Academy Publishing
Style Guide for the
SINGAPORE LAW REPORTS
2015 Edition
© 2015 Singapore Academy of Law. All rights reserved.
2015 Edition – 9 December 2015
SLR Style Guide 2015
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Table of Contents
PART 1: GENERAL RULES..................................................................................... 4
1–1
APPLICATION OF RULES................................................................................. 4
1–2
FORMATTING RULES ....................................................................................... 5
1–2.1
1–2.2
1–2.3
1–2.4
1–2.5
1–2.6
1–2.7
1–3
Styles, Typefaces and Font Size.................................................................. 5
Headings ...................................................................................................... 5
Footnotes ..................................................................................................... 5
Paragraph Numbering ................................................................................. 5
Numbering Levels ....................................................................................... 5
Quotations ................................................................................................... 6
Information Not to be Disclosed in Judgments ........................................... 7
RULES OF EXPRESSION ................................................................................... 8
1–3.1
1–3.2
1–3.3
1–3.4
1–3.5
1–3.6
1–3.7
Spelling........................................................................................................ 8
Abbreviations .............................................................................................. 9
Date and Time. .......................................................................................... 11
Numbers .................................................................................................... 12
Punctuation ................................................................................................ 12
Foreign Words and Phrases ....................................................................... 22
Miscellaneous Rules of Expression........................................................... 23
PART 2: CITATION RULES ................................................................................. 24
2–1
CITATION OF CASES ....................................................................................... 24
2–1.1
2–1.2
2–1.3
2–1.4
2–1.5
2–2
Citation of Reported Cases ........................................................................ 24
Citation of Unreported Judgments and Cases ........................................... 27
Citation of Cases Published in Electronic Form ....................................... 28
Citation of Digests of Cases ...................................................................... 29
Subsequent References .............................................................................. 29
CITATION OF LEGISLATION ........................................................................ 30
2–2.1 Citation of Singapore Legislation. ............................................................ 30
2–2.2 Citation of Foreign Legislation ................................................................. 35
2–2.3 Subsequent References .............................................................................. 39
2–3
CITATION OF GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS ....................................... 40
2–3.1 Citation of Parliamentary Debates ............................................................ 40
2–3.2 Citation of Parliamentary Papers............................................................... 41
2–4
CITATION OF BOOKS ..................................................................................... 42
2–4.1
2–4.2
2–4.3
2–4.4
2–5
Citation of Bound Books ........................................................................... 42
Citation of Bound Books that are Part of a Set ......................................... 42
Citation of Looseleaf Books...................................................................... 43
Subsequent References .............................................................................. 43
CITATION OF ARTICLES ............................................................................... 44
2–5.1 Citation of Articles in Law Journals or Reviews ...................................... 44
2–5.2 Citation of Articles in Serial Publications ................................................. 44
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2–5.3 Citation of Articles Published in Electronic Form .................................... 45
2–5.4 Subsequent References .............................................................................. 45
2–6
CITATION OF UNPUBLISHED, FORTHCOMING AND OTHER TYPES
OF MATERIALS ................................................................................................. 46
2–6.1 Citation of Unpublished Materials ............................................................ 46
2–6.2 Citation of Forthcoming Materials ............................................................ 47
2–6.3 Citation of Law Reform Working Papers and Reports ............................. 48
2–7
CITATION OF INTERNATIONAL MATERIALS ........................................ 49
2–7.1
2–7.2
2–7.3
2–7.4
2–7.5
2–7.6
Citation of Treaties .................................................................................... 49
Citation of International Cases .................................................................. 51
Citation of United Nations Materials ........................................................ 55
Citation of European Communities Materials ........................................... 57
Citation of Council of Europe Materials ................................................... 59
Citation of WTO and GATT Materials ..................................................... 60
PART 1: GENERAL RULES
(Refer to  Appendix 1A for Examples on General Rules)
1–1
APPLICATION OF RULES
The guidelines and rules contained in this style guide apply to the text of judgments, as well
as to headings, catchwords and headnotes, unless otherwise indicated.
Part 1: General Rules
1–2
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FORMATTING RULES
1–2.1 Styles, Typefaces and Font Size
Where editing the soft copy of a draft judgment, check that there are already the inbuilt styles for each of the various components of a judgment. The correct style must
be applied to each component of the judgment. When editing the hard copy, if there
are changes needed, simply indicate the style to be applied, eg, H-1, J-2, Q-1, etc. If a
case has an annex or schedule, apply the “Judg-Headg-1” style to the title “Annex” or
“Schedule”. The preferred style of emphasis is the italics font style (followed by the
bold italics font style if additional emphasis is required).
1–2.2 Headings
Headings used in judgments should begin with an uppercase letter, but the remainder
of the heading text should be in lowercase letters except for proper nouns, eg,
“Principle of consistency in sentencing”, not “Principle of Consistency in
Sentencing”. No full stop is required at the end of a heading. Abbreviations – other
than those defined by the judge specifically in the judgment – should not be used.
1–2.3 Footnotes
Footnotes are used in a judgment only to refer to court documents and exhibits; all
citations to cases, legislation, articles, books or other authorities are to be done in the
judgment text. When editing a judgment selected for reporting, delete the footnotes,
and transfer any citations to the appropriate locations in the judgment text.
1–2.4 Paragraph Numbering
Each paragraph in a judgment should be sequentially numbered using an Arabic
numeral, ie, 1, 2, 3, etc. Do not put numerals in parentheses or type a full stop after a
numeral.
1–2.5 Numbering Levels
1–2.5.1
Numbering Level System
Do not use bullet points to introduce items in a list. To number items in a
list, use the numbering levels that are applied to sections and subsections
in a statute, namely:
First Level – (a), (b), (c), … (aa), (bb), (cc), etc.
Second Level – (i), (ii), (iii), etc.
Third Level – (A), (B), (C), … (AA), (BB), (CC), etc.
Fourth Level – (I), (II), (III), etc.
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The numbering level (1), (2), (3), etc, is not used for paragraphs or lists; it
is used only for the Fourth Level Judgment Heading (inserted
automatically by applying the “Judg-Headg-4” style).
1–2.5.2
Punctuation of Items in a Numbered List
Items in a numbered list should be punctuated in one of the following
ways:
• If the items in the list are incomplete sentences, each item should begin
with a lowercase letter and end with a semicolon. The second-last item
in the list should end with a semicolon followed by a conjunction, such
as and or or.
• If the items in the list are complete sentences or consist of more than
one sentence, each item should begin with an uppercase letter and end
with a full stop.
1–2.6 Quotations
1–2.6.1
Quotations within a Sentence
Quotations within a sentence should be enclosed in double quotation
marks (“ ”). A quotation within a quotation should be enclosed in single
quotation marks (‘ ’). Include punctuation within quotation marks only if a
complete sentence is quoted. Where a sentence ends with a full stop,
question mark or exclamation mark followed by a closing quotation mark,
it is not necessary to add a full stop after the latter.
1–2.6.2
Quotations in a Separate Block
A quotation that exceeds three lines should be set out in a separate block.
Apply the correct style to the paragraph and it will be indented and have its
font resized accordingly. Do not enclose the quotation in quotation marks.
Any quotation within this block quotation should be enclosed in single
quotation marks (‘ ’).
1–2.6.3
Emphasis in Quotations
Words, phrases or sentences in a quotation to be emphasised should be in
italics with the phrase “[emphasis added]” or “[emphasis in original]” in
brackets added to the end of the quotation. Where a quotation set out in a
separate block consists of several paragraphs, the phrase “[emphasis
added]” or its variants should be on a new line.
Where emphasis is added to quotations that contain originally emphasised
text, the added emphasis should be in italicised bold text and the phrase
“[emphasis added in bold italics]” added to the end of the quotation.
Part 1: General Rules
1–2.6.4
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Changes to Quotations
In general, a quotation should be reproduced as it appears in its
source, with no changes to spelling, capitalisation or
punctuation except that, if desired, citations may be omitted
and the phrase “[internal citations omitted]” added to the end of
the quotation.
If it is necessary to make interpolations, corrections, explanations,
translations or comments for clarity, these should be enclosed in brackets
(“[ ]”). Omissions should be indicated with the use of an ellipsis (“…”),
which should consist of three full stops, no more or less, with a space
before and after. Do not type a full stop after an ellipsis that ends a
sentence.
1–2.6.5
Errors in Quotations
Spelling or grammatical errors in quotations should be retained, with the
word “[sic]” (Latin for “thus” or “so”) in brackets inserted after the error.
Do not overuse the word “[sic]” as a quotation that contains too many
becomes difficult to read. If there are numerous errors that are obvious, do
not use “[sic]” at all, in order to retain the original “flavour” of the
quotation. Some minor erroneous words or phrases can be omitted entirely
(using ellipses where appropriate) and the correct words or phrases
inserted within brackets.
1–2.7 Information Not to be Disclosed in Judgments
If an order has been made against, or no authorisation has been granted for, the
disclosure of the name or address of a witness in a matter or proceeding, or evidence
or other information likely to lead to the identification of the witness, such
information must not be disclosed in a judgment. In such cases, the identifying
information in the judgment must be replaced with the word “[redacted]”.
SLR Style Guide 2015
1–3
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RULES OF EXPRESSION
1–3.1 Spelling
British spelling conventions are to be applied, as set out in the current edition of the
Oxford English Dictionary, but variant spellings in quotations (eg, from cases, letters
or notes of evidence) should not be altered.
The following preferred spellings should be especially noted.
Variant Spellings
Preferred Spelling
-ce/-se – defence, licence; offence; or
defense, license, offense
-ce – defence, licence; offence; but
“license” and “practise” when used
as a verb
-g-/-ge- – acknowledgment, judgment,
lodgment; or acknowledgement,
judgement, lodgement
-g- – acknowledgment, judgment,
lodgment
-l-/-ll- – instalment, fulfil, fulfilment; or
installment, fulfill, fulfillment
-l- – instalment, fulfil, fulfilment,
marshal; but install, marshalled
-m/-mme – gram, kilogram; or gramme,
kilogramme
-m – gram, kilogram; but use “program”
only in the context of a computer
program, and “programme” for all
other senses of the word
-our/-or – colour, labour, odour; or
color, labor, odor
-our – colour, labour, odour
-re/-er – centre, litre, metre, theatre; or
center, liter, meter, theater
-re – centre, litre, metre, theatre; but
“meter” for a measuring device
-se/-ze – analyse, authorise, organisation, -se – analyse, authorise, organisation,
organise, paralyse, realisation,
organise, paralyse, realisation,
realise, recognise, sterilisation; or
realise, recognise, sterilisation
analyze, authorize, organization,
organize, paralyze, realization,
realize, recognize, sterilization
-t/-ed – burnt, learnt, spelt, spoilt; or
burned, learned, spelled, spoiled
-t – burnt, learnt, spelt, spoilt
disc or disk
disc (as in “compact disc”); but use
“disk” when referring to a computer
peripheral such as a “hard disk”
despatch or dispatch
despatch
focused or focussed
focused
in so far or insofar
in so far
Part 1: General Rules
Variant Spellings
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Preferred Spelling
inquire, inquiry; or enquire; enquiry
inquire, inquiry; but “enquiry” may be
used when referring to an informal
request for information.
Koran or Qur’an
Koran
moneys or monies
moneys
movable or moveable
movable
per cent or percent
per cent or % (if used with a numeral)
trade mark or trademark
trade mark
thumb print, finger print or thumbprint,
fingerprint
thumbprint, fingerprint
boy friend, girl friend or boyfriend,
girlfriend
boyfriend, girlfriend
1–3.2 Abbreviations
Abbreviations are useful as they can improve the readability of a judgment. It should
be borne in mind that abbreviations and acronyms that are readily understood by
Singaporeans may not be clear to persons from other countries. Therefore, unless a
name or phrase is internationally known, always state it in full when it first appears in
a judgment and indicate its abbreviation after it in parentheses, thus: ‘Housing and
Development Board (“HDB”)’.
The words and phrases that are set out in the tables in  paragraphs 1–3.2.1 and 1–
3.2.2 and other familiar internationally-recognised abbreviations listed in the Oxford
English Dictionary (eg, “UK” for the United Kingdom, “UNCITRAL” for the United
Nations Convention on International Trade Law and “US” for the United States of
America) may be abbreviated in reports of judgments using the indicated short forms
without first defining them in full.
Do not place full stops after the letters in an abbreviation. When removing full stops
from abbreviations, if there is no space between the full-stop and the next letter, do
not insert spaces when removing the full-stops; where there are spaces, use nonbreaking spaces after removing the full-stops.
A citation word abbreviation (eg, s, cl, O, para, rule, etc) should not be used if it is the
first word in a sentence – in such cases, the word or phrase must be spelt in full (ie,
Section, Clause, Order, Paragraph, Rule, etc).
A citation word abbreviation (eg, s, cl, O, etc) should not be used where there is no
specific reference to either a name or a number, eg, “There was a contravention of
paras 12 and 15” and “He breached the rules of the club” are correct, but “various cll
of the agreement had been deleted” is wrong.
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Similarly, an abbreviation of a form of address may be used only in conjunction with
the name of a person, eg, “Assoc Prof Elaine Chong” or “SSgt Tan Ah Kow”. Where
the form of address does not refer to a named person, it should not be abbreviated or
have an initial uppercase letter, eg, “The doctor said that he noticed a bruise on her
shoulder” is correct, but “The SSSgt testified that he saw the accused run away” is
wrong.
1–3.2.1
Words and Phrases That May be Abbreviated After the First
Occurrence
Subject to the general rules in  paragraph 1–3.2, the words and phrases
in this section must be spelt in full the first time they occur in the
judgment; but thereafter, they may be abbreviated as shown. Ranks and
honorifics remain abbreviated, even if they appear at the beginning of a
sentence.
For abbreviations of the honorifics or terms of address of judges, judicial
officers, and other persons commonly encountered in a judicial setting, see
the table Honorifics and forms of address commonly used in relation to
judicial proceedings in  Appendix 1A.
For abbreviations of ranks of personnel in the police force and armed
forces, see the table Ranks of personnel in the Singapore Police Force
and the Singapore Armed Forces in  Appendix 1A. For any rank
abbreviation not set out in the examples, if unsure what the rank stands for,
just leave it abbreviated.
1–3.2.2
Words and Phrases That May Always be Abbreviated
Subject to the general rules in  paragraph 1–3.2, the words and phrases
in this section may be abbreviated on their first and on every subsequent
appearance in a judgment.
See the various tables in  Appendix 1A for abbreviations relating to
Parts of names of companies and corporations, Forms of address,
Units of measurement, Currencies, Words and phrases used in
citations, and Other words and phrases that may always be abbreviated.
For units of measurement or currency, the general rule is to use numeric
form with the appropriate abbreviation for the currency or unit of
measurement; and, unless otherwise specified, do not type a space between
the numeral and the abbreviation (eg, “3m”, “16.5mg”, “€25,400.50”,
“RM105,000”). To indicate multiple or a range of measurements it is
acceptable to aggregate the units of measure thus: “3 to 4ft” or “3 or 4cm”.
For citation word abbreviations, a non-breaking space should be typed
between the abbreviation and the digit (eg, “ss 4(5) and 4(6)”, “O 14 of the
Rules of Court”).
Part 1: General Rules
… 11
As indicated in the example, “Number” is abbreviated as “No” only for
legislation citations or suit or application numbers. Elsewhere, use
“number” in full, eg, “vehicle number XXX”, “invoice number XXXXX”,
“receipt number XXXXXXX”). For addresses, change “No 11 Kent
Street” to “11 Kent Street”).
1–3.2.3
Words and Phrases That Should Not be Abbreviated
Do not abbreviate the following words and phrases.
Appendix (part of legislation)
District Judge
exception (part of legislation)
Registrar
State Counsel
Principal Senior State Counsel
1–3.3 Date and Time.
1–3.3.1
Dates
Dates should appear in the day-month-year format, with the month spelt in
full and the year in a four-digit format (thus: “24 September 1999”), with a
non-breaking space between the day and month.
If days of the week are referred to, they should be spelt out in full. Do not
use the abbreviations “Sun”, “Mon”, “Tue” and so on. If the day of the
week is incorporated into a date, it should be set out just before the date,
with a comma after the day (eg, “Thursday, 26 September 2002”).
1–3.3.2
Time
Times of day should be represented using the 12-hour and not the 24-hour
clock. Time indications from 12.01 after midnight to 11.59 before noon
should have the letters “am” after them, while those from 12.01 after noon
to 11.59 before midnight should have the letters “pm” after them.
By definition “12.00am” denotes midnight and “12.00pm” denotes noon,
but there is sufficient confusion over these uses to make it advisable to use
“12.00 midnight” and “12.00 noon” where clarity is required.
A full stop should separate the hours from minutes, and there should not be
any space between the minutes and “am” or “pm”. Do not use any full
stops in the abbreviations “am” and “pm”, eg, “10.00am”, “3.15pm”.
A period of time should be indicated as follows: “from 11.00am to
1.00pm”, “between 7.00pm and 9.00pm”.
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1–3.4 Numbers
1–3.4.1
Cardinal and Ordinal Numbers
Both cardinal numbers (one, two, three, etc) and ordinal numbers (first,
second, third, etc) from one through ten should be spelt in full. Numbers
from 11 should be indicated in Arabic numerals. However, where a
sentence commences with a number, it should be spelt in full, eg,
“Twenty-seven grams of raw heroin were found in the bag”. Nevertheless,
where the phrase is something like “9ft by 12ft” (that involves multiple
measurements, for example), use the numeral+abbreviation (ie, do not
change to “nine feet by 12ft”).
Do not use superscript type when setting out ordinal numbers, eg, “1st”,
not “1st”.
1–3.4.2
Numbers With Four or More Digits
Numbers greater than 999, which have four or more digits, should be
divided into groups of three digits with commas (“,”) beginning from the
rightmost digit before any decimal point, eg, “1,004.35”, “209,877”,
“1,098,999”.
Expressions of a million or a billion may be abbreviated to “m” and “bn”
respectively when they are used in the context of measurement or
currency, eg, “11m tonnes of grain”, “$100m”, “US$1.75bn”. In other
contexts, the words million and billion should be spelt in full, eg,
“Singapore has a population of about four million people”, “there is a
theoretical probability of one in a billion for an ‘accidental’ fingerprint
match”.
1–3.4.3
Fractions
Fractions should be indicated using the proper symbols, eg, ½, ¾, etc.
Non-standard fractions should be highlighted for Ed Ops to deal with.
1–3.4.4
Singapore Land Authority Lot Numbers
Singapore Land Authority lot superscript numbers (found on the SLA
website) must be romanised with a hyphen, eg, “Lot 11131” should be
expressed as “Lot 111-31”.
1–3.5 Punctuation
1–3.5.1
The Comma
The comma (“,”) is never preceded by a space and always followed by a
space. There are four uses of the comma, which may be called the listing
comma, the joining comma, the gapping comma and the bracketing
commas. These are set out in the succeeding paragraphs.
Part 1: General Rules
… 13
1–3.5.1.1 The Listing Comma
The listing comma is used to separate the items in a list. It is
unnecessary to put a listing comma after the second-last item
before the word and or or, unless doing so would make the
meaning of the sentence clearer.
1–3.5.1.2 The Joining Comma
The joining comma is used to join two complete sentences into
a single sentence, and it must be followed by a suitable
connecting word such as and, or, but, yet or while. However,
do not use a joining comma before connecting words like
however, therefore, hence, consequently, nevertheless and thus
– in such cases, a semicolon is appropriate (see  paragraph
1–3.5.3).
