing.
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Referencing online sources
When referencing online sources, it is important to use the proper citation format to ensure your bibliography is accurate and consistent. There are multiple styles that can be used for referencing, such as APA (American Psychological Association), Harvard, Augmented Harvard, and Harvard British Standard. Be sure to check with your instructor or publisher to confirm which style to use.
For full-text articles from online databases, the following format can be used:
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, volume, pages. Retrieved month day, year, from source. For example: Mazzone, M. F., McCue, T. (2002). Common conditions of the Achilles tendon. American Family Physician, 65, 1805. Retrieved June 19, 2002, from Health Reference Center Academic database.
When referencing a web document, the format is slightly different: Author, A. A. (year). Title of work. Retrieved month day, year, from source. For example: Notess, G. (2002). Search engine statistics. Retrieved June 19, 2002, from http://www.searchengineshowdown.com/stats.
If you are referencing a web document with no identified date or author, the format is: Document title. (n.d.). Retrieved month day, year, from source.
For social media posts, an in-text citation with the author and date is required, along with a reference list entry that includes the author, date, title, and source URL. For example: Author, A. [screen name] (year, month day). Content description [format]. Retrieved from [source URL].
When referencing a website in the text, the URL may be sufficient, and no reference list entry is needed. However, if a more formal citation is required, the following format can be used: Author, A. A. (year, month day). Title of web page. URL.
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Referencing Latin titles
The University of South Australia (UNISA) recommends using the Australian Guide to Legal Citation (4th ed., 2018) when referencing case law. This guide is published by the Melbourne University Law Review Association. It is important to reference every source of information consulted, including books, articles, case law, legislation, and internet sites.
When referencing Latin titles in case law, there are a few standard conventions to follow. Firstly, the names of opposing parties in a case title are typically separated by the abbreviation "v", which stands for the Latin word "versus", meaning "against". For example, "Smith v Jones" would be pronounced as "Smith and Jones". The use of "v" or "versus" indicates a conflict or comparison between the parties involved.
In some cases, you may encounter Latin abbreviations within the text of a legal document or case law. It is generally recommended to keep Latin abbreviations out of the main body of the text and instead use them in footnotes, endnotes, tables, or other forms of documentation. However, certain abbreviations like "etc.", "e.g.", and "i.e." may be used in parentheses within the body of the text. One exception is the APA style, which allows for the use of "et al." when referring to works with multiple authors.
Another commonly used Latin abbreviation in legal citations is "cf.", which stands for the Latin word "confer" and means "compare". It is typically used in endnotes or footnotes to direct readers to additional sources for comparison with the main argument. For example, "Jones 1992, Smith 2003; cf. on methodology Harris 2005" indicates that the works of Jones and Smith are compared with the methodology presented by Harris.
Additionally, the abbreviation "ibid." is used in endnotes or footnotes when citing the same source and page number multiple times. If you are citing the same source but a different page number, you can use "ibid." followed by a comma and the new page number.
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Frequently asked questions
The University of South Australia recommends using the Australian Guide to Legal Citation (4th ed., 2018) for referencing case law. The format is: Title of the Case (year) Case number. For example, Mabo v Queensland (no. 2) (1992) 175 CLR1.
Yes, from 2021, the University of South Africa (UNISA) School of Law adopted a new referencing style based on the OSCOLA system. The UNISA School of Law style guide should be followed in the event of any discrepancies with OSCOLA.
Yes, the title of the document must be centred and written in ALL CAPS and bold.
Separate multiple sources in a single footnote with semi-colons, listing them in chronological order with the oldest source first.
The AGLC style requires words to be spelled as they appear in the Macquarie Australian Dictionary (online).