1–3.5.1.3 The Gapping Comma
A gapping comma is used to show that one or more words have
been left out when the missing words would simply repeat the
words already used earlier in the same sentence. Gapping
commas may not be necessary if a sentence is clear without
them.
1–3.5.1.4 Bracketing Commas
Bracketing commas are the most frequently used type of
comma, and also cause the most problems. The general rule is
that a pair of bracketing commas is used to mark off a weak
interruption of the sentence – one that does not disturb the flow
of the sentence.
To check if bracketing commas have been correctly used,
remove the weak interruption from the sentence. The result
should still be a complete sentence that makes good sense, eg,
“These findings … cast doubt upon his evidence”, “He looked
around and … slipped the cufflinks into his jacket pocket”.
Bracketing commas should not be used with clauses that are
required to identify what is being talked about, rather than
merely adding additional information.
A weak interruption may occur at the beginning or end of a
sentence. In such cases, the first or last comma in a pair of
bracketing commas should be omitted, since commas are never
written at the beginnings or ends of sentences.
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Bracketing commas are to be used with the following
abbreviations/terms:
, eg,
, ie,
, viz,
, etc, [except, of course, if this is the end of the sentence, in
which case it should be “, etc.”]
, inter alia,
1–3.5.2
The Colon
The colon (“:”) is used to indicate that what follows it is an explanation or
elaboration of what precedes it. A colon is never preceded by a space,
always followed by a space, and should not have a hyphen or dash after it
(“:–” is an incorrect usage). If the material introduced by a colon is a
formal statement or quotation, or consists of more than one sentence, it
should begin with a capital letter; otherwise, it may begin with a lowercase
letter.
A colon may also be used after a word, phrase or sentence in the middle of
a text which introduces a list or series.
A colon may be used to introduce a quotation. Alternatively, either use a
comma or do not use any punctuation mark.
1–3.5.3
The Semicolon
The semicolon (“;”) is used to join two complete sentences into a single
written sentence when all of the following conditions are met: (a) the two
sentences are felt to be too closely related to be separated by a full stop;
(b) there is no connecting word that would require a comma, such as and
or but; and (c) the special conditions requiring a colon are absent (see 
paragraph 1–3.5.2).
However, certain connecting words do require a preceding semicolon. The
most important ones are however, therefore, hence, thus, consequently,
nevertheless and meanwhile. Preferably, these words should be used to
begin a separate sentence.
Where a sentence contains numerous commas, for clarity semicolons may
be used in place of some of the commas to mark important breaks in the
sentence.
1–3.5.4
The Apostrophe
As a general rule, use the possessive ending “ ’s ” after singular words,
including words or names that end in “s”. Note, however, two exceptions:
(a) a plural noun which already ends in “s” takes only a following
apostrophe, ie, “ s’ ”; and (b) a name ending in “s” takes only an
Part 1: General Rules
… 15
apostrophe and not “ s’ ” if the possessive form is not pronounced with an
extra “s”.
Do not use an apostrophe in setting out plural forms of decades, eg, “This
research was carried out in the 1970s”, not “This research was carried out
in the 1970’s”.
1–3.5.5
The Hyphen
The hyphen (“-”) is used in writing compound words which, without it,
would be ambiguous, hard to read or overly long. There are some cases
where hyphens should normally be used. These are set out in 
paragraphs 1–3.5.5.1 and 1–3.5.5.2.
In other cases, much variation exists even among dictionaries as to which
words should and should not be hyphenated. Generally, the following rules
are a useful guide: (a) above all, strive for clarity; (b) do not use a hyphen
unless it is necessary; and (c) where possible, follow established usage (for
instance, consult the Oxford English Dictionary). Some commonlyencountered compound words are set out in  paragraphs 1–3.5.5.3 and
1–3.5.5.4.
1–3.5.5.1 The Hyphen: Compound Modifiers
The hyphen must be used in compound modifiers, that is,
words or phrases that modify or identify the meaning of other
words (eg, “winding-up petition”, “day-to-day affairs”).
1–3.5.5.2 The Hyphen: Compound Words with Prefixes
The hyphen should be used in a compound word with a prefix
such as anti–, counter–, non–, re–, pre– or post– if the word
would otherwise be difficult to read. If in doubt, consult the
Oxford English Dictionary.
A hyphen must be used with a prefix in the following
situations:
• If the word to which the prefix is added begins with a
capital letter or numeral, eg, “non-EC countries”, “pre-1500
statutes”.
• If the prefix is added to a compound word that contains
spaces. In that case, the spaces must be replaced with
hyphens to prevent the compound word from becoming
unreadable, eg, “pre-20th-century legal principles”, “our
post-cold-war world”. Alternatively, it may be better to
rephrase the sentence to avoid the use of hyphenated
compound words.
SLR Style Guide 2015
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1–3.5.5.3 The Hyphen: Compound Words That Should be
Hyphenated
See  Appendix 1A for a list of compound words that should
be hyphenated in Singapore Academy of Law publications.
1–3.5.5.4 The Hyphen: Compound Words That Should Not be
Hyphenated
See  Appendix 1A for a list of compound words that should
NOT be hyphenated in Singapore Academy of Law
publications.
1–3.5.5.5 The Hyphen: Capitalisation of Hyphenated Words
If it is necessary to capitalise a hyphenated compound word
with a prefix, the part of the word after the hyphen should not
be capitalised, eg, “Re-amended Defence”, not “Re-Amended
Defence”. In other cases, all important elements of the
compound word should be capitalised, eg, “Left-of-Centre
Party”, “South-East Asia”.
1–3.5.6
The Dash
The dash (“–”) has two major uses, which are set out in  paragraphs 1–
3.5.6.1 and 1–3.5.6.2. In Singapore Academy of Law publications, a dash
should be typed using an en-dash. A lesser-used variety of the dash, the
em-dash, is discussed in  paragraph 1–3.5.6.3.
1–3.5.6.1 The Dash: Indicating a Strong Interruption
A pair of dashes separates a strong interruption from the rest of
a sentence. A strong interruption is one which violently
disrupts the flow of the sentence. A space should be typed
before and after each dash. No more than one pair of dashes
should appear in a sentence: if it is necessary to set off two
separate interruptions, parentheses should be used for one of
the interruptions ( paragraph 1–3.5.7.1). However, such
usage should generally be avoided.
As with bracketing commas ( paragraph 1–3.5.1.4), the first
or second dash in the pair may be omitted if the strong
interruption occurs at the beginning or end of the sentence
respectively. Dashes should not be overused, as this may give
a piece of writing a breathless and disjointed appearance.
1–3.5.6.2 The Dash: Indicating a Range of Numbers, etc
A dash may also be used to indicate a range of numbers such as
amounts and dates in the form “between X and Y” or “from X
to Y”. No spaces should be typed between the dash and the
words or numbers with which it appears. As the dash replaces
Part 1: General Rules
… 17
the words between… and… and from… to…, do not write
“between X–Y” or “from X–Y”. If it is desired to use the
words between and from, the range should be written in full
(“between X and Y”) and the dash should not be used.
1–3.5.6.3 The Dash: The Em-Dash
The em-dash (“—”), which is longer than the en-dash, is used
in the Singapore Law Reports to separate catchword statements
and in quotations of pieces of legislation to separate section
numbers from subsection numbers or to introduce a list of
subsections.
The em-dash is also used to indicate missing letters in a word.
No spaces should be typed between the dash and the existing
parts of the word. Type swear words using em-dashes unless
necessary in judgments where the exact words used were in
issue or important.
1–3.5.7
Parentheses and Brackets
1–3.5.7.1 Parentheses: Indicating Interruptions
The major use of parentheses, also called round brackets (“(
)”), is to set off strong or weak interruptions, like bracketing
commas ( paragraph 1–3.5.1.4) or dashes ( paragraph 1–
3.5.6.1). As a rule, though, parentheses are preferred when the
interruption is an ‘aside’ from the writer to the reader – in other
cases, either bracketing commas or dashes should be used.
Unlike bracketing commas or dashes, both parentheses must
always be used, even if the interruption occurs at the beginning
or end of a sentence.
Parentheses may be used in combination with bracketing
commas or dashes where two sets of interruptions need to be
set off ( paragraph 1–3.5.6.1). However, such usage should
generally be avoided as it may be difficult to read.
Parentheses may be used to set off an entire sentence or series
of sentences if they constitute an appropriate interruption. In
such cases, the sentences are capitalised and punctuated in the
usual manner.
Parentheses are also used to set off interruptions which merely
provide additional information or a brief explanation of an
unfamiliar term.
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 18
Commas, semicolons, colons and dashes should not be typed
before an opening parenthesis. All punctuation that follows an
interruption in parentheses should be typed after the closing
parenthesis, except where an entire sentence or series of
sentences is placed in parenthesis.
For the use of parentheses in citations, see  paragraph 2–
1.1.2.
1–3.5.7.2 Brackets
The main use of brackets (“[ ]”), also known as square
brackets, is to enclose interpolations, corrections, explanations,
translations or editorial comments within quotations (
paragraph 1–2.6.4).
For the use of brackets in citations, see  paragraph 2–1.1.2.
1–3.5.8
Italics
Italics should be used for the following purposes:
(a)
To emphasise words and phrases, eg, “The defendant’s
fingerprints were found inside the suitcase containing the
drugs.” Do not use boldface type or underlining for this
purpose.
For rules on emphasising text in quotations, see  paragraph
1–2.6.3.
(b)
To cite the names of cases, eg, “Ong Ah Chuan v PP”,
“Brown v Board of Education”. References to Anton Piller
orders and Mareva injunctions should not be italicised; italicise
“Anton Piller” and “Mareva” only when referring to the actual
cases, eg, “in the Anton Piller case, the court decided that …”.
(c)
To cite the titles of books, journals, newspapers,
television programmes, films, musical compositions, etc, eg,
“Cross and Tapper on Evidence”, “Singapore Academy of Law
Journal”, “The Straits Times”. However, it is customary for
the names of holy books to be set out in roman type, eg, “the
Bible”, “the Koran”.
(d)
To cite the names of ships. Do not italicise the definite
article The unless it forms part of a ship’s name, eg, “The
Ivanovo collided into El Neputuno.” Do not use the
abbreviation “mv” (for motor vessel) unless it forms part of the
ship’s name, in which case it should be italicised, eg, “the mv
Dong Hing”.
Part 1: General Rules
… 19
(e)
To cite foreign words and phrases that have not been
assimilated into the English language: see  paragraph 1–3.6.
Where indicating the possessive form of an italicised word or
phrase using an apostrophe followed by the letter “s” (“ ’s ”),
the “ ’s ” should not be italicised, eg, “applying Ong Ah
Chuan’s case”, “the RSS Morning Star’s bow was damaged”.
Where a passage of text is already italicised and the passage
contains a word or phrase that would normally require italics,
that word or phrase should be set out in ordinary roman type,
eg, “The famous case of Brown v Board of Education was a
landmark in American legal history.” Avoid doing this if the
words are to appear in second- or third-level headings (see 
paragraph 1–2.1).
1–3.5.9
Capital Letters
Capital or uppercase letters are strictly not a form of punctuation, but it is
convenient to deal with them here. The following should be capitalised:
(a)
The first word of a sentence – this rule applies even if the first
word is not normally capitalised, eg, ‘“Worldofsport.com” was registered
by a cybersquatter.’ If this is not desired, rephrase the sentence so that the
word that is not normally capitalised is not the first word.
(b)
The first word, and each significant word, of a title of a case, piece
of legislation, treaty, book, journal, newspaper, television programme,
film, musical composition, etc. Small words like and, in, of, the and with
need not be capitalised unless it is the first word, eg, “Rylands v Fletcher”,
“Sale of Goods Act” (names of statutes and subsidiary legislation are not
italicised), “Singapore Civil Practice”, “Singapore Academy of Law
Journal”, “The Straits Times”, “Twelve Angry Men”.
(c)
The first word of a direct quotation repeating someone else’s exact
words, if the quotation is a complete sentence, eg, “Thomas Edison
famously observed, ‘Genius is one per cent inspiration and ninety-nine per
cent perspiration.’”. No capital letter is used if the quotation is not a
complete sentence, eg, “The Minister described the latest unemployment
figures as ‘disappointing’.”
(d)
The name of a day, month, holiday or historical period, eg,
“Tuesday”, “November”, “New Year’s Eve”, “the Japanese Occupation”.
(e)
The name of a language, nationality, ethnic group, a word
expressing a connection with a place, or a religion, eg, “Tamil”,
“Australian”, “Cantonese”, “British and American government officials”,
“Islam”.
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 20
(f)
Proper names, that is, names or titles that refer to an individual
person, place, institution or event, eg, “President S R Nathan”, “Sundaresh
Menon CJ”, “Professor Robert Miller”, “Raffles Square”, “the Supreme
Court”, “Singapore”, “the Internet”, “the World Wide Web”,
“Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting 2003”.
(g)
Manufacturer’s brand names and products (if they have not become
generic labels for classes of objects), and trade marks, eg, “Microsoft
Windows XP”, “Sony Discman”, “Coca-Cola”.
When a hyphenated compound word requires capitalisation, the portion of
the word after the hyphen should also be capitalised.
1–3.5.9.1 Capital Letters: Words and Phrases That Should be
Capitalised
For Singapore Academy of Law publications, the following
words and phrases should be capitalised:
All courts, including “Disciplinary Committee” and “Inquiry
Committee”, eg, “Inquiry Committee of the Law Society”,
or “Inquiry Committee of the Public Service
Commission”. But use lower case if it’s a passing/one-off
reference to a non-specific inquiry/disciplinary committee,
eg “the question arose as to whether an inquiry(/a
disciplinary) committee would have decided ...”.
References to the parties in a criminal proceeding, namely,
“Public Prosecutor”, “the Prosecution” and “the Defence”,
eg, “the Defence contended that …”.
References to “the State” when referring to a country
considered as an organised political community. Do not
capitalise when using “state” as an adjective or verb, eg,
“state immunity”.
the Executive, the Judiciary, and the Legislature (when
referring to the various branches in the separation of powers)
the Registrar (of the Supreme Court) (do not capitalise if the
word “registrar” is used to refer to an assistant registrar, a
deputy registrar, etc)
“Registrar”, when used as a party, even where it refers to a
Registrar that is not the Registrar of the Supreme Court.
So “Registrar of the Land Titles Registry” and “the
Registrar” accordingly.
“Government”, when it is a reference to the government as a
party, ie, “the Singapore Government contended that ...”
and “the position of the South African Government was
...”, but “government official”, “government department”,
etc. References to names (of publications or entitites)
should be in capitals, eg, “… the Government Gazette was
Part 1: General Rules
… 21
printed by the Singapore Government Printers …”.
the Bar, the Bench
President (of the Syariah Court)
Member of Parliament
National Service
1–3.5.9.2 Capital Letters: Words and Phrases That Should Not be
Capitalised
For Singapore Academy of Law publications, the following
words and phrases should not be capitalised:
(a)
Words or titles that do not refer to any specific person
or thing, eg, “The company hired a new managing director in
September” and “Marion Wong was the managing director of
the company”, but “Marion Wong, Managing Director of ABC
Company”. Also, while Public Prosecutor is always capitalised,
“Deputy Public Prosecutor” is subject to this same rule, ie,
“Mr XX is a deputy public prosecutor …” but “Mr XX, Deputy
Public Prosecutor, contended that …”.
(b)
References to the parties to proceedings, eg, “the second
defendant”, not “the Second Defendant”. However, when
referring to the opposing sides in criminal proceedings,
capitalise “the Prosecution” and “the Defence” (see 
paragraph 1–3.5.9.1).
(c)
References to currencies, eg, “Singapore dollar notes”,
“five 20-sen coins”, “an account denominated in pound
sterling”.
(d)
All court documents, including specific documents eg,
“the second paragraph of the statement of claim”, and also
“amendments to statements of claim”; “In the defendant’s
affidavit of evidence-in-chief it was stated …”, and also “The
plaintiff filed a number of affidavits in the matter”.
(e)
Where the word “master” (of a ship) is used in the
judgment, it should be in lower case (ie, “master” not
“Master”), unless the judge has defined it using upper case the
first time it appears. Also, the first time “master” appears, there
should be words such as “of the ship” following it, so that the
context is made clear. The same goes for “captain” (of a ship).
1–3.5.10
Quotation Marks
Apart from their use in quotations (see  paragraph 1–2.6.1), quotation
marks should be used in the following situations:
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 22
(a)
To cite English words or short phrases that are being talked about,
eg, ‘The phrase “wrongful gain” is defined in section 23 of the Penal Code
(Cap 224, 1985 Rev Ed) as meaning “gain by unlawful means of property
to which the person gaining it is not legally entitled”.’
(b)
To cite the names of trade marks, eg, ‘the plaintiff’s trade mark
“Breez” ’.
1–3.5.11
Other Punctuation Marks
1–3.5.11.1 The Ampersand
The ampersand (“&”) is an abbreviation for the word and. It
should generally not be used except if it appears in the names
of companies and firms or case names, eg, “Allen & Gledhill”,
“Ong & Co”, “Smith & Jones v Walker”.
1–3.5.11.2 The Solidus
The solidus (“/”), also known as the oblique, slant, slash or
virgule, can be used to separate alternatives, eg, “each visitor
was required to produce his/her identity card”.
The solidus may also be used to represent a period of time, eg,
“the accounting records for financial year 1995/96 were
missing”. In Singapore Academy of Law publications, the use
of an en-dash ( paragraph 1–3.5.5.2) is preferred in such
cases.
1–3.6 Foreign Words and Phrases
Words and phrases in languages other than English should be italicised unless they
have been assimilated into the English language, eg, “caveat”, “per annum”, “nil”,
“status quo”, “via”, “alias”, “in lieu”, “apropos” (do NOT italicise “apropos” unless it
appears exactly as in the French “à propos (de) …”).
Accents and diacritics should not be omitted, eg, “fiancée”, “raison d’être”, “vis-àvis”. In cases of doubt as to whether a foreign word or phrase has been absorbed into
English or the accents and diacritics it bears, consult the Oxford English Dictionary.
The specific foreign words and phrases in the table Foreign Words and Phrases in
 Appendix 1A should be italicised.
Part 1: General Rules
… 23
1–3.7 Miscellaneous Rules of Expression
1–3.7.1
Corporate and Unincorporated Entities
When using terms like plaintiff, defendant, appellant and respondent in
reference to corporate and unincorporated entities, including associations,
bodies corporate, companies, partnerships, societies and statutory boards,
use the singular forms of the terms. The plural forms plaintiffs,
defendants, appellants and respondents should be used for multiple
parties.
1–3.7.2
Multiple Parties
The first to tenth parties in a matter should be referred to thus: “the first
plaintiff”, “the fourth third party”. From the 11th party onwards, the
ordinal number in the party’s designation may be abbreviated, thus: “the
12th accused person”, “the tenth to 20th defendants”.
1–3.7.3
Names of Law Lords
Where the name of a Lord of Appeal of the House of Lords bears a placename, the first occurrence of the judge’s name should include the placename, eg, “Lord Bingham of Cornhill”, thereafter “Lord Bingham”.
1–3.7.4
Names of Ships
The names of ships should be set out in italics. Do not italicise the definite
article The unless it forms part of a ship’s name, eg, “The Ivanovo collided
into El Neputuno.” (See  paragraph 1–3.5.8(d).)
1–3.7.5
Names of Trade Marks
The names of trade marks should be cited in quotation marks, eg, ‘the
plaintiff’s trade mark “Breez” ’. (See  paragraph 1–3.5.10(b).)
PART 2: CITATION RULES
(Refer to  Appendix 1B for Examples on Citation Rules)
2–1
CITATION OF CASES
2–1.1 Citation of Reported Cases
A reported case should generally be cited in the following format:
Case name [year] or (year) volume number(issue number) law report first
page number at [paragraph number] or page number [(court,
jurisdiction)]
For United States cases, use the following format:
Case name volume number law report first page number at page number
(court, year)
Refer to the table in  Appendix 2 for specific guidance on the citation style, years,
and volume numbers of some common law reports.
2–1.1.1
Case Name
For cases reported in the SLR and SLR(R), cite case names using the
shortened forms that are usually set out in the running heads.
The following abbreviations should be used:
Word or Phrase
Abbreviation
Attorney-General
AG
Management Corporation
Strata Title Plan Number
MCST Plan No
Official Assignee
OA
Official Receiver
OR
Public Prosecutor
PP
When citing a Singapore case which is the name of a ship or marine
vessel, omit the quotation marks even though these appear in the report of
the case, ie, ‘The Tokai Maru’ and not ‘The “Tokai Maru”’.
For cases reported in other law reports, cite case names in accordance with
how they are set out at the first page of the report. Omit phrases in
parentheses (eg, “(a firm)”, “(in liquidation)”), phrases that indicate the
presence of additional parties or actions (eg, “and another”, “and others”,
Part 2: Citation Rules
… 25
“and another appeal”), and additional information like “formerly known as
…”, or “trading as …”.
The word versus (Latin: “against”) in a case name should be abbreviated to
an italicised “v”. Do not type a full stop after the “v”.
If a case is a consolidation of two or more actions, cite only the first listed,
eg, “Shelley v Kraemer”, not “Shelley v Kraemer, McGhee v Sipes”.
When the name of a case differs in its procedural history, indicate it as
follows: “Great W United Corp v Kidwell 577 F 2d 1256 (5th Cir, 1978),
reversed on appeal sub nom Leroy v Great W United Corp 443 US 173
(1979)”.
2–1.1.2
Year
The year of the case should either be in parentheses (“( )”) or brackets
(“[ ]”) or depending on the practice used by the law report. In general:
• Parentheses are used when the law reports series is published by
volume number, in which case the year identifies when the case was
decided.
• Brackets are used when the series of reports is organised by year of
publication – in such cases, the year is a component of the citation
needed to locate the case.
If a case is reported well after the year in which it was decided, the latter
can be placed in parentheses before the case citation (eg, “Thompson v
Cremin (1941) [1956] 1 WLR 103”).
Some law reports (eg SLR, All ER, MLJ) use brackets but have a volume
number as well. The volume number indicates which volume of a
particular year’s law reports should be consulted. As the year is required
to find the case, it should be placed in brackets.
Although cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal from 1932 to 1965
were formerly cited by a year in parentheses and a volume number, cite
these using brackets only, thus: “Re Ong Yew Teck [1960] MLJ 67”, not
“Re Ong Yew Teck (1960) 26 MLJ 67”.
Refer to the table in  Appendix 2 for guidance.
For cases by the courts of Singapore, the United Kingdom and other
countries, place the year of the case before the volume number, law report
and first page number. For United States cases, follow the established
convention of placing the year after these citation elements.
2–1.1.3
Volume Number
Where a case is published in a particular issue of a volume and the page
numbering restarts from one in each issue, indicate the issue number in
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 26
parentheses after the volume number with no space in between, eg, “King
v Walter [1992] 6(4) Est Gaz 245”. If the whole volume is numbered
continuously regardless of the number of issues, do not indicate the issue
number.
Refer to the table in  Appendix 2 for guidance.
2–1.1.4
Law Report
Where possible, cite a case using a jurisdiction’s official, semi-official or
preferred law report(s) (in that order of preference).
The title of a law report should be abbreviated as indicated in the report or,
if no indication is given, as it is commonly abbreviated. Dictionaries of
legal abbreviations should be consulted. Refer to the table in
 Appendix 2 for guidance on the abbreviations of some common law
reports. A list of abbreviations of law reports containing Singapore and
Malaysian cases appears in  Appendix 3.
If a stipulated abbreviation is not well known, give the full name of the
law reports in italics in brackets after the abbreviation, thus: “David v
Smith & Partners (2002) 24 PC [Professional Conveyancer] 196”. If there
is no stipulated abbreviation for an uncommon law report, set out the name
of the report in full in italics.
Where parallel citations are provided, they should be separated from each
other by semicolons.
2–1.1.5
Pinpoint Citation
As far as possible, pinpoint citations to paragraph numbers or pages within
reported judgments and cases should be given to aid readers in locating
references. Give citations to page numbers only if paragraph numbers are
not indicated.
•
Citation to a Paragraph – the paragraph number should be in
brackets, eg, “[2001] 3 SLR 10 at [16]”.
•
Citation to a Page – eg, “(1908) 12 SSLR 120 at 122”, “[1985] 2
All ER 243 at 250”.
Separate consecutive paragraph or page references by an en-dash, stating
all page numbers in full, eg, “253–262”. Separate non-consecutive
numbers by commas. To indicate a general rather than a specific range of
paragraphs or pages, place “ff” (“and following”) immediately after the
paragraph or page number.
Where a report is divided into columns, such as Lloyd’s Law Reports or
the Malayan Law Journal, the abbreviations “LHC” (‘left-hand column’)
and “RHC” (‘right-hand column’) may be used to indicate which column
Part 2: Citation Rules
… 27
the cited text appears in, eg, “[1993] 1 Lloyd’s Rep 85 at 90 LHC”,
“[1971] 2 MLJ 43 at 49 RHC”.
2–1.1.6
Court and Jurisdiction
Indicate the court and/or jurisdiction of a case only if it is not evident from
the title of the law report, eg, if both a judgment at first instance and the
judgment on appeal are cited and the judgments have the same name.
If required, indicate the court and/or jurisdiction where the case was heard,
using the abbreviations in the tables in  Appendix 1B.
For United States cases, apply the following rules:
•
Federal Courts – a citation to a decision of the Supreme Court
does not require the name of the court. Courts of Appeals should be
referred to by the numbered circuit (eg, “1st Cir”, “2nd Cir”); Courts of
Appeals for the District of Columbia should be cited “DC Cir” and Courts
of Appeals for the Federal Circuit should be cited “Fed Cit”. For district
court cases, give only an abbreviated name for the district.
•
State Courts – indicate the state and court of the decision, but do
not name the court if it is the highest court in the state. Do not include the
state if it is obvious from the law report.
2–1.2 Citation of Unreported Judgments and Cases
Do not insert “(unreported)”. Follow the rules below instead.
2–1.2.1
Cases with Neutral Citations
Unreported cases to which neutral citations have been assigned should be
cited as follows:
Case name neutral citation at [paragraph number] or page number
[(court, jurisdiction)] (unreported)
Refer to  Appendix 1B for the neutral citations used in Singapore.
2–1.2.2
Cases without Neutral Citations
Unreported cases not assigned neutral citations should be cited as follows:
Singapore cases:
Case name suit or application indicator and number (where available)
(date of judgment) [(court, jurisdiction)] at [paragraph number] or
page number
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 28
Foreign cases:
Case name (date of judgment, court) (jurisdiction) at [paragraph number]
or page number
Further examples of suit or application indicators and numbers, and the
way they should be abbreviated for subsequent references are set out in the
table in  Appendix 1B.
2–1.2.3
Pinpoint Citation
Pinpoint citations to paragraphs in unreported cases should be in the same
format as for reported cases ( paragraph 2–1.1.5).
2–1.3 Citation of Cases Published in Electronic Form
A citation to a case published in electronic form should only be given if the case has
not been published in print version, or if the print version of the case cannot be
conveniently accessed locally.
2–1.3.1
Cases from Electronic Databases
Cases should be cited as indicated in  paragraphs 2–1.2.1 and 2–1.2.2,
followed by the database identifier. Pinpoint citations should be to
paragraphs of the case, if available. If not, give references to screen or
page numbers stated in the database preceded by an asterisk:
Case citation, database identifier at [[paragraph number] or *database
screen or page number]
2–1.3.2
Cases from the Internet
Judgment should be exercised when citing Internet sources as they vary in
their reliability and may be transient in nature. Cases should be cited as
indicated in  paragraph 2–1.2.1 and 2–1.2.2 (omitting the pinpoint
citation) followed by the uniform resource locator (URL) of the webpage
containing the case and the date when the webpage was accessed. The
pinpoint citation should be given at the end:
Case citation (without pinpoint citation) <uniform resource locator>
(accessed date) at [paragraph number] or page number
If the URL of a webpage is excessively long, set out the URL of a parent
webpage or the home page.
Part 2: Citation Rules
… 29
2–1.4 Citation of Digests of Cases
An unreported judgment or case should not be cited solely by reference to a digest.
However, a digest of a case may be added to a citation of an unreported case in the
following format:
Case citation, digested at volume number digest [(editionth Ed, year) or
date,] [[paragraph number] or at page number]
2–1.5 Subsequent References
After the first reference, a case may be cited by a short title. If it is desired to refer to a
case by one party, the non-government-related party’s name should generally be used.
Subsequent references to cases cited in earlier paragraphs should be set out in the
following format: ([paragraph number] supra) at pinpoint.
SLR Style Guide 2015
2–2
… 30
CITATION OF LEGISLATION
2–2.1 Citation of Singapore Legislation.
2–2.1.1
Constitution
Cite the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore as follows:
Constitution of the Republic of Singapore (year of reprint
Reprint) Art article number
As at the date of publication of this reprint of the Style Guide, the current
reprint of the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore was the 1999
Reprint.
2–2.1.2
Statutes.
2–2.1.2.1 Statutes without Chapter Numbers
Statutes applicable to Singapore that have not been assigned
chapter numbers as part of a revised edition of statutes should
be cited according to the following formats:
Period
22 November 1834
–
1 April 1867
Status of Singapore
Part of Straits
Settlements under
Indian
administration
Citation Format
Title of Act (Indian Act No
number of year)
pinpoint
[Indicate the Act number in
Arabic, not Roman,
numerals.]
1 April 1867 –
15 February 1942
Part of Straits
Settlements under
British
administration
Short Title of
Act/Ordinance year (SS
Ord No number of year)
pinpoint
[Statutes were erroneously
termed ‘Acts’ in 1867
only.]
15 February 1942 –
15 August 1945
Under Japanese
Military
Administration
–
Part 2: Citation Rules
Period
… 31
Status of Singapore
15 August 1945 –
31 March 1946
Under British
Military
Administration
Citation Format
Name of Proclamation
(Procl No number, date)
pinpoint
1 April 1946 –
2 June 1959
Crown Colony
Short Title of Ordinance
year (No number of
year) pinpoint
3 June 1959 –
8 August 1965
State
Short Title of Ordinance
year (No number of
(State in the
Federation of
Malaysia from 16
September 1963 – 8
August 1965)
9 August 1965 –
present
Republic
year) pinpoint
Short Title of Act year (No
number of year)
pinpoint
Parts of statutes should be cited from the largest part to the
smallest, eg, “Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority
Act 2004 (No 3 of 2004), Third Sched, para 7”.
2–2.1.2.2 Statutes with Chapter Numbers
Singapore statutes that have been assigned chapter numbers
should be cited as follows:
Short title of statute ([SS] Cap chapter number,
year Rev Ed) pinpoint
Parts of statutes should be cited from the largest part to the
smallest, eg, “Supreme Court of Judicature Act (Cap 322, 1999
Rev Ed), First Sched, para 19”.
2–2.1.3
Subsidiary Legislation
2–2.1.3.1 Subsidiary Legislation without Chapter Numbers
Singapore subsidiary legislation that has not been assigned
chapter numbers as part of a revised edition of subsidiary
legislation should be cited according to the following formats:
SLR Style Guide 2015
Period
22 November 1834 –
15 February 1942
Status of
Singapore
Part of Straits
Settlements under
Indian and British
administration
… 32
Citation Format
Short Title of Subsidiary
Legislation year (GN
No S number/year)
pinpoint
[‘GN’ stands for ‘Gazette
Notification’.]
15 February 1942 –
31 March 1946
Under Japanese
Military
Administration and
British Military
Administration
1 April 1946 –
2 June 1959
Crown Colony
3 June 1959 –
8 August 1965
State
–
Short Title of Subsidiary
Legislation year (GN
No S number/year)
pinpoint
3 June 1959 –
31 December 1959
State
Short Title of Subsidiary
Legislation year (GN
No S (NS) number/year)
pinpoint
[‘NS’ stands for ‘New
Series’.]
1 January 1959 –
15 September 1963
State
Short Title of Subsidiary
Legislation year (GN
No S number/year)
pinpoint
16 September 1963 –
8 August 1965
State in the
Federation of
Malaysia
Short Title of Subsidiary
Legislation year (GN Sp
No S number/year)
pinpoint
[‘Sp’ stands for
‘Singapore’.]
Part 2: Citation Rules
Period
Status of
Singapore
9 August 1965 –
present
Republic
… 33
Citation Format
Short Title of Subsidiary
Legislation year (GN
No S number/year)
pinpoint
Set out all years in four-digit format. Where a piece of
subsidiary legislation lacks a descriptive title, provide one in
brackets.
Parts of subsidiary legislation should be cited from the largest
part to the smallest, eg, “Goods and Services Tax (Non-Taxable
Government Supplies) Order 2003 (S 626/2003), Sched, para
(G)”.
2–2.1.3.2 Subsidiary Legislation with Chapter Numbers
Singapore subsidiary legislation that has been assigned chapter
numbers as part of a revised edition should be cited as follows:
Short title of subsidiary legislation (Cap chapter
number, R/Rg/O/N rule, regulation, order or
notification number, year Rev Ed) pinpoint
Parts of subsidiary legislation should be cited from the largest
part to the smallest, eg, “Rules of Court (Cap 322, R 5,
2004 Rev Ed), Appendix A, Form 46”.
2–2.1.4
Bills
Bills should be cited as follows:
Short Title of Bill year (Bill number of year) cl clause number
[, <universal resource locator> (accessed date)]
Bills published from 2002 onwards are available from the legislation
database
on
the
Parliament
of
Singapore
website
at
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/Legislation/
Htdocs/leg-main.html.
Optionally, when writing for a foreign audience that may not have
convenient access to the print version of the Bills Supplement of the
Republic of Singapore Government Gazette, a citation to this website may
be included.
SLR Style Guide 2015
2–2.1.5
… 34
Other Materials Published in the Government Gazette
Originally, all Singapore bills, notices and subsidiary legislation were
published in one undivided Government Gazette (acts and ordinances had
been published in a separate volume since 1867). Subsequently, additional
supplementary volumes were published. Currently, the Republic of
Singapore Government Gazette is published in the following parts:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Government Gazette;
Government Gazette Supplement (1976– );
Government Gazette Acts Supplement;
Government Gazette Bills Supplement (1963– );
Government Gazette Industrial Relations Supplement (1963– );
Government Gazette Subsidiary Legislation Supplement (1941– );
and
Government Gazette Treaties Supplement (1968– ).
(The Government Gazette Trade Marks Supplement was published 1980–
1998, after which it was superseded by the Trade Marks Journal (1999– )
published by the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS). IPOS
also publishes the Patents Journal (1995– ) and Designs Journal (2001–
).)
Statutes, subsidiary legislation and bills published in the Gazette should be
cited as instructed in  paragraphs 2–2.1.2 to 2–2.1.4, while treaties
should be cited as instructed in  paragraph 2–7.1.
Material not assigned a Gazette Notification number should be cited as
follows:
Title of Material (Title of Gazette, date) at page number
Other material should be cited in the following format, modified to suit the
nature of the material:
Title of Material ([SS] GN Gazette indicator No number/year)
Where material lacks a descriptive title, provide one in brackets. For the
Gazette indicator, use the following abbreviations:
Government Gazette Indicator
Abbreviation
Collective Agreement (in the
Industrial Relations Supplement)
CA
Gazette Notification Number
GN No
Gazette Notification Supplement Number
GN Supp No
Government Gazette
Govt Gazette
Industrial Relations Supplement
IR
Straits Settlements
SS
Treaties Supplement
T
Part 2: Citation Rules
2–2.1.6
… 35
Pinpoint Citations
Citations to parts of legislation, such as articles, orders, paragraphs, rules,
regulations, sections and subsections, should use the abbreviations set out
in  paragraph 1–3.2.2.
When citing sub-provisions that use lowercase letters, italicise the letters
to conform with how they are set out in legislation and to distinguish them
from Roman numerals, as follows: “s 5(1)(a)”, “regs 14(3)(l) to 14(3)(n)”.
When citing a range of provisions, set out the beginning and ending
provisions in the range and separate them by an en-dash. If the parts of
legislation are numbers, set out the ending provision in full; do not merely
retain the last one or two digits of the number, eg, “ss 510–513”, not
“ss 510–13” or “ss 510–3.
Separate non-consecutive numbers by commas. Where commas are used to
separate sub-provisions, semicolons should be used to separate the
provisions, as follows: “O 14 rr 1, 2, 4; O 15 rr 1, 2”.
Where several sub-provisions of the same provision of a piece of
legislation are referred to, the main provision number should not be
omitted, ie, “ss 5(1), 5(3), 5(4)” and not “ss 5(1), (3), (4)” ”; and
“Sections 25(1)(a) and 25(1)(b)” rather than “Section 25(1)(a) and (b)”.
This ensures that readers consulting electronic versions of Singapore
Academy of Law publications will be able to locate relevant cases by
using these sub-provisions as search criteria.
2–2.2 Citation of Foreign Legislation
A piece of foreign legislation should be cited as it is usually cited in its country of
origin, except that full stops after abbreviations and formatting styles such as italics
should be omitted. The jurisdiction should be placed in parentheses at the end of the
citation before the pinpoint. Jurisdictions should be abbreviated as shown in 
paragraph 2–1.1.6.
In the absence of any clear indication of how the legislation of a particular foreign
jurisdiction should be cited, adapt the citation method used for Singapore legislation
(see  paragraph 2–2.1).
2–2.2.1
Australia and New Zealand Legislation
Short title of statute year (jurisdiction) pinpoint
Short title of subsidiary legislation year (jurisdiction) pinpoint
Use the following abbreviations:
SLR Style Guide 2015
Word or Phrase
2–2.2.2
… 36
Abbreviation
chapter
ch
schedule (Australian legislation; do not abbreviate for
New Zealand legislation)
sch
Statutory Regulation (New Zealand)
SR
Canadian Legislation
Short title of statute, statute volume jurisdiction year, c chapter
number (Can), pinpoint
Short title of revised regulation, CRC, c chapter number (Can),
pinpoint (year)
Use the following abbreviations:
Word or Phrase
Abbreviation
Appendix
App
article(s) (in Quebec codes)
art(s)
chapter
c
Revised Statutes, Re-enacted Statutes
RS
Schedule
Sch
Sessional Volume
Supplement
S
Supp
2–2.2.2.1 Statute Volume
Cite either the Revised Statutes or Re-enacted Statutes (“RS”)
in preference to the sessional or annual volumes (“S”).
2–2.2.2.2 Jurisdiction
Use the abbreviations in the following table for Canadian
jurisdictions:
Jurisdiction
Abbreviation
Canada
C
Lower Canada
LC
Upper Canada
UC
Alberta
A
British
Columbia
BC
Manitoba
M
Part 2: Citation Rules
Jurisdiction
… 37
Abbreviation
New Brunswick
NB
Newfoundland and Labrador
NL
Northwest
Territories
NWT
Nova Scotia
NS
Nunavut
Nu
Ontario
O
Prince Edward
Island
PEI
Québec
Q
Saskatchewan
S
Yukon
Y
2–2.2.2.3 Revised Regulations
“CRC” refers to the Consolidated Regulations of Canada. For
citation of unrevised federal regulations, and provincial and
territorial regulations, refer to the Canadian Guide to Uniform
Legal Citation.
2–2.2.3
Malaysian Legislation
Short title of statute year (No [A]Act number of year) (M’sia)
pinpoint
Short title of subsidiary legislation [year] (PU(A/B) subsidiary
legislation number/year) (M’sia) pinpoint
Malaysian federal legislation is published in two series, one for general
Acts and the “A” supplementary series for amending Acts and Acts of
temporary duration. Similarly, more important subsidiary legislation is
published in the “PU(A)” series, and other subsidiary legislation in the
“PU(B)” series.
2–2.2.4
United Kingdom Legislation
Short title of statute year (c chapter number) (UK) pinpoint
Short title of subsidiary legislation year (SI year No statutory
instrument number) (UK) pinpoint
SLR Style Guide 2015
Use the following abbreviations:
Word or Phrase
… 38
Abbreviation
Appendix
App
article(s)
art(s)
chapter
c
Order
Ord
Statutory Instrument
SI
Schedule
Sch
2–2.2.4.1 Year
Regnal years, traditionally cited for all UK legislation enacted
before 1 January 1963, may be omitted.
2–2.2.5
United States of America Legislation
US Constitution Art/Amend article or amendment number in
Roman numerals § section number cl clause number
Title of statute division of code (if applicable) USC (US)
§ section number (year)
Title of rule or regulation title number CFR (US) § section
number (year)
2–2.2.5.1 Statutes
Cite statutes to the official federal code, the United States Code
(USC), in preference to codes by private publishers, reporters
of session laws and looseleaf services. Once a statute has been
codified, it is not usually referred to by its original title unless it
is commonly known by that name. For citation of sources other
than the USC, refer to The Bluebook: A Uniform System of
Citation.
2–2.2.5.2 Rules and Regulations
Where possible, cite federal rules and regulations to the Code
of Federal Regulations (CFR). Indicate the title of a rule or
regulation when it is commonly known under that name. For
citation of sources other than the CFR, refer to The Bluebook: A
Uniform System of Citation.
Part 2: Citation Rules
… 39
2–2.3 Subsequent References
After the first reference, legislation may be referred to using an abbreviation. If an
abbreviation is to be used, it should be indicated in parentheses following the first
citation of the legislation, eg, “Misuse of Drugs Act (Cap 185, 2001 Rev Ed)
(“MDA”)”.
Do not use the terms ibid, id, op cit, see above or supra in subsequent references to
legislation as the full citations of legislation may be ascertained from the list of
legislation referred to.
SLR Style Guide 2015
2–3
… 40
CITATION OF GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS
2–3.1 Citation of Parliamentary Debates
Singapore parliamentary debates should be cited in one of the following formats:
Straits Settlements (1 August 1867 – 14 February 1942)
Straits Settlements, Colony of Singapore, Proceedings of the [First/
Second] Legislative Council [, sessionth Sess] [, year] (date of
debate) at page number(s) [(speaker’s full name, speaker’s
position in government or opposition)]
Colony of Singapore (1 April 1946 – 2 June 1959);
State of Singapore (3 June 1959 – 8 August 1965)
Colony/State of Singapore, Legislative Assembly Debates, Official Report
(date of debate) [, vol volume number] at col(s) column number(s)
[(speaker’s full name, speaker’s position in government or
opposition)]
Republic of Singapore (9 August 1965 –)
Singapore Parliamentary Debates, Official Report (date of debate) [, vol
volume number] at col(s) column number(s) [, <universal resource
locator> at page number(s) (accessed date)] [(speaker’s full name,
speaker’s position in government or opposition)]
Parliamentary debates published from 2002 onwards are available from the
Parliament reports database on the Parliament of Singapore website at http://www.
parliament.gov.sg/Publication/Htdocs/Pub_parlp_report.html.
Optionally, when
writing for a foreign audience that may not have convenient access to the print version
of the Parliamentary Debates, Official Report, a citation to this website may be
included.
Parliamentary debates of other jurisdictions should be cited as follows:
Jurisdiction [(country)], legislative assembly, Title of Debates (date of
debate), [series, volume, etc] at [col(s) column number(s) or page
number(s)] [, <universal resource locator> at pinpoint (accessed
Part 2: Citation Rules
… 41
date)] [(speaker’s full name, speaker’s position in government or
opposition)]
2–3.2 Citation of Parliamentary Papers
Parliamentary papers should be cited as follows:
[Jurisdiction (country), government organ or department] Title of
Parliamentary Paper (type of parliamentary paper, reference
number, [date or year]) at [paragraph number] or page number
[(Chairman, Chairperson, etc: name)]
Omit the jurisdiction and country for Singapore parliamentary papers.
For United Kingdom command papers, use the following abbreviations for the
reference number:
Series
Year
Command Paper
Abbreviation
Numbers
1st series
1833–1869
1–4222
c
2d series
1870–1899
1–9550
C
3d series
1900–1918
1–9239
Cd
4th series
1919–1956
1–9889
Cmd
5th series
1957–
1–
Cmnd
SLR Style Guide 2015
2–4
… 42
CITATION OF BOOKS
2–4.1 Citation of Bound Books
A bound book should be cited as follows:
Author(s), Title of Book [(series No series number, institution)]
(compiler(s)/editor(s), comp(s)/ed(s)) (publisher, editionth Ed,
year) at [para [paragraph number] or p page number]
In judgments, it is only necessary to cite the title, publisher, edition, year of
publication and pinpoint, if any. If it is not possible or feasible to ascertain both the
publisher and edition of the book, cite only the publisher or the edition, whichever is
available. Additional information (such as the author’s name) may be provided if it
would help to locate the book cited.
2–4.1.1
Authors, Compilers or Editors
Omit honorifics and titles of authors. If there are two or three authors,
compilers or editors, separate with an ampersand the names of the authors,
or of the second and third authors, as the case may be. If there are more
than three authors, compilers or editors, give the name of the first person
followed by “et al”.
2–4.1.2
Title of Book
Book titles should be in italics and capitalised according to the rules in 
paragraph 1–3.5.8(b).
2–4.1.3
Edition
For the first edition of a book, do NOT indicate “1st Ed”.
2–4.1.4
Pinpoint
Paragraph numbers should be enclosed in brackets.
2–4.2 Citation of Bound Books that are Part of a Set
A bound book that is one volume in a set should be cited as follows:
Title of Set or Abbreviation Specified in Work vol volume number
(compiler(s)/editor(s), comp(s)/ed(s)) (publisher, editionth Ed,
year) at [para [paragraph number] or p page number]
Part 2: Citation Rules
… 43
2–4.3 Citation of Looseleaf Books
A looseleaf book should be cited in the same way as a bound work, except that the
date of release of the particular pages or parts referred to should be indicated after the
year of publication of the entire work. This information usually appears printed on
the relevant pages or parts.
Examples
Malaysian and Singapore Company Law and Practice (CCH Company Law eds)
(1990, 2002 release) at para 20-090
Woodfall’s Law of Landlord and Tenant (Kim Lewison gen ed) (Sweet & Maxwell,
Looseleaf Ed, 1994, October 2000 release) at para 9.001
2–4.4 Subsequent References
After the first reference, a book may be cited by its author’s surname, a combination
of the author’s surname and a short version of the book’s title, or a short version of
the title. In judgments, do not use the terms ibid, id, op cit, see above or supra in
subsequent references to books or articles.
SLR Style Guide 2015
2–5
… 44
CITATION OF ARTICLES
2–5.1 Citation of Articles in Law Journals or Reviews
An article from a law journal or review should be cited as follows:
Author(s), [article type,] “Title of Article” [year] or (year) volume
number(issue number) law journal or review first page number at
[paragraph number] or page number
An article from a collection of articles published in a book should be cited as follows:
Article author(s), “Title of Article” in book author(s), Title of Book
(compiler(s)/editor(s), comp(s)/ed(s)) (editionth Ed, year) ch
chapter number at p page number
Apply to articles the rules in  paragraphs 2–1.1.2, 2–1.1.3 and 2–4.1.
2–5.1.1
Article Type
Optionally, indicate the type of article between the author and the title of
the article, eg, “Book Review”, “Case Note”, “Editorial”, “Legislation
Note”, “Note”.
2–5.1.2
Law Journal or Review
Set out the names of law journals or reviews as specified in those
publications, or as they are commonly abbreviated. Dictionaries of legal
abbreviations should be consulted. Examples of citations of selected law
journals and reviews published in Singapore and Malaysia are set out in
 Appendix 4.
2–5.2 Citation of Articles in Serial Publications
An article from a serial publication such as a magazine or newspaper should be cited
as follows:
Author(s)/journalist(s), “Title of Article”, Serial Publication [(city,
country)] (date) at first page number
Part 2: Citation Rules
… 45
2–5.3 Citation of Articles Published in Electronic Form
A citation to an article published in electronic form should only be given if the article
has not been published in a print version, or if the print version cannot be
conveniently accessed locally.
2–5.3.1
Articles Available in Electronic Databases
An article available in an electronic database should be cited as follows:
Article citation, available in database, database identifier
2–5.3.2
Articles from the Internet
Judgment should be exercised when citing Internet sources as they vary in
their reliability and may be transient in nature. Articles should be cited as
indicated in  paragraph 2–5.1 and 2–5.2 (omitting the pinpoint citation)
followed by the uniform resource locator (URL) of the webpage
containing the case and the date of publication of the article or the date
when the webpage was accessed. The pinpoint citation should be given at
the end:
Article citation (without pinpoint citation) <uniform resource
locator> ([article date]
or [accessed
date]) at
[paragraph number]
If the URL of a webpage is excessively long, set out the URL of a parent webpage
or the home page.
2–5.4 Subsequent References
After the first reference, an article may be cited by its author’s surname, or a
combination of the author’s surname and a short version of the article’s title.
In
judgments, do not use the terms ibid, id, op cit, see above or supra in subsequent
references to books or articles.
SLR Style Guide 2015
2–6
… 46
CITATION OF UNPUBLISHED, FORTHCOMING AND OTHER TYPES OF
MATERIALS
2–6.1 Citation of Unpublished Materials
2–6.1.1
Manuscripts
Cite manuscripts that are unpublished or not formally published, and
which are not scheduled for publication, as follows:
Author(s), Title of Manuscript, conference or lecture, venue
[city, country] (date or year) at pinpoint (unpublished,
archived at location)
2–6.1.2
Dissertations, Essays and Theses
Cite an unpublished dissertation, essay or thesis written in fulfilment or
partial fulfilment of a degree in the same manner as a manuscript, but
indicate the type of work, the degree for which the work was prepared, and
the institution that awarded the degree as follows:
Author(s), Title of Dissertation, Essay or Thesis (date or year)
at
pinpoint
dissertation/essay/thesis,
(unpublished
institution,
degree
archived
at
location)
2–6.1.3
Letters, E-mails and Memoranda
In citing unpublished letters, e-mails and memoranda, indicate the writers
and addressees by their names, titles and institutional affiliation, if any, as
follows:
Letter/E-mail/Memorandum from writer’s name, title, institution, to
addressee’s name, title, institution (date) at [para [paragraph
number] or p page number]
2–6.1.4
Interviews
An unpublished in-person, telephone or e-mail interview should be cited
by indicating the title and institutional affiliation, if any, of the interviewee
and, for an in-person interview, the location of the interview, as follows:
[Telephone/E-mail] interview with interviewee’s name, title,
institution, [in city, country] (date)
Part 2: Citation Rules
… 47
When the author has not personally conducted the interview, the name of
the interviewer should be indicated:
Interviewer’s
name,
[telephone/e-mail]
interview
with
interviewee’s name, title, institution, [in city, country]
(date)
2–6.1.5
Speeches and Press Releases
Where possible, cite a speech or press release by reference to a print or
Internet source, as follows:
Author/speaker, title, institution, “Title of Speech/Press
Release”, opening address, speech, press release, etc at
occasion (date), in Publication, reference number, first
page number at pinpoint [, <universal resource locator>
(accessed date)]
If the URL of a webpage is excessively long, set out the URL of a parent
webpage or the home page.
Cite an unpublished speech or press release as follows:
Speaker’s name, title, institution, “Title of Speech”, [opening
address, speech, etc, at occasion] or [press release,
press statement, etc, on subject] (date)
2–6.2 Citation of Forthcoming Materials
A work scheduled for forthcoming publication should be cited in a similar manner to
the published piece, except that no first page number is stated following the title of the
journal or book; the designation “forthcoming” is included; and the month of
publication, if available, should be included in addition to the year:
Author(s), “Title of Article” volume number(issue number) law journal or
review (forthcoming, month year) (manuscript at pinpoint)
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 48
Author(s), “Title of Article” in book author(s), Title of Book
(compiler(s)/editor(s), comp(s)/ed(s), forthcoming, month year)
(manuscript at pinpoint)
2–6.3 Citation of Law Reform Working Papers and Reports
Working papers and reports issued by law reform commissions should be cited as
follows:
[Jurisdiction (country),] institution, Title of Working Paper or Report
([Working Paper, Report, etc] reference number, [date or year]) at
[paragraph number] or page number [(Chairman, Chairperson, etc:
name)]
Omit the jurisdiction and country for papers from Singapore, and if the information is
clear from the name of the institution.
Part 2: Citation Rules
2–7
… 49
CITATION OF INTERNATIONAL MATERIALS
2–7.1 Citation of Treaties
Conventions, treaties or other bilateral or international agreements should be cited in
the following format:
Treaty’s Name (date), [parties], treaty series, pinpoint (entered into force
date [, accession by Singapore date]) [, database identifier
<universal resource locator>] (“Short Title”)
2–7.1.1
Name of Treaty
Indicate the nature of the instrument, eg, “Agreement”, “Convention”,
“Protocol”, “Treaty”, “Understanding”.
2–7.1.2
Date
If parties can accede to the treaty, cite the full date the treaty was opened
for signature, thus: “opened for signature date”.
In other cases, cite the date the treaty was signed. When an agreement or
exchange of notes between two parties has more than one date of signing,
give the first and last dates, thus: “(12 August – 23 September 2002)”. If a
treaty between three or more parties is not signed on a single date, use the
date on which the treaty is opened for signature, done, approved or
adopted, and indicate the significance of the date, eg, “(adopted on 6 May
1999)”.
2–7.1.3
Parties
If the parties to a bilateral treaty are not specified in the name of the treaty,
list them after the date separated by an en-dash. Shorten the names to
reflect common usage but do not abbreviate them, ie, “United Kingdom”,
not “United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland” or “UK”;
“United States”, not “United States of America” or “US”.
The parties to a multilateral treaty need not be given.
2–7.1.4
Treaty Series
Where applicable, cite the treaty series in the following order:
•
Primary official international treaty series, eg, United Nations
Treaty Series (UNTS), League of Nations Treaty Series
(LNTS), European Treaty Series (Eur TS).
•
Singapore Government Gazette Treaties Supplement, if the
treaty is published in it.
•
Official treaty series of the other state party.
SLR Style Guide 2015
•
… 50
Other unofficial international treaty series and parallel citations,
eg, International Legal Materials (ILM).
Singapore does not have an official treaty series. Only a limited number of
treaties to which Singapore is a party are published in the Government
Gazette Treaties Supplement. The Singapore Treaties Database managed
by the Attorney-General’s Chambers which is available on the Legal
Prospector section of LawNet at http://www.lawnet.com.sg contains
information on treaties to which Singapore is a party, as well as the full
text of selected treaties or hyperlinks to such full text available elsewhere
on the Internet. Selected free trade agreements to which Singapore is a
party are available on the Ministry of Trade and Industry’s website at
http://www.fta.gov.sg.
Use the following citation formats:
Treaty Series
Period
Citation Format
Official International Treaty Series
League of Nations Treaty
Series
1920–1945
Volume number LNTS
first page number
United Nations Treaty
Series
1946–
European Treaty Series
1948–
Eur TS No number
1968–
GN No T number/year
Australia Treaty Series
1947–
Year Aust TS No number
Canada Treaty Series
1925–
Year Can TS No number
Great Britain/United
Kingdom Treaty Series
1883–
Year GBTS/UKTS No
Volume number UNTS
first page number
Official National Treaty Series
Singapore Government
Gazette Treaties
Supplement
[Included for convenience
though not an official
treaty series: see text
above.]
number
Part 2: Citation Rules
Treaty Series
United States Statutes at
Large
… 51
Period
–
Citation Format
Volume number Stat
number
United States Treaties and
Other International Acts
Series
1945–
TIAS No number
United States Treaties and
Other International
Agreements
1950–
Volume number UST No
number
Unofficial Treaty Series
Consolidated Treaty
Series
published
1969–1981
Volume number Cons TS
International Legal
Materials
published
1962–
Volume number ILM first
1494–1943
Volume number Martens
Nouveau Recueil Général
des Traités
first page number
page number
Nouveau Recueil series
first page number
2–7.1.5
Database Identifier and Universal Resource Locator
Where the full text of a treaty is available on the Internet, a reference may
be given to the website where it can be accessed. For treaties that are
available in their full text on the Singapore Treaties Database on LawNet,
the database identifier should be either “Bilateral Treaty No Bnumber” or
“Multilateral Treaty No Mnumber”.
2–7.2 Citation of International Cases
2–7.2.1
International Court of Justice and Permanent Court of International
Justice
Cite cases and pleadings of cases before the Permanent Court of
International Justice (PCIJ) (1922–1940) (also known as the World Court)
and the International Court of Justice (ICJ) (1945– ) as follows:
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 52
Name of Case/Pleading [(Claimant v Respondent)] [(nature or
phase of action)] [year] PCIJ (ser series) No case
number at pinpoint
Name of Case [(Claimant v Respondent)] [(nature or phase of
action)] [year] ICJ first page number at pinpoint [,
<universal resource locator> (accessed date)]
Name of Pleading [(Claimant v Respondent)] [year] ICJ
Pleadings (volume number Name of Case) first page
number at pinpoint [, <universal resource locator>
(accessed date)]
2–7.2.1.1 Case Name and Names of Claimant and Respondent
Set out the case name as found in the report, omitting the
introductory word The. Include the names of the claimant and
respondent in parentheses if not already in the case name. Do
not include the names of the claimant and respondent in
advisory opinions.
2–7.2.1.2 Nature or Phase of Action
Where applicable, the nature (eg, “(Advisory Opinion)”) or
phase of the action (eg, “(Jurisdiction)”, “(Merits)”) should be
indicated.
2–7.2.1.3 Name of Publication
Decisions and other documents of the Permanent Court of
International Justice were published in six series, A through F.
These series must be indicated in citations to PCIJ documents.
International Court of Justice opinions are published in Reports
of Judgments, Advisory Opinions and Orders (“ICJ”), while
pleadings are published in Pleadings, Oral Arguments,
Documents (“ICJ Pleadings”). Optionally, a parallel citation
may be given to the International Court of Justice website at
http://www.icj-cjj.org.
Part 2: Citation Rules
2–7.2.2
… 53
Court of Justice of the European Communities
Cite a case before the Court of Justice of the European Communities (EC)
as follows:
Case name Case number/year, [(year) volume number or
[year]] ECR first page number at pinpoint [, parallel
citation] [, <http://europa. eu.int/eur-lex/en/index.html>
(accessed date)] [, Ct First Instance]
2–7.2.2.1 Case Name
Where the EC Commission, Council or Parliament is one of the
parties, give its name as “Commission”, “Council” or
“Parliament”.
2–7.2.2.2 Law Report Series and Parallel Citation
Cite cases to the Report of Cases Before the Court of Justice of
the European Communities (“ECR”), unless they have not yet
been reported in that report series. Beginning with 1990 Part I,
page numbers in the ECR begin with a “I” or “II” before the
number.
Optionally, include not more than one parallel citation to an
unofficial law report series, eg, Common Market Law Reports
(“CMLR”), Common Market Reporter (“CM Rep”) or
European Community Cases (“CEC”), and/or a citation to EurLex, the European Union law portal, at http://europa.eu.int/eurlex/en/index.html.
2–7.2.2.3 Jurisdiction
Where a case is before the Court of First Instance, indicate “Ct
First Instance” at the end of the citation.
2–7.2.3
European Court and European Commission of Human Rights
Cite cases before the European Court of Human Rights as follows:
Case name (year) volume number Eur Ct HR (ser A/B) at
pinpoint, (year) volume number EHRR first page
number at
pinpoint [, <http://hudoc.echr.coe.int>
(accessed date)]
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 54
Case name (year) volume number YB Eur Conv HR first page
number at pinpoint, (year) volume number EHRR first
page
number
at
pinpoint,
Eur
Ct
HR
[,
<http://hudoc.echr.coe.int> (accessed date)]
Cases before the European Commission of Human Rights should be cited
as follows:
Case name (year) volume number Eur Comm HR CD/Eur
Comm HR DR first page number at pinpoint, (year)
volume number EHRR first page number at pinpoint [,
<http://hudoc.echr.coe.int> (accessed date)]
Case name (year) volume number YB Eur Conv HR first page
number at pinpoint, (year) volume number EHRR first
page number
at
pinpoint,
Eur Comm
HR
[,
<http://hudoc.echr.coe.int> (accessed date)]
2–7.2.3.1 Law Report Series
Where possible, cite European Court of Human Rights cases to
the official European Court of Human Rights, Series A (“Eur
Ct HR (ser A)”) and European Commission of Human Rights
cases to the Collections of Decisions of the European
Commission of Human Rights (1960–1974) and Decisions and
Reports of the European Commission of Human Rights (1975–
present) (“Eur Comm HR CD” and “Eur Comm HR DR”).
As each volume of the Eur Ct HR contains only one case, it is
unnecessary to indicate the first page number of the case. Omit
the “I-” following the volume number.
Otherwise, cite to the Yearbook of the European Convention on
Human Rights (“YB Eur Conv HR”) or the European Human
Rights Reporter (“EHRR”) and include the designation “Eur Ct
HR” or “Eur Comm HR” at the end of the citation.
Provide a parallel citation to the European Human Rights
Reports (“EHRR”) if available. Optionally, include a citation
to HUDOC, the Human Rights Documents website managed by
Part 2: Citation Rules
… 55
the European Court of Human Rights, at http://hudoc.
echr.coe.int.
2–7.3 Citation of United Nations Materials
2–7.3.1
United Nations Charter
Cite the United Nations (UN) Charter as follows:
UN Charter (26 June 1945) art article para paragraph
2–7.3.2
Official Records
United Nations (UN) official records should be cited as follows:
Author(s), Title of Document, resolution indicator Res
resolution number, UN UN organ abbreviationOR
[committeeth Comm], sessionth Sess, Pt part, [Annex
number/Supp No supplement number,] [meetingth
mtg/Agenda Item number] at [paragraph number] or
page number, UN Doc document number, [UN Sales
No number,] (year) [, volume ILM first page number
at page number]
Information on UN official records such as resolution numbers and dates
of resolutions can be obtained from the UN Documentation Centre website
at http:// www.un.org/documents.
2–7.3.2.1 Author and Title of Document
Include the name of the author only if it is not apparent from
the title of document.
2–7.3.2.2 Resolution Number and UN Organ and Committee
Use the following abbreviations for resolution indicators and
the official records (OR) of UN organs:
UN Organ
Resolution
Indicator
Abbreviation
UN Official
Record
Abbreviation
General Assembly
GA Res
GAOR
Security Council
SC Res
SCOR
SLR Style Guide 2015
UN Organ
Economic and Social
Council
… 56
Resolution
Indicator
Abbreviation
UN Official
Record
Abbreviation
ESC Res
ESCOR
Abbreviate Committee to “Comm”.
2–7.3.2.3 Session Number
The session number is sometimes indicated in Roman numerals
in parentheses after the resolution number, eg “GA Res 217
(III)”. If this is the case in any source, set out the session
number in the citation as shown above in  paragraph 2–
7.3.2.
2–7.3.2.4 Sub-divisions
Within a single volume of UN official records there may be sudivisions that are separately paginated. These sub-divisions
should be indicated thus:
•
•
•
Meeting Records – “meetingth mtg”.
Annexes – “Agenda Item number [, addendum pt
part]”.
Supplement Volumes – “Supp No supplement
number” or “Supp for month–month year” (since
1948, Security Council supplements have been
denominated by the time periods they cover).
Plenary meeting should be abbreviated “plen mtg”.
2–7.3.2.5 UN Document Number and Sales Number
Records of debates before 1951 do not have UN document
numbers.
If a UN document is available for sale to the public and has
been assigned a sales number, this may be included after the
UN document number.
2–7.3.2.6 Parallel Citation to International Legal Materials
To aid in the finding of UN materials, wherever possible
provide a parallel citation to International Legal Materials
(ILM) at the end of the citation.
Part 2: Citation Rules
2–7.3.3
… 57
Yearbooks and Periodicals
UN yearbooks and periodicals contain summaries of the work of
subsidiary organisations and related documents. References to yearbooks
and periodicals should be as follows:
Author, “Title of Article” citation to UN yearbook or
periodical at [paragraph number] or page number, UN
Doc document number, [UN Sales No number]
Material reprinted in yearbooks from other UN documents should be cited
to the original source or the official records of a UN organ, as follows:
Author, “Title of Article”, Citation to UN official records,
reprinted in citation to UN yearbook or periodical at
[paragraph number] or page number, UN Doc
document number, [UN Sales No number]
2–7.4 Citation of European Communities Materials
2–7.4.1
The Council and Commission: Legislation
Cite directives, regulations and decisions of the Council and Commission
as follows:
[Title or Descriptive Name of Directive/Regulation/Decision],
EC Council/Commission Directive/Regulation/Decision
directive/ regulation/decision number [Art article or at
p page number], [Doc document number,] [year] OJ L
volume number/first page number at pinpoint [,
<universal resource locator> (accessed date)]
2–7.4.1.1 Descriptive Name of Directive, Regulation or Decision
Descriptive names of directives, regulations and decisions are
optional. Set out either the short title by which a piece of
legislation is commonly known (eg, “E-Commerce Directive”),
or provide a descriptive name based on the official title of the
legislation.
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 58
2–7.4.1.2 Official Journal Abbreviation
EC regulations, directives, decisions, debates and other
documents are published in the Official Journal of the
European Communities. Abbreviate the Official Journal of the
European Communities: Legislation to “OJ L”.
2–7.4.1.3 Internet Citation
Optionally, include a citation to Eur-Lex, the European Union
law portal, at http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/index.html.
2–7.4.2
The Council and Commission: Other Publications
Cite other Council and Commission publications (eg, proposed
Regulations, Directives and Decisions; and information and notices), as
follows:
EC Council/Commission/other institution, Descriptive Title of
Publication, [Art article number or at page number,]
[year] OJ C volume number/first page number at
pinpoint [, <universal resource locator> (accessed
date)]
Abbreviate the Official Journal of the European Communities: Information
and Notices to “OJ C”.
Books and serials published by the EC should be cited as indicated in 
paragraphs 2–4 and 2–5.
2–7.4.3
European Parliament
2–7.4.3.1 Parliamentary Debates
Cite debates of the European Parliament as follows:
European Parliament, Debates (date) [year] OJ D
volume number/first page number at pinpoint [,
<http://www.europarl.eu.int> (accessed date)]
[(speaker’s full name, speaker’s position)]
Abbreviate the Official Journal of the European Communities:
Debates of the European Parliament to “OJ D”. Optionally, if
Part 2: Citation Rules
… 59
the debates are available on the EUROPARL website (the
European Parliament On-line) at http://www.europarl. eu.int,
the URL of the debates may be included.
Pursuant to a decision of the Bureau of the European
Parliament on 1 December 1999, debates are no longer
published in print format in the Official Journal but in CDROMs published about eight times a year. The last CD-ROM
contains all the debates for the year in question.
2–7.4.3.2 Other Parliamentary Documents
Cite reports and other parliamentary documents as follows:
European Parliament, [committee or other institution],
Title of Document (year), document reference
number
at
pinpoint
[,
<http://www.
europarl.eu.int> (accessed date)]
Optionally, if a document is available on the EUROPARL
website, the URL of the webpage on which the document
appears may be indicated at the end of the citation.
2–7.5 Citation of Council of Europe Materials
2–7.5.1
Parliamentary Debates
Cite debates of the Parliamentary Assembly (formerly known as the
Consultative Assembly) of the Council of Europe to the Official Report of
Debates as follows:
Council of Europe, PA/CA, sessionth Sess, partth Pt [(year)
Debates, vol volume number at pinpoint [(date of
debate), <http://assembly. coe.int> (accessed date)]
[(speaker’s full name, speaker’s position)]
Abbreviate Parliamentary Assembly to “PA” and Consultative Assembly to
“CA”. Optionally, give a citation to the Council of Europe Parliamentary
Assembly website at http://assembly.coe.int.
2–7.5.2
Other Parliamentary Documents
Cite other publications of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly
to Texts Adopted by the Assembly, Orders of the Day and Minutes of
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 60
Proceedings, Documents: Working Papers or Information Bulletin on
Legal Affairs as follows:
Texts Adopted by the Assembly
Council of Europe, PA/CA, sessionth Sess, partth Pt, [Title of
Text
Adopted]
(year)
Texts
Adopted,
Rec
recommendation number at pinpoint [, Rec/Res/Op/Ord
recommendation/resolution/opinion/
order
number
(date) <http://assembly.coe.int> (accessed date)]
Orders of the Day and Minutes of Proceedings
Council of Europe, PA/CA, sessionth Sess, partth Pt, [Title of
Order or Minutes] [(year) Orders, sittingth Sitting at
pinpoint
[,
Ord
order
number
(date)
<http://assembly.coe.int> (accessed date)]
Working Documents and Papers
Council of Europe, PA/CA, sessionth Sess, partth Pt, Title of
Working Paper [(year) Documents, vol volume
number, Doc document number at pinpoint [, Doc
document number (date) <http://assembly. coe.int>
(accessed date)]
Information Bulletin on Legal Affairs
Council of Europe, Council of Europe organ, ‘Title of
Document’ (year) volume number Inf Bull first page
number at pinpoint
Optionally, provide a citation to the Parliamentary Assembly’s website at
http://assembly.coe.int.
2–7.6 Citation of WTO and GATT Materials
2–7.6.1
Panel Decisions, Rulings and Recommendations
If World Trade Organisation (WTO) and General Agreement on Tariffs
and Trade (GATT) panel decisions, rulings and recommendations are
Part 2: Citation Rules
… 61
published in Basic Instruments and Selected Documents (BISD), cite to
this work as follows:
[WTO/GATT organ], Title of Panel Decision, Ruling or
Recommendation,
WTO/GATT
[CP]
Dec/Rec
decision/recommendation number of date, sessionth
Sess [(year) BISD (supplementth Supp) first page
number at pinpoint [, parallel citation] or (document
date) <http://docsonline.wto.org> (accessed date)]
Abbreviate Contracting Parties to “CP”, Decision to “Dec” and
Recommendation to “Rec”. Optionally, provide a parallel citation or
citation
to
the
WTO
Documents
Online
website
at
http://docsonline.wto.org.
2–7.6.2
Reports and Minutes of Meetings
Cite reports and minutes of meetings that are assigned WTO or GATT
document numbers as follows:
WTO/GATT,
WTO/GATT
organ,
Title
of
Report,
WTO/GATT Doc document number [(year) BISD
(supplementth Supp) first page number at pinpoint [,
(date) <http://docsonline.wto.org> (accessed date)]
WTO, WTO organ, Minutes of Meeting, WTO Doc document
number
(held
on
meeting
date),
<http://docsonline.wto.org> (accessed date)
Cite reports that are printed independently without WTO or GATT
document numbers as books: see  paragraph 2–4.
APPENDIX 1A
EXAMPLES FOR PART 1: GENERAL RULES
1–2
FORMATTING RULES .......................................................................................................................... 1
1–2.5 NUMBERING LEVELS.................................................................................................................................. 1
1–2.5.2
Punctuation of Items in a Numbered List ................................................................................... 1
1–2.6 QUOTATIONS ........................................................................................................................................... 2
1–2.6.1
Quotations within a Sentence .................................................................................................... 2
1–2.6.2
Quotations in a Separate Block .................................................................................................. 3
1–2.6.3
Emphasis in Quotations ............................................................................................................. 3
1–2.6.4
Changes to Quotations............................................................................................................... 3
1–2.6.5
Errors in Quotations ................................................................................................................... 4
1–3
RULES OF EXPRESSION ....................................................................................................................... 4
1–3.1 SPELLING ................................................................................................................................................ 4
1–3.2 ABBREVIATIONS ....................................................................................................................................... 6
1–3.2.1
Words and Phrases That May be Abbreviated After the First Occurrence ................................. 6
1–3.2.2
Words and Phrases That May Always be Abbreviated .............................................................. 9
1–3.2.3
Words and Phrases That Should Not be Abbreviated .............................................................. 15
1–3.3 DATE AND TIME. .................................................................................................................................... 15
1–3.5 PUNCTUATION ....................................................................................................................................... 16
1–3.5.1
The Comma .............................................................................................................................. 16
1–3.5.1.1
1–3.5.1.2
1–3.5.1.3
1–3.5.1.4
The Listing Comma .............................................................................................................................. 16
The Joining Comma ............................................................................................................................. 16
The Gapping Comma........................................................................................................................... 16
Bracketing Commas ............................................................................................................................ 17
1–3.5.2
1–3.5.3
1–3.5.4
1–3.5.5
The Colon.................................................................................................................................. 17
The Semicolon .......................................................................................................................... 18
The Apostrophe ........................................................................................................................ 19
The Hyphen .............................................................................................................................. 19
1–3.5.6
The Dash................................................................................................................................... 22
1–3.5.7
Parentheses and Brackets ........................................................................................................ 23
1–3.5.9
Capital Letters .......................................................................................................................... 23
1–3.5.5.1
1–3.5.5.2
1–3.5.5.3
1–3.5.5.4
1–3.5.6.1
1–3.5.6.2
1–3.5.6.3
The Hyphen: Compound Modifiers ..................................................................................................... 19
The Hyphen: Compound Words with Prefixes .................................................................................... 19
The Hyphen: Compound Words That Should be Hyphenated ............................................................ 20
The Hyphen: Compound Words That Should Not be Hyphenated ..................................................... 20
1–3.5.7.1
The Dash: Indicating a Strong Interruption ......................................................................................... 22
The Dash: Indicating a Range of Numbers, etc ................................................................................... 22
The Dash: The Em-Dash ...................................................................................................................... 22
1–3.6
1–2
1–3.5.9.1
Parentheses: Indicating Interruptions................................................................................................. 23
Capital Letters: Words and Phrases That Should be Capitalised ......................................................... 23
FOREIGN WORDS AND PHRASES ................................................................................................................ 24
FORMATTING RULES
1–2.5 Numbering Levels
1–2.5.2
Punctuation of Items in a Numbered List
•
If the items in the list are incomplete sentences, each item should begin
with a lowercase letter and end with a semicolon. The second-last item
SLR Style Guide 2015
…2
in the list should end with a semicolon followed by a conjunction, such
as and or or.
Examples
The following items were found in the accused’s bag:
(a)
a lipstick;
(b)
chequebooks from the following banks:
(i)
POSB;
(ii)
Citibank; and
(iii) Standard Chartered Bank;
(c)
a bunch of keys; and
(d)
a penknife.
•
If the items in the list are complete sentences or consist of more than one
sentence, each item should begin with an uppercase letter and end with
a full stop.
Examples
In order to succeed in establishing that the defendant acted
negligently, the plaintiff must prove the following:
(a)
A duty of care was owed by the defendant to her. The existence
of a duty of care depends in part on whether it is just and
reasonable to impose a duty in the circumstances.
(b)
The defendant breached the duty in that he did not achieve the
standard of care required of him.
(c)
The breach of duty caused damage to the plaintiff. Among
other things, the damage must not be too remote.
1–2.6 Quotations
1–2.6.1
Quotations within a Sentence
Examples
Section 2(m) of the Schedule includes “any lecture, talk, address, debate
or discussion” as an activity that would be a public entertainment.
In addition, s 2 also states that these activities must be done “in any place
to which the public or any class of the public has access whether
gratuitously or otherwise”. [Full stop after the closing quotation mark
as the quotation is not a complete sentence.]
When asked what was in the bag, the defendant told the narcotics officer,
“I am carrying Chinese medicine.” [Full stop within the quotation
marks as a complete sentence is quoted; no additional full stop
required after the closing quotation mark.]
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
1–2.6.2
…3
Quotations in a Separate Block
Example
Drawing from the notes of evidence, she gave reasons why Yeo did not
raise his concerns formally with the company. To this end, she stated:
Mr Yeo explained that at the time of the trades, he was ‘more
concerned that the contra losses be paid for’, and that the appellant
stopped using his trading account. The appellant had promised to
do both. Indeed, true to the appellant’s promise, Mr Yeo was not
made to pay for the contra losses, and the appellant stopped using
his trading account after the SP Setia transactions.
1–2.6.3
Emphasis in Quotations
Example
Where the quotation is set out in a separate block:
It was stated in that case:
The latter indorsement may be to the transferee by name or in
blank, in which latter case, no further indorsement, but only
delivery, is as a matter of law required for subsequent transfers.
[emphasis added]
Where the quotation is part of the paragraph:
In that case, the judge expressed the view that “it is trite law that there
must be consideration for a contract” [emphasis added]. I cannot agree
more that the law in this area is settled. … [Note that there is no full
stop or other punctuation mark before the closing quotation mark –
the full stop comes after “[emphasis added]”.]
1–2.6.4
Changes to Quotations
Example
The contract specified that “property in the goods shall not pass to the
Buyer [ie, the plaintiff] until payment in full has been received by the
Vendor [the defendant]”.
The point about the influence, which [Tan] had exercised over me at the
time being undue, is that I had no say in the running of the company
and never had.
He clearly “intend[ed] to take dishonestly” the cheque out of the
plaintiff’s possession.
SLR Style Guide 2015
…4
This was a … monumental failure on the defendant’s part.
The manner of the attack was vicious and very destructive. … [T]here can
have been no excuse.
1–2.6.5
Errors in Quotations
Example
He cannot have had [sic] been unaware of the presence of the clause.
He cannot have … been unaware of the presence of the clause.
The trial judge took the view that the case was governed by the principle
in Rylance [sic] v Fletcher.
The trial judge took the view that the case was governed by the principle
in [Rylands] v Fletcher.
1–3
RULES OF EXPRESSION
1–3.1 Spelling
Variant Spellings
Preferred Spelling
-ce/-se – defence, licence; offence; or
defense, license, offense
-ce – defence, licence; offence; but
“license” and “practise” when used
as a verb
-g-/-ge- – acknowledgment, judgment,
lodgment; or acknowledgement,
judgement, lodgement
-g- – acknowledgment, judgment,
lodgment
-l-/-ll- – instalment, fulfil, fulfilment; or -l- – instalment, fulfil, fulfilment,
installment, fulfill, fulfillment
marshal; but install, marshalled
-m/-mme – gram, kilogram; or gramme, -m – gram, kilogram; but use “program”
kilogramme
only in the context of a computer
program, and “programme” for all
other senses of the word
-our/-or – colour, labour, odour; or
color, labor, odor
-our – colour, labour, odour
-re/-er – centre, litre, metre, theatre; or
center, liter, meter, theater
-re – centre, litre, metre, theatre; but
“meter” for a measuring device
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
Variant Spellings
…5
Preferred Spelling
-se/-ze – analyse, authorise,
organisation, organise, paralyse,
realisation, realise, recognise,
sterilisation; or analyze, authorize,
organization, organize, paralyze,
realization, realize, recognize,
sterilization
-se – analyse, authorise, organisation,
organise, paralyse, realisation,
realise, recognise, sterilisation
-t/-ed – burnt, learnt, spelt, spoilt; or
burned, learned, spelled, spoiled
-t – burnt, learnt, spelt, spoilt
disc or disk
disc (as in “compact disc”); but use
“disk” when referring to a computer
peripheral such as a “hard disk”
despatch or dispatch
despatch
focused or focussed
focused
in so far or insofar
in so far
inquire, inquiry; or enquire; enquiry
inquire, inquiry; but “enquiry” may be
used when referring to an informal
request for information.
Koran or Qur’an
Koran
moneys or monies
moneys
movable or moveable
movable
per cent or percent
per cent or % (if used with a numeral)
trade mark or trademark
trade mark
thumb print, finger print or thumbprint,
fingerprint
thumbprint, fingerprint
boy friend, girl friend or boyfriend,
girlfriend
boyfriend, girlfriend
SLR Style Guide 2015
…6
1–3.2 Abbreviations
Example
“Airedale N.H.S. Trust v Bland; Buona Maritima S.A. v Karl Schuhfabrik G.m.b.H.”
should be edited as “Airedale NHS Trust v Bland; Buona Maritima SA v Karl
Schuhfabrik GmbH”
But
“Coco v A. N. Clark (Engineers) Ltd” should be edited as “Coco v A N Clark
(Engineers) Ltd” (non-breaking spaces between A and N, and between N and
Clark).
1–3.2.1
Words and Phrases That May be Abbreviated After the First
Occurrence
Honorifics and forms of address commonly used in relation to judicial
proceedings
Word or Phrase to be Spelt in Full
Abbreviation
on First Occurrence
The Honourable the Chief Justice
Sundaresh Menon or Sundaresh
Menon CJ
The Chief Justice or
Menon CJ
The Honourable the Acting Chief Justice
Tan Ah Tah or Tan Ah Tah Ag CJ
The Acting Chief Justice
or Tan Ag CJ
The Honourable Judge of Appeal Chao
Hick Tin or Chao Hick Tin JA
Chao JA
The Honourable Judges of Appeal
L P Thean and Chao Hick Tin or
L P Thean and Chao Hick Tin JJA
Thean and Chao JJA
The Honourable Justice Lai Kew Chai or
Lai Kew Chai J
Lai J
The Honourable Justices Lai Kew Chai and Lai and Kan JJ
Kan Ting Chiu or Lai Kew Chai and
Kan Ting Chiu JJ
The Honourable Judicial Commissioner
T Q Lim or T Q Lim JC
Lim JC
Senior District Judge Richard Magnus
The Snr District Judge or
Snr District Judge
Magnus
District Judge Mavis Chionh
District Judge Mavis
Chionh or District
Judge Chionh
Deputy Registrar
Dy Registrar
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
…7
Word or Phrase to be Spelt in Full
on First Occurrence
Abbreviation
Senior Assistant Registrar
Snr Asst Registrar
Assistant Registrar
Asst Registrar
Senior Deputy Registrar
Snr Dy Registrar
Attorney-General
AG
Solicitor-General
SG
Public Prosecutor
PP
Deputy Public Prosecutor
DPP
Assistant Public Prosecutor
APP
Senior State Counsel
Snr State Counsel
(do not abbreviate State
Counsel or Principal
Senior State Counsel)
Investigating Officer
IO
Narcotics Officer
NO
Mademoiselle XX
Mlle XX
Ranks of personnel in the Singapore Police Force and the Singapore Armed
Forces
Word or Phrase to be Spelt in Full
Abbreviation
on First Occurrence
Ranks in the Police Force
Commissioner
Deputy Commissioner
Senior Assistant Commissioner
Assistant Commissioner
Deputy Assistant Commissioner
Commr
Dy Commr
Snr Asst Commr
Asst Commr
Dy Asst Commr
Superintendent
Supt
Deputy Superintendent
DSP
Assistant Superintendent
ASP
Inspector
Insp
Senior Station Inspector
SSI
Station Inspector
SI
Senior Staff Sergeant
SSSgt
Staff Sergeant
SSgt
Sergeant
Sgt
Corporal
Cpl
Constable
PC
SLR Style Guide 2015
Word or Phrase to be Spelt in Full
on First Occurrence
…8
Abbreviation
Ranks in the Singapore Army and Republic of Singapore Air Force
Lieutenant-General
Lt-Gen
Major-General
Maj-Gen
Brigadier-General
Brig-Gen
Colonel
Col
Lieutenant-Colonel
Ltc
Major
Maj
Captain
Capt
Lieutenant
Lta
Second Lieutenant
2Lta
Senior Warrant Officer
SWO
Master Warrant Officer
MWO
First Warrant Officer
WO1
Second Warrant Officer
WO2
Master Sergeant
MSgt
Staff Sergeant
SSgt
First Sergeant
1Sgt
Second Sergeant
2Sgt
Third Sergeant
3Sgt
Corporal
Cpl
Lance Corporal
Lcp
Private
Pte
Recruit
Rec
Ranks in the Republic of Singapore Navy
Vice-Admiral
Rear Admiral (2-star and 1-star)
Vice-Adm
RAdm
Colonel
Col
Lieutenant-Colonel
Ltc
Major
Maj
Captain
Capt
Lieutenant
Lta
Second Lieutenant
2Lta
Midshipman
Mids
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
Word or Phrase to be Spelt in Full
on First Occurrence
1–3.2.2
…9
Abbreviation
Senior Warrant Officer
SWO
Master Warrant Officer
MWO
First Warrant Officer
WO1
Second Warrant Officer
WO2
Master Sergeant
MSgt
Staff Sergeant
SSgt
First Sergeant
1Sgt
Second Sergeant
2Sgt
Third Sergeant
3Sgt
Corporal
Cpl
Lance Corporal
Lcp
Private First Class
Pfc
Words and Phrases That May Always be Abbreviated
Parts of company/corporation names that may always be abbreviated
ABC AG
Austrian, German and Swiss entities.
Abbreviate “Aktiengesellschaft” (public limited
company) to “AG”.
ABC AS
Norwegian and Turkish entities. Abbreviate
“Aksje Selskap” (Norwegian: limited company)
and “Anonim Sirketi” (Turkish: joint stock
company) to “AS”.
ABC A/S
Danish and Latvian entities. Abbreviate
“Aktieselskab/Akcijas Sabiedriba” (joint stock
company) to “A/S”.
ABC BV
Dutch entities. Abbreviate “Besloten
Vennootschap” (private limited company) to
“BV”.
ABC Co Pte Ltd
Usually Singapore entities. Abbreviate as
follows:
• “Company” – “Co”.
• “Private” – “Pte”.
• “Limited” – “Ltd”.
ABC Corp
Abbreviate “Corporation” to “Corp”.
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 10
Parts of company/corporation names that may always be abbreviated
ABC GmbH
Austrian, German and Swiss entities.
or
Abbreviate “Gesellschaft mit beschränkter
Haftung” (private limited company) to “GmbH”.
ABC
Schiffahrtsgesellschaft If Gesellschaft forms part of the company name,
mbH
abbreviate only “mit beschränkter Haftung” to
“mbH”.
ABC Inc
United States of America entities. Abbreviate
“Incorporated” to “Inc”.
ABC LLC
United States of America entities. Abbreviate
“Limited Liability Corporation” to “LLC”.
ABC LLP
United States of America entities. Abbreviate
“Limited Liability Partnership” to “LLP”.
ABC NV
Dutch entities. Abbreviate “Naamloze
Vennootschap” (limited liability company) to
“NV”.
ABC plc
United Kingdom entities. Abbreviate “public
limited company” to “plc”.
PT ABC
Indonesian entities. Abbreviate “Perseroan
Terbatas” or “Perusahaan Terbatas” to “PT”.
ABC Pty Ltd
Australian entities. Abbreviate “Proprietary” to
“Pty”.
ABC SA
Belgian, French, Luxemborg, Portuguese and
Spanish entities. Abbreviate “Société
Anonyme/Sociedade Anónima/Sociedad
Anónima” to “SA”.
ABC Sarl
French or Portuguese entities. Abbreviate
“Société anonyme à responsabilité limitée”
(French) or “Sociedade Anónima de
Responsabilidade Limitada” (Portuguese)
(private limited liability company) to “Sarl”.
ABC Sdn Bhd
Malaysian or Singapore entities. Abbreviate as
follows:
• “Sendirian” (Malay for “Private”) – “Sdn”.
• “Berhad” (Malay for “Limited”) – “Bhd”.
ABC SpA
Italian entities. Abbreviate “Società per Azioni”
(public limited company) to “SpA”.
Forms of address that may always be abbreviated
Mister (correctly Master)
Mr
Missus (correctly Mistress)
Mrs – “Ms” may be used instead
Madam
Mdm – “Ms” may be used instead
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
… 11
Forms of address that may always be abbreviated
Messrs (correctly Messieurs)
M/s
Doctor
Dr
Professor
Prof
Associate Professor
Assoc Prof
Assistant Professor
Asst Prof
Queen’s Counsel
QC – only after counsel’s name
Senior Counsel
SC – only after counsel’s name
Baron
B
Lord Chancellor
LC
Lord Justice(s)
LJ(J)
Lord President
LP
Master of the Rolls
MR
Vice Chancellor
VC
Units of measurement that may always be abbreviated
Units of Measurement: Length
millimetre(s)
mm
centimetre(s)
cm
metre(s)
m
kilometre(s)
km
inch(es) – where used in combination with in (eg, “5ft 11in”)
“ft” to express precise lengths
BUT: when used to
express mere inches, do
NOT abbreviate (eg,
“11 inches”).
foot/feet
ft
Units of Measurement: Area
square millimetre(s)
mm2
square centimetre(s)
cm2
square metre(s)
m2
square kilometre(s)
km2
hectare(s)
ha
square feet
sq ft – type a non-breaking
space between the numeral
and “sq” and between “sq”
and “ft”, eg, “4 sq ft”.
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 12
Units of measurement that may always be abbreviated
BUT: “per square foot”
should be spelt out in full,
eg, “$3 per square foot”
Units of Measurement: Volume
cubic centimetre(s)
cm3
cubic metre(s)
m3
millilitre(s)
ml
litre(s)
l – italicise the “l” so that
it is not mistaken for a
“one” (“1”)
Units of Measurement: Weight
microgram(s)
µg (often seen in
breathalyser tests)
milligram(s)
mg (often seen in blood
alcohol level tests)
gram(s)
g
kilogram(s)
kg
metric tonne(s)
mt
ounce(s)
oz
pound(s)
lb – italicise so that the “l”
is not mistaken for a “one”
(“1”)
Units of Measurement: Time
hour(s), minutes(s), second(s) – where used hr, min, sec (without any
in some combination to indicate precise plural “s”), eg, “1hr
timing
7min”, “7min 30sec”
hour(s), minutes(s), second(s) – where used hour(s), minutes(s),
on its own
seconds(s), eg, “one hour”,
“seven minutes”,
“30 seconds”
Units of Measurement: Speed
kilometres per hour
km/h
miles per hour
mph
Units of Measurement: Temperature
degrees Celsius
°C
degrees Fahrenheit
°F
Units of Measurement: Others
revolutions per minute
Rpm
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
… 13
Units of measurement that may always be abbreviated
degrees
degrees (unless the
references appear in
sufficient
number/concentration that
it would be more
conducive for readability
to use the symbol °)
Currencies that may always be abbreviated
Singapore dollar
$
(or, if necessary for
clarity, S$)
Australian dollar
A$
Deutsch mark (Germany)
DM
Euro (European Monetary Union)
€
New Zealand dollar
NZ$
Pound sterling (United Kingdom)
£
Renminbi (People’s Republic of China)
RMB
Ringgit Malaysia
RM
United States dollar
US$
Yen (Japan)
¥
Citation words/phrases that may always be abbreviated
article(s) (of articles of association,
constitutions, contracts, model laws
and treaties)
Art(s)
chapter (of legislation)
Cap
chapter(s) (of a book)
ch(s)
clause(s)
cl(l)
compiler(s)
comp(s)
confer (Latin: “compare”)
cf
Division(s) (of legislation)
Div(s)
editor(s), general editor(s)
ed(s), gen ed(s)
edition (of a book or of legislation)
Ed
et alii or et alia
(Latin: “and other persons”)
et al
et cetera (Latin: “and others”)
etc
et sequentes
et seq
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 14
Citation words/phrases that may always be abbreviated
(Latin: “and those that follow”)
exempli gratia (Latin: “for example”)
eg
exhibit(s)
Exh(s)
figure(s)
fig(s)
(and the pages) following
ff
ibidem (Latin: “in the same place”)
ibid
id est (Latin: “that is”)
ie
idem (Latin: “the same”)
id
illustration(s)
illus
note(s) (references to footnotes within an
article)
n(n)
Notification Number (subsidiary
legislation)
N
number(s) (in legislation citations or suit or No(s)
application numbers)
order(s) (eg of the Rules of Court)
O – for “orders”, use,
eg, “O 3 and O 4”
Order Number (subsidiary legislation)
O
paragraph(s) and sub-paragraph(s) (of
court documents, letters, legal texts,
etc)
para(s), sub-para(s) –
do not use the ¶ symbol.
For references to
paragraphs
of case reports and
judgments, use brackets:
see  paragraph 2–1.1.6.
Part(s) (of legislation)
Pt(s)
regulation(s)
reg(s)
Regulation Number (subsidiary legislation)
Rg
Revised Edition (of a book or of
legislation)
Rev Ed
rule(s)
r(r)
Rule Number (subsidiary legislation)
R
Schedule(s) (of local legislation)
Sched(s)
BUT spell out in full if
“First Schedule”, “Second
Schedule”, etc
Schedule(s) (of foreign legislation)
sch or Sch (see 
paragraph 2–2.2 and
relevant sub-paragraphs
for the various foreign
jurisdictions)
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
… 15
Citation words/phrases that may always be abbreviated
PLURAL?? schs and
Schs??
section(s) and subsection(s)
s(s), sub-s(s) –
do not use the § symbol
except when referring to
US legislation: see 
paragraph 2–2.2.5
translator(s)
trans
versus (Latin: “against”)
v
videlicet (Latin: “namely”)
viz
Other words and phrases that may always be abbreviated
1–3.2.3
cargo, insurance and freight
CIF
free on board
FOB
Words and Phrases That Should Not be Abbreviated
Appendix (part of legislation)
District Judge
exception (part of legislation)
Registrar
State Counsel
Principal Senior State Counsel
1–3.3 Date and Time.
Examples
The notice to quit was given on Thursday, 26 September 2002. [Note the comma
between the day of the week and the day of the month.]
On Tuesday, 11 November 2003, the lessor exercised his right of re-entry into the
premises. [Note the second comma after the year of the date which is often
incorrectly omitted.]
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 16
1–3.5 Punctuation
1–3.5.1
The Comma
1–3.5.1.1 The Listing Comma
Examples
The defamatory statement was published in The Straits Times,
The Business Times, Berita Harian and Lianhe Zaobao.
[Note that the commas should not be italicised.]
The petitioner, the respondent, and their lawyers were in the
midst of an attempt to settle the matter. [A comma is
needed after the word respondent to make it clear that the
phrase their lawyers refers to the lawyers of both the
petitioner and the respondent, and not just those of the
respondent.]
1–3.5.1.2 The Joining Comma
Examples
Norway has applied to join the EC, and Sweden is expected to
do the same.
Millions of dollars were pumped into the project, yet there was
apparently nothing to show for this colossal expenditure.
1–3.5.1.3 The Gapping Comma
Examples
In Singapore there are 18 such schools; in Malaysia, 20; and
in China, three. [The commas take the place of the words
there are… such schools.]
Margaret was known for her leadership qualities, Zulkifli, for
his administrative skills, and Jeswindar, for her marketing
ability. [The commas after Zulkifli and Jeswindar take the
place of the words was known for his/her.]
Margaret was known for her leadership qualities, Zulkifli for
his administrative skills, and Jeswindar for her marketing
ability. [Gapping commas may be omitted if the meaning
of the sentence is clear without them.]
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
… 17
1–3.5.1.4 Bracketing Commas
Examples
These findings, I would suggest, cast doubt upon his evidence.
The defendant, of course, immediately gave notice to
terminate the contract.
He looked around and, seeing no one nearby, slipped the
cufflinks into his jacket pocket.
The plaintiff was a determined, even ruthless, businessman.
Because of problems with the test, all the people who were told
that they were HIV-negative had to be recalled. [No
bracketing commas used around the clause “who were
told that they were HIV-negative”, as without this clause
it would not be evident which people were being referred
to.]
The case of Ong Ah Chuan v PP has provided an interpretation
of the expression “save in accordance with law” in Article
9(1) of the Constitution which is now generally accepted.
[No bracketing commas used with the phrase “which is
now generally accepted”.]
Unlike most nations, Britain has no written constitution. [The
weak interruption “unlike most nations” appears at the
beginning of the sentence, so the first comma is omitted.]
The incident occurred along Penang Lane, which was usually
deserted at that time of night. [The weak interruption
appears at the end of the sentence, so the second comma is
omitted.]
1–3.5.2
The Colon
Examples
Although her testimony was not always clear, she was sure of one thing:
she did not intend to enter into a contract with him. [Identifies the one
thing she was sure of.]
There were several potential candidates for the position: Tan Lay Geok,
Ravinder Singh and Peter Wong. [Identifies the potential candidates.]
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 18
The rule may be stated thus: An appellate court will be slow to overturn
findings of fact of the trial judge, especially when an assessment of
credibility and veracity of witnesses is made.
The question was: Why did the plaintiff not report the matter to the
authorities?
A colon may also be used after a word, phrase or sentence in the middle of
a text which introduces a list or series.
Example
In order to succeed in establishing that the defendant acted negligently,
the plaintiff must prove that:
(a)
a duty of care was owed by the defendant to her;
(b)
the defendant breached the duty in that he did not achieve the
standard of care required of him; and
(c)
the breach of duty caused damage to the plaintiff.
A colon may be used to introduce a quotation. Alternatively, either use a
comma or do not use any punctuation mark.
Examples
The accused stood up in court and shouted: “I am not guilty!”
The accused stood up in court and shouted, “I am not guilty!”
The accused stood up in court and shouted “I am not guilty!”
1–3.5.3
The Semicolon
Examples
The report was published in November 2002; a supplement followed in
January 2003.
It was believed that the existence of the will was known only to the
deceased’s widow; however, it is now evident that this is not the case.
The people present were the surgeon, Dr Sunita Prakash; the attending
nurse, Mr Tan Khaw Bee; and the defendant. [If only commas were
used, it would not be clear how many people were present.]
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
1–3.5.4
… 19
The Apostrophe
Examples
The general rule
the accused’s girlfriend
children’s rights
a week’s notice
the bus’s arrival
St James’s Park
Thomas’s job
Exception (a)
the appellants’ costs
the two Malaysians’ passports
two months’ imprisonment
Exception (b)
Reuters’ journalists.
Socrates’ philosophy
the United States’ next move
1–3.5.5
The Hyphen
1–3.5.5.1 The Hyphen: Compound Modifiers
Examples
The husband and wife were married two and a half years ago and they
have a four-year-old son.
A far-ranging investigation was launched by the police.
It was a long-standing practice for the company accounts to be internally
audited.
It is evident that a rough-and-ready approach was taken on a day-to-day
basis.
The winding-up petition was filed in time, and the liquidator has since
completed the winding up of the company.
1–3.5.5.2 The Hyphen: Compound Words with Prefixes
Examples
anti-aircraft (not antiaircraft) but antisocial
counter-argument (not counterargument) but counterclaim
non-negotiable (not nonnegotiable) but nonentity, nonverbal
pre-empt (not preempt) but prejudge, prerequisite
re-examine (not reexamine) but repaint
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 20
1–3.5.5.3 The Hyphen: Compound Words That Should be
Hyphenated
Compound words that should be hyphenated in Singapore
Academy of Law publications
co-operate, co-operation, co-operative
(but non-cooperation, as “non-co-operation” looks
awkward – avoid this compound word as far as possible)
co-respondent
coffee-house
day-to-day (adj)
court-martial
cross-examination
e-mail
evidence-in-chief
examination-in-chief
father-in-law, mother-in-law, etc
getting-up (for a case)
lock-up (noun)
month-to-month tenancy (adj)
officer-in-charge
re-examination
set-off (noun)
time-barred (adjective)
sub-agent
sub-manager
sub-rule – short form is sub-r(r)
sub-trial
winding-up (of a company) (adj)
1–3.5.5.4 The Hyphen: Compound Words That Should Not be
Hyphenated
Compound words that should not be hyphenated in
Singapore Academy of Law publications
backdate (verb)
bypass, bystander, byword (but by-election, by-product, bylaw)
car park
case law
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
Compound words that should not be hyphenated in
Singapore Academy of Law publications
charterparty
coastguard
coffee shop
common sense (but a common-sense answer, or
commonsensical)
counterclaim
creditworthy, creditworthiness
down payment
ill effects, ill health, ill will
judge in chambers
misstatement
motor car
motorcycle
next of kin
ongoing
online
prerequisite, precondition
rehearing
registrar in chambers, summons in chambers
set off (verbal phrase)
ship repairer
shophouse
subcharter, subcharterer,
subcharterparty
subcontract, subcontractor
subcommittee
subject matter
sublease, sublet, sublessee
sublicence
subsection
subtenant, subtenancy
takeover (noun)
tenants in common
time bar (noun)
webpage, website
wind up, winding up (of a company) (noun)
… 21
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 22
Compound words that should not be hyphenated in
Singapore Academy of Law publications
well founded, well known (but a well-founded argument, a
well-known actor)
workplace, workflow, workforce, workday
worldwide
1–3.5.6
The Dash
1–3.5.6.1 The Dash: Indicating a Strong Interruption
Examples
Is it possible – or, more precisely, probable – that the injury
could have been caused by a fall from a height?
The witness conceded that the plan was bold and unusual –
bold and unusual in the sense that it would require more
money than he had. [Only first dash required as the strong
interruption occurs at the end of the sentence.]
1–3.5.6.2 The Dash: Indicating a Range of Numbers, etc
Examples
She was an undergraduate at the Nanyang Technological
University 1993–1996.
The supermarket was open 10.00am–9.00pm.
The sample contained at least 14.5–15.5g of morphine.
His alibi was that he was on a Kuala Lumpur–Singapore flight
when the incident occurred.
1–3.5.6.3 The Dash: The Em-Dash
In quotations of pieces of legislation to separate section numbers
from subsection numbers or to introduce a list of subsections.
Examples
72.—(1) The Council shall make rules —
(a)
as to opening and keeping by solicitors of accounts at
banks for clients’ money;
…
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
… 23
To indicate missing letters in a word.
Examples
On bursting into the room, he began swearing “F— you, you
b—.”
As best as I can discern, the signature at the end of the will,
which was largely illegible, was “Tan T— Sh—”.
1–3.5.7
Parentheses and Brackets
1–3.5.7.1 Parentheses: Indicating Interruptions
Examples
On the (rare) occasion when an English case before 1700 is
cited, it is best to provide a parallel citation to the English
Reports.
The defendant was not (as the shareholders mistakenly
believed) a director of the company.
The witness’s evidence – which had already been interrupted
repeatedly by the accused’s interjections (the last of which
involved the use of obscenities) – was incomprehensible,
to say the least. [Parentheses and dashes used in
combination.]
It appears that 33% of girls aged 16–18 smoke regularly, but
that only 28% of boys in this age bracket do so. (These
figures are provided by a survey published in The Straits
Times on 21 January 1999.) [Complete sentence in
parentheses. Note that the full stop appears before the
closing parenthesis.]
The legal maxim ex turpi causa non oritur actio (a right of
action does not arise out of a base cause) applies in this
case. [The interruption in parentheses provides a brief
explanation of a term that may be unfamiliar.]
1–3.5.9
Capital Letters
1–3.5.9.1 Capital Letters: Words and Phrases That Should be
Capitalised
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 24
Words and phrases that should be capitalised in Singapore
Academy of Law publications
All courts, including “Disciplinary Committee” and “Inquiry
Committee”, eg, “Inquiry Committee of the Law
Society”, or “Inquiry Committee of the Public Service
Commission”. But use lower case if it’s a passing/one-off
reference to a non-specific inquiry/disciplinary
committee, eg “the question arose as to whether an
inquiry(/a disciplinary) committee would have decided
...”.
References to the parties in a criminal proceeding, namely,
“Public Prosecutor”, “the Prosecution” and “the
Defence”, eg, “the Defence contended that …”.
References to “the State” when referring to a country
considered as an organised political community. Do not
capitalise when using “state” as an adjective or verb, eg,
“state immunity”.
the Executive, the Judiciary, and the Legislature (when
referring to the various branches in the separation of powers)
the Registrar (of the Supreme Court) (do not capitalise if the
word “registrar” is used to refer to an assistant registrar, a
deputy registrar, etc)
“Registrar”, when used as a party, even where it refers to a
Registrar that is not the Registrar of the Supreme Court.
So “Registrar of the Land Titles Registry” and “the
Registrar” accordingly.
“Government”, when it is a reference to the government as a
party, ie, “the Singapore Government contended that ...”
and “the position of the South African Government was
...”, but “government official”, “government department”,
etc. References to names (of publications or entitites)
should be in capitals, eg, “… the Government Gazette
was printed by the Singapore Government Printers …”.
the Bar, the Bench
President (of the Syariah Court)
Member of Parliament
National Service
1–3.6 Foreign Words and Phrases
Foreign words and phrases to be italicised
Foreign Word or Phrase
a fortiori
English Meaning / Remarks
(Latin) by even greater force of logic, even more so
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
… 25
Foreign words and phrases to be italicised
Foreign Word or Phrase
English Meaning / Remarks
a posteriori
(Latin: “from what comes after”) inductively, from
the particular to the general, from known effects to
their inferred causes
a priori
(Latin: “from what is before”) deductively, from the
general to the particular
ab initio
(Latin) from the beginning
actus reus
(Latin: “guilty act”) wrongful deed that comprises
the physical components of a crime and that
generally must be coupled with mens rea to
establish criminal liability
ad hoc
(Latin: “for this”) arranged or formed for this
purpose
ad idem
(Latin) to the same point or matter, of the same
mind
ad infinitum
(Latin: “without limit”) to an indefinite extent
ad valorem
(Latin: “according to value”) (of a tax) proportional
to the value of the thing taxed
administration cum
testamento annexo
(Latin: “with the will annexed”) administration
granted where the testator’s will does not name any
executor or where the executor named is
incompetent to act, is deceased or refuses to act
administration de bonis non
(Latin) administration granted for the purpose of
settling the remainder of an estate not administered
by the previous executor or administrator
administration durante
absentia
(Latin: “during absence”) administration granted in
the absence of either the executor or the person who
has precedence as administrator
administration durante
minore aetate
(Latin) administration granted during the minority
of either the executor or the person who has
precedence as administrator
administration pendente lite
(Latin) administration granted during the pendency
of a suit concerning a will’s validity
aliter
(Latin) otherwise, it would be otherwise
aliunde
(Latin) from another source, from elsewhere
allocatur
(Latin) it is allowed
amicus curiae;
plural amici curiae
(Latin: “friend of the court”) a person, not being a
representative of a party to the proceedings,
permitted to argue a point of law or fact before a
court
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 26
Foreign words and phrases to be italicised
Foreign Word or Phrase
English Meaning / Remarks
audi alteram partem
(Latin: “hear the other side”) no one should be
condemned unheard or without prior notice of
allegations against him
autrefois acquit
(Law French) formerly acquitted
autrefois convict
(Law French) formerly convicted
bona fide, bonae fidei
(Latin) in good faith
bona fides
(Latin) good faith
bona vacantia
(Latin: “vacant goods”) property not disposed of by
will and to which no relative is entitled under
intestacy laws; ownerless property
causa causans
(Latin) immediate or effective cause
causa sine qua non
(Latin) a necessary cause, the cause without which
the thing cannot be or the event could not have
occurred
caveat emptor
(Latin) let the buyer beware
caveat venditor
(Latin) let the seller beware
cestui que trust;
plural cestuis que trust
(Law French) one who possesses equitable rights in
property and receives the rents, issues and profits
from it; a beneficiary
ceteris paribus
(Latin) other things being equal
certiorari
(Law Latin: “to be more fully informed”) formerly
a prerogative writ directed to an inferior court
commanding it to “certify”; now an order on an
application for judicial review to quash a judgment,
order or conviction
compos mentis/
non compos mentis
(Latin: “master of one’s mind”) of sound mind/not
of sound mind
confer (cf)
(Latin) compare
consensus ad idem
(Latin) agreement of parties to the same thing,
meeting of minds
contra
(Latin: “against”) (in citations) the cited authority
supports a contrary view
contra proferentem
(Latin: “against the offeror”) the doctrine that, in
interpreting documents, ambiguities are to be
construed unfavourably to the drafter
coram
(Latin) before, in the presence of
corpus;
plural corpora
(Latin: “body”) capital of a fund, as contrasted with
the income
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
… 27
Foreign words and phrases to be italicised
Foreign Word or Phrase
English Meaning / Remarks
cy près
(Law French: “as near as”) an equitable doctrine
under which a court interprets a written instrument
with a gift to charity as closely to the donor’s
intention as possible so that the gift does not fail
de bene esse
(Latin: “of well being”) as conditionally allowed for
the present, in anticipation of a future need
de facto
(Latin: “in point of fact”) having effect though not
formally or legally recognised
de jure
(Latin: “as a matter of law”) existing by right or
according to law
de minimis non curat lex
(Latin) the law does not concern itself with trifles
de novo
(Latin) anew
dictum
[see obiter dictum]
donatio inter vivos;
plural donationes inter
vivos
(Latin) gift made during the donor’s lifetime and
delivered with the intention of irrevocably
surrendering control over the property; an absolute
gift
donatio mortis causa;
plural donationes mortis
causa
(Latin) gift in contemplation of immediate death
ejusdem generis
(Latin: “of the same kind or class”) a canon of
construction that when a general word or phrase
follows a list of specific persons or things, the
general word or phrase will be interpreted to include
only persons or things of the same type as that listed
en banc
(Law French: “on the bench”) with all judges
present and participating, in full court
en bloc
(French) as a whole, as a unit
en ventre sa mere
(Law French: “in the womb of the mother”) (of a
fetus) in the mother’s womb
ergo
(Latin) therefore
et alii or et alia (et al)
(Latin) and other persons
et cetera (etc)
(Latin: “and others”) and other things
et sequentes (et seq)
(Latin) and those (pages, sections, etc) that follow
ex abundanti cautela
(Latin: “from abundant caution”) out of an excess
of caution, to be on the safe side
ex aequo et bono
(Latin) according to what is equitable and good (a
decision-maker authorised to decide ex aequo et
bono, especially in international law, is not bound
by legal rules and may instead follow equitable
principles)
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 28
Foreign words and phrases to be italicised
Foreign Word or Phrase
English Meaning / Remarks
ex debito justitiae
(Latin: “from or as a debt of justice”) as a matter of
right, in accordance with the requirements of justice
ex facie
(Latin: “from the face”) apparently, evidently
ex gratia
(Latin: “by favour”) as a favour, not legally
necessary
ex officio
(Latin: “from the office”) by virtue of one’s office
ex parte
(Latin: “from the part”) on or from one party only,
usually without notice to or argument from the
adverse party
ex post facto
(Latin: “from a thing done afterward”) after the
fact, retroactively
ex propio motu
(Latin) of one’s own accord
ex turpi causa non oritur
actio
(Latin) from an immoral consideration an action
does not arise (a party does not have a right to
enforce performance of an agreement founded on a
consideration that is contrary to the public interest)
exempli gratia (eg)
(Latin) for example, for instance
expressio unius est exclusio
alterius
(Latin) a canon of construction holding that to
express or include one thing implies the exclusion of
the other or of the alternative
forum conveniens
(Latin: “a suitable forum”) a court in which an
action is most appropriately brought, considering the
best interests and convenience of the parties and
witnesses
forum non conveniens
(Latin: “an unsuitable court”) the doctrine that an
appropriate forum, even though competent under
law, may divest itself of jurisdiction if, for the
convenience of litigants and witnesses, it appears
that the action should proceed in another forum in
which the action might originally have been brought
functus officio
(Latin: “having performed one’s office”) (of an
officer or official body) without further authority or
legal competence because the duties and functions
of the original commission have been fully
accomplished
habeas corpus
(Latin: “have the body [brought before the judge]”)
writ requiring a prisoner to be brought into court for
a judge to decide if the imprisonment is legal
ibidem (ibid)
(Latin) in the same place – used in legal citation to
denote that the reference is to a work cited
immediately before, and that the cited matter
appears on the same page of the same book
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
… 29
Foreign words and phrases to be italicised
Foreign Word or Phrase
English Meaning / Remarks
id est (ie)
(Latin) that is
idem (id)
(Latin) the same – used in legal citation to refer to
the authority cited immediately before
ignorantia juris non excusat
(Latin: “ignorance of the law is no excuse”) lack of
knowledge about a legal requirement or prohibition
is never an excuse to a criminal charge
in camera
(Latin: “in a chamber”) in the courtroom with all
the spectators excluded
in extenso
(Latin) in full, unabridged
in futuro
(Latin) in the future
in globo
(Latin) as an undivided whole rather than separately
in limine
(Latin) preliminarily, at the outset
in loco parentis
(Latin: “in the place of a parent”) acting
temporarily as the guardian of a child
in pari delicto
(Latin: “in equal fault”) equally at fault
in pari materia
(Latin” in the same matter”) in an analogous case,
on the same subject, referring to the same matter
in personam
(Latin: “against the person”) involving or
determining the personal rights and interests of the
parties
in praesenti
(Latin) at present, right now
in re
(Latin: “in the matter of”) (of a judicial proceeding)
not formally including adverse parties, but rather
involving something, such as an estate
in rem
(Latin: “against a thing”) involving or determining
the status of a thing, and thus the rights of persons
generally with respect to that thing
BUT: When the term appears as the name of a suit,
it is not italicized, and the “R” is capitalised, eg,
“Admiralty in Rem No 729 of 1976”.
in situ
(Latin) in place
in specie
(Latin: “in kind”) in the same or like form
in terrorem
(Latin: “in order to frighten”) by way of threat, as a
warning
infra
(Latin) below – used in legal citation to refer to a
later-cited authority in the text
inter alia
(Latin) among other things
inter alios
(Latin) among other persons
inter partes
(Latin: “between the parties”) between two or more
parties, with two or more parties in a transaction
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 30
Foreign words and phrases to be italicised
Foreign Word or Phrase
English Meaning / Remarks
inter se
(Latin: “between or among themselves”) between
parties rather than in relation to others
inter vivos
(Latin: “between the living”) of or relating to
property not conveyed by will or in contemplation
of an imminent death but during the conveyor’s
lifetime
in toto
(Latin: “in whole”) completely, as a whole
intra vires
(Latin: “within the powers of”) of or referring to an
action taken within the scope of authority
ipse dixit
(Latin: “he himself said it”) something asserted but
not proved
ipsissima verba
(Latin: “the very (same) words”) the exact words
used by somebody being quoted
ipso facto
(Latin: “by the fact itself”) by the very nature of the
situation
ipso jure
(Latin: “by the law itself”) by the operation of the
law itself
jus cogens
(Latin: “compelling law”) a mandatory norm of
general international law from which no two or
more nations may exempt themselves or release
each other
jus dispositivum
(Latin: “law subject to the disposition of the
parties”) a norm created by the consent of
participating nations, as by an international
agreement, and binding only on nations that agree to
be bound by it
jus gentium
(Latin: “law of nations”) international law
jus soli
(Latin: “right of the soil”) the rule that a child’s
citizenship is determined by place of birth
kadi
(Malay) judge
lex causae
(Latin) the applicable law
lex domicilii
(Latin: “law of the domicile”) the law of the
country where a person is domiciled
lex fori
(Latin: “law of the forum”) the law of the
jurisdiction where the case is pending
lex loci
(Latin) the law of the place
lex loci celebrationis
(Latin: “law of the place of the ceremony”) the law
of the place where a contract, especially a marriage,
is made
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
… 31
Foreign words and phrases to be italicised
Foreign Word or Phrase
English Meaning / Remarks
lex loci contractus
(Latin: “law of the place of the contract”) the law of
a place where a contract is executed or to be
performed
lex loci delicti or lex loci
delicti commissi
(Latin: “law of the place of the wrong” or “law of
the place of commission of the wrong”) the law of
the place where a tort was committed
lex loci solutionis
(Latin: “law of the place of solution”) the law of the
place where the contract is to be performed
(especially by payment)
lex mercatoria
(Latin: “mercantile law”) the law merchant
lex situs
(Latin: “law of the location”) the law of the place
where property is located
lex posterior derogat priori
(Latin: “a later law derogates from an earlier one”)
the principle that a later statute negates the effect of
a prior one if the later statute expressly repeals or is
obviously repugnant to the earlier statute
lis
(Latin) a piece of litigation, a controversy or dispute
lis pendens
(Latin) a pending suit
locum tenens
(Latin: “holding the place”) a deputy, a substitute, a
representative
locus actus
(Latin: “place of the act”) the place where an act is
done, the place of performance
locus contractus
(Latin: “place of the contract”) the place where a
contract is made
locus delicti
(Latin: “place of the wrong”) the place where an
offence is committed; the place where the last event
necessary to make the actor liable occurs
locus in quo
(Latin: “place in which”) the place where
something is alleged to have occurred
locus poenitentiae
(Latin: “place of repentance”) the point at which it
is not too late for one to change one’s legal position;
the possibility of withdrawing from a contemplated
course of action, especially a wrong, before being
committed to it
locus standi
(Latin: “place of standing”) right to bring an action
or to be heard in a given forum
mala fide
(Latin) in bad faith
mala fides
(Latin) bad faith
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 32
Foreign words and phrases to be italicised
Foreign Word or Phrase
English Meaning / Remarks
mandamus
(Latin: “we command”) writ issued by a superior
court to compel a lower court or government officer
to perform mandatory or purely ministerial duties
correctly
mens rea;
plural mentes reae
(Latin: “guilty mind”) state of mind that the
prosecution, to secure a conviction, must prove that
a defendant had when committing a crime; criminal
intent
mesne profits
(Law French: “intermediate” profits) profits which
have accrued while there was a dispute over land
ownership
modus operandi
(Latin: “manner of operating”) method of operating
or a manner of procedure, especially a pattern of
criminal behaviour so distinctive that investigators
attribute it to the work of the same person
mutatis mutandis
(Latin) all necessary changes having been made,
with the necessary changes
nemo dat quod non habet
(Latin) no one can give what he does not have
nemo judex in causa sua
(Latin) no one should be a judge in his own cause
nisi
(Latin: “unless”) (of a court’s ruling or grant of
relief) having validity unless the adversely affected
party appears and shows cause why it should be
withdrawn
nolle prosequi
(Latin) to abandon (a suit or prosecution); to have a
case dismissed by nolle prosequi
non est factum
(Latin: “it is not his deed”) a denial of execution of
an instrument sued upon
non sequitur
(Latin: “it does not follow”) inference or conclusion
that does not logically follow from the premises
noscitur a sociis
(Latin: “it is known by its associates”) a canon of
construction holding that the meaning of an unclear
word or phrase should be determined by the words
immediately surrounding it
novus actus interveniens
(Latin: “a new act intervening”) event that comes
between an initial event in a sequence and the end
result, thereby altering the natural course of events
that might have connected a wrongful act to an
injury
nudum pactum
(Latin: “bare agreement”) agreement unenforceable
as a contract because it is not “clothed” with
consideration
nulla poena sine lege
(Latin) no punishment without a law authorising it
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
… 33
Foreign words and phrases to be italicised
Foreign Word or Phrase
English Meaning / Remarks
nunc pro tunc
(Latin: “now for then”) having retroactive legal
effect through a court’s inherent power
obiter dictum;
plural obiter dicta
(Latin: “something said in passing”) a judicial
comment made during the course of delivering an
opinion but one that is unnecessary to the decision
of the case and therefore not precedential (though it
may be considered persuasive). Also obiter or
dictum.
pace
(Latin) by the permission of
pacta sunt servanda
(Latin: “agreements must be kept”) the rule that
agreements and stipulations, especially those
contained in treaties, must be observed
parens patriae
(Latin: “parent of one’s country”) the state in its
capacity as provider of protection to those unable to
care for themselves
pari passu
(Latin: “by equal step”) proportionately, without
preference
participis criminis
(Latin: “partner in crime”) an accomplice or
accessory
passim
(Latin: “here and there”) throughout (the cited
work)
pendente lite
(Latin: “while the action is pending”) during the
proceedings or litigation; contingent on the outcome
of litigation
per
(Latin) through, by
per alium
(Latin) by means of another
per curiam
(Latin) by the court as a whole
per incuriam
(Latin) (of a judicial decision) wrongly decided,
usually because the judge or judges were illinformed about the applicable law
per se
(Latin) of, in or by itself, standing alone, without
reference to additional facts
prima facie
(Latin: “at first sight”) on first appearance but
subject to further evidence or information
pro forma
(Latin: “for form”) made or done as a formality; (of
an invoice or statement) provided in advance to
describe items, predict results or secure approval
pro rata
(Latin) proportionately; according to an exact rate,
measure or interest
pro tanto
(Latin: “to that extent”) for so much, as far as it
goes
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 34
Foreign words and phrases to be italicised
Foreign Word or Phrase
English Meaning / Remarks
pro tempore (pro tem)
(Latin) for the time being, appointed to occupy a
post temporarily
profit(s) à prendre
(Law French: “right of taking”) right of persons to
share in the land owned by another.
pur autre vie
(Law French: “for another’s life”) for or during a
period measured by another’s life
qua
(Latin) in the capacity of, as
quaere
(Latin) inquire, query, examine – used to show that
a point is doubtful or open to question
quantum meruit
(Latin: “as much as one has deserved”) damages
awarded in an amount considered reasonable to
compensate a person who has rendered services in a
quasi-contractual relationship; a claim or right of
action for the reasonable value of services rendered
quantum valebant
(Latin: “as much as they are worth”) an equitable
remedy to provide restitution for unjust enrichment
by awarding the reasonable value of goods and
materials supplied
quia timet
(Latin: “because one fears”) a legal doctrine that
allows a person to seek equitable relief from future
probable harm to a specific right or interest
quid pro quo
(Latin: “something for something”) thing that is
exchanged for another thing of more or less equal
value; a substitute
quo warranto
(Latin: “by what authority”) a writ used to inquire
into the authority by which a public office is held or
a franchise is claimed
quoad
(Latin) as regards, with regard to
quoad hanc (hunc)
(Latin) so far as this woman (man) is concerned
(with reference to nullity of marriage or to sexual
impotence)
ratio decidendi;
plural rationes decidendi
(Latin: “reason for deciding”) principle or rule of
law on which a court’s decision is founded; rule of
law on which a later court thinks a previous court
founded its decision
re
(Latin) regarding, in the matter of, in re
res;
plural res
res gestae
(Latin: “thing”) an object, interest or status, as
opposed to a person; the subject matter of a trust, a
corpus
(Latin: “things done”) events at issue, or other
events contemporaneous with them
Appendix 1A: Examples for General Rules
… 35
Foreign words and phrases to be italicised
Foreign Word or Phrase
English Meaning / Remarks
res integra
(Latin: “an entire thing”) an undecided question of
law; a case of first impression
res inter alios acta, or res
inter alios acta alteri
noncere non debet
(Latin: “a thing done between others”) a doctrine
holding that a contract cannot unfavourably affect
rights of a person not a party to the contract
res ipsa loquitur
(Latin: “the thing speaks for itself”) a doctrine
providing that, in some circumstances, the mere fact
of an accident’s occurrence raises an inference of
negligence so as to establish a prima facie case
res judicata
(Latin: “a thing adjudicated”) an issue definitively
settled by judicial decision; an affirmative defence
barring the same parties from litigating a second
lawsuit on the same claim, or any other claim arising
from the same transaction or series of transactions,
and that could have been but was not raised in the
first suit.
restitutio in integrum
(Law Latin) restoration to the previous condition or
status quo
semble
(Law French: “it seems”) used chiefly to indicate an
obiter dictum in a court opinion or to introduce an
uncertain thought or interpretation
sic
(Latin: “so, thus”) used to indicate that the
preceding word or phrase in a quoted passage is
reproduced as it appeared in the original document
simpliciter
(Latin: “simply”) in a simple or summary manner;
absolutely, unconditionally, per se
sine die
(Latin: “without day”) with no day assigned (as for
resumption of a meeting or hearing)
sine qua non
(Latin: “without which not”) an indispensable
condition or thing, something on which something
else necessarily depends
stricto sensu
(Latin: “strict sense”) in its strict meaning
sub judice
(Latin) under consideration
sub nomine (sub nom)
(Latin: “under the name”) used in case citations to
indicate that there has been a name change from one
stage of the case to another
sub voce
(Latin: “under the word”) under a specified word
subpoena ad testificandum
(Law Latin: “for testifying under penalty”) order
directing a witness to appear in court and give
testimony
subpoena duces tecum
(Law Latin) order directing a witness to appear in
court and bring specified documents or records
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 36
Foreign words and phrases to be italicised
Foreign Word or Phrase
English Meaning / Remarks
sui generis
(Latin: “of its own kind”) of its own kind or class;
unique or peculiar
sui juris
(Latin: “of one’s own right”) of full age and
capacity; possessing full social and civil rights
supra
(Latin: “above”) earlier in the text – used in legal
citations to refer to a previously-cited authority in
the text
travaux préparatoires
(French: “preparatory works”) materials used in
preparing the ultimate form of an agreement or
statute, especially of an international treaty;
materials constituting a legislative history
uberrima fides
(Latin) utmost good faith
uberrimae fidei
(Latin) of the utmost good faith
ultra vires
(Latin: “beyond the powers of”) beyond the scope
of power allowed by a company charter or by law,
unauthorised
versus (v)
(Latin) against
vice versa
(Latin: “the position being reversed”) with the order
or correspondence reversed; the other way round
vide
(Latin: “see”) used in legal citations for crossreferences
videlicet (viz)
(Latin) to wit, that is to say, namely – used to point
out, particularise or render more specific what has
been stated in general (or more obscure) language
viva voce
(Latin: “with living voice”) by word of mouth,
orally
voir (or voire) dire
(Law French: “to speak the truth”) a preliminary
examination to test the competence of a witness or
evidence
volenti non fit injuria
(Latin: “a person is not wronged by that to which he
or she consents”) the principle that a person who
knowingly and voluntarily risks danger cannot
recover for any resulting injury
APPENDIX 1B
EXAMPLES FOR PART 2: CITATION RULES
2–1
CITATION OF CASES ............................................................................................................................ 3
2–1.1 CITATION OF REPORTED CASES .................................................................................................................... 3
2–1.1.1
Case Name ................................................................................................................................. 3
2–1.1.4
Law Report ................................................................................................................................. 3
2–1.1.6
Court and Jurisdiction................................................................................................................. 6
2–1.2 CITATION OF UNREPORTED JUDGMENTS AND CASES ........................................................................................ 8
2–1.2.1
Cases with Neutral Citations ...................................................................................................... 8
2–1.2.2
Cases without Neutral Citations ................................................................................................. 8
2–1.3 CITATION OF CASES PUBLISHED IN ELECTRONIC FORM ................................................................................... 10
2–1.3.1
Cases from Electronic Databases ............................................................................................. 10
2–1.3.2
Cases from the Internet ............................................................................................................ 10
2–1.4 CITATION OF DIGESTS OF CASES ................................................................................................................ 11
2–1.5 SUBSEQUENT REFERENCES........................................................................................................................ 11
2–2
CITATION OF LEGISLATION ............................................................................................................... 11
2–2.1 CITATION OF SINGAPORE LEGISLATION. ....................................................................................................... 11
2–2.1.1
Constitution .............................................................................................................................. 11
2–2.1.2
Statutes. ................................................................................................................................... 12
2–2.1.2.1
2–2.1.2.2
2–2.1.3
2–2.1.3.1
2–2.1.3.2
Statutes without Chapter Numbers .................................................................................................... 12
Statutes with Chapter Numbers.......................................................................................................... 13
Subsidiary Legislation ............................................................................................................... 13
Subsidiary Legislation without Chapter Numbers ............................................................................... 13
Subsidiary Legislation with Chapter Numbers .................................................................................... 15
2–2.1.4
Bills ........................................................................................................................................... 15
2–2.1.5
Other Materials Published in the Government Gazette ........................................................... 16
2–2.2 CITATION OF FOREIGN LEGISLATION ........................................................................................................... 16
2–2.2.1
Australia and New Zealand Legislation .................................................................................... 16
2–2.2.2
Canadian Legislation ................................................................................................................ 16
2–2.2.2.2
2–2.2.2.3
2–2.2.3
2–2.2.4
2–2.2.4.1
Jurisdiction .......................................................................................................................................... 17
Revised Regulations ............................................................................................................................ 17
Malaysian Legislation .............................................................................................................. 18
United Kingdom Legislation ..................................................................................................... 18
Year (UK Legislation) ........................................................................................................................... 18
2–2.2.5
United States of America Legislation ....................................................................................... 19
2–2.3 SUBSEQUENT REFERENCES (LEGISLATION) ................................................................................................... 19
2–3
2–3.1
2–3.2
2–4
2–4.1
2–4.2
2–4.3
2–4.4
2–5
2–5.1
2–5.2
CITATION OF GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS .................................................................................... 19
CITATION OF PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (SINGAPORE) ................................................................................... 19
CITATION OF PARLIAMENTARY PAPERS........................................................................................................ 20
CITATION OF BOOKS ........................................................................................................................ 20
CITATION OF BOUND BOOKS..................................................................................................................... 20
CITATION OF BOUND BOOKS THAT ARE PART OF A SET ................................................................................... 21
CITATION OF LOOSELEAF BOOKS ................................................................................................................ 21
SUBSEQUENT REFERENCES (BOOKS) ........................................................................................................... 21
CITATION OF ARTICLES ..................................................................................................................... 22
CITATION OF ARTICLES IN LAW JOURNALS OR REVIEWS .................................................................................. 22
CITATION OF ARTICLES IN SERIAL PUBLICATIONS ........................................................................................... 22
SLR Style Guide 2015
…2
2–5.3 CITATION OF ARTICLES PUBLISHED IN ELECTRONIC FORM ............................................................................... 22
2–5.3.1
Articles Available in Electronic Databases ............................................................................... 22
2–5.3.2
Articles from the Internet ......................................................................................................... 23
2–5.4 SUBSEQUENT REFERENCES (ARTICLES) ........................................................................................................ 23
2–6
CITATION OF UNPUBLISHED, FORTHCOMING AND OTHER TYPES OF MATERIALS ............................ 23
2–6.1 CITATION OF UNPUBLISHED MATERIALS ...................................................................................................... 23
2–6.1.1
Manuscripts ............................................................................................................................. 23
2–6.1.2
Dissertations, Essays and Theses ............................................................................................. 24
2–6.1.3
Letters, E-mails and Memoranda ............................................................................................. 24
2–6.1.4
Interviews ................................................................................................................................. 24
2–6.1.5
Speeches and Press Releases.................................................................................................... 24
2–6.2 CITATION OF FORTHCOMING MATERIALS .................................................................................................... 25
2–6.3 CITATION OF LAW REFORM WORKING PAPERS AND REPORTS ......................................................................... 25
2–7
CITATION OF INTERNATIONAL MATERIALS ...................................................................................... 26
2–7.1 CITATION OF TREATIES ............................................................................................................................. 26
2–7.2 CITATION OF INTERNATIONAL CASES........................................................................................................... 26
2–7.2.1
International Court of Justice and Permanent Court of International Justice .......................... 26
2–7.2.2
Court of Justice of the European Communities ........................................................................ 27
2–7.2.3
European Court and European Commission of Human Rights ................................................. 27
2–7.3 CITATION OF UNITED NATIONS MATERIALS ................................................................................................. 28
2–7.3.2
Official Records ........................................................................................................................ 28
2–7.3.3
Yearbooks and Periodicals ....................................................................................................... 28
2–7.4 CITATION OF EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES MATERIALS ..................................................................................... 28
2–7.4.1
The Council and Commission: Legislation ................................................................................ 28
2–7.4.2
The Council and Commission: Other Publications .................................................................... 29
2–7.4.3
European Parliament ............................................................................................................... 29
2–7.4.3.2
Other Parliamentary Documents ........................................................................................................ 29
2–7.5 CITATION OF COUNCIL OF EUROPE MATERIALS ............................................................................................. 29
2–7.5.1
Parliamentary Debates ............................................................................................................ 29
2–7.5.2
Other Parliamentary Documents ............................................................................................. 30
2–7.6 CITATION OF WORLD TRADE ORGANISATION AND GENERAL AGREEMENT ON TARIFFS AND TRADE MATERIALS ......... 30
2–7.6.1
Panel Decisions, Rulings and Recommendations ..................................................................... 30
2–7.6.2
Reports and Minutes of Meetings ............................................................................................ 31
Appendix 1B: Examples for Citation Rules
2–1
…3
CITATION OF CASES
2–1.1 Citation of Reported Cases
Examples
Tan Ching Seng v Raffles Town Club Pte Ltd [2002] 3 SLR 345 at [10]
PP v Dato’ Seri Anwar bin Ibrahim (No 3) [1999] 2 MLJ 1
Mabo v Queensland (No 2) (1992) 175 CLR 1 at 45 (HC, Aust)
Halpern v Toronto (City) (2003) 172 OAC 276, 65 OR (3d) 161
Lange v Atkinson [1998] 3 NZLR 424
Lojuk v Quandt 706 F 2d 1456 at 1458 (7th Cir, 1983)
2–1.1.1
2–1.1.4
Case Name
Word or Phrase
Abbreviation
Attorney-General
AG
Management Corporation
Strata Title Plan Number
MCST Plan No
Official Assignee
OA
Official Receiver
OR
Public Prosecutor
PP
Rex or Regina
R
Law Report
Official, semi-official and preferred law report(s)
Jurisdiction
Singapore
Official, Semi-Official and
Preferred Law Reports
(Examples)
Singapore Law Reports (SLR,
SLR(R))
Unofficial
Law Reports
(Examples)
Criminal Legal Aid
Scheme News (CLAS
News)
Malayan Law Journal
(MLJ)
SLR Style Guide 2015
Jurisdiction
…4
Official, Semi-Official and
Preferred Law Reports
(Examples)
Unofficial
Law Reports
(Examples)
Australia
Commonwealth Law Reports
(CLR)
Federal Court Reports (FCR)
New South Wales Law
Reports (NSWLR)
Victorian Reports (VR)
Australian Law Reports
(ALR)
Australian Law Journal
Reports (ALJR)
Federal Law Reports
(FLR)
Canada
Official Reports
Canada Supreme Court
Reports/Canada Law
Reports: Supreme Court
of Canada (SCR)
Canada Federal Court
Reports (FC)
Exchequer Court of Canada
Reports/Reports of the
Exchequer Court of
Canada (Ex CR)
Dominion Law Reports
(DLR)
Western Weekly
Reports (WWR)
Semi-Official Reports
Alberta Reports (AR)
New Brunswick Reports
(NBR (2d))
Newfoundland & Prince
Edward Island Reports
(Nfld & PEIR)
Nova Scotia Reports (NSR
(2d))
Ontario Reports (OR (3d))
Recueils de jurisprudence du
Québec (RJQ)
Northwest Territories Reports
(NWTR)
Appendix 1B: Examples for Citation Rules
…5
Jurisdiction
Official, Semi-Official and
Preferred Law Reports
(Examples)
Unofficial
Law Reports
(Examples)
England and
Wales
The Law Reports
Queen’s and King’s Bench:
LR QB, QBD, KB, QB
Common Pleas: LR CP, CPD
Exchequer: LR Ex, Ex D
Chancery: Ch D, Ch
Equity: LR Eq
Family: Fam
Appeal Cases: AC
Privy Council: LR PC
Probate: LR P&D, PD, P
Admiralty and Ecclesiastical
Cases: LR Adm & Eccl
All England Law
Reports (All ER)
Fleet Street Reports
(FSR)
Lloyd’s Law Reports
(Lloyd’s Rep)
Reports of Patent Cases
(RPC)
Weekly Law Reports (WLR)
India
Preferred Reports
All India Reporter (AIR)
Indian Law Reports (ILR)
Supreme Court Cases (SCC)
Supreme Court Reports
(SCR)
Supreme Court Weekly
Reporter (SCWR)
Allahabad Law Journal (ALJ)
Bombay Law Reporter (Bom
LR)
Calcutta Weekly Notes
(CWN)
Gujarat Law Reporter (GLR)
Karnataka Law Journal (Kant
LJ)
Kerala Law Journal (Ker LJ)
Madras Law Times (MLT)
Maharashtra Law Journal
(MLJ)
–
Malaysia
Malayan Law Journal (MLJ)
All Malaysian Reports
(AMR)
Malaysian Current Law
Journal (CLJ)
New Zealand
New Zealand Law Reports
(NZLR)
–
SLR Style Guide 2015
2–1.1.6
…6
Jurisdiction
Official, Semi-Official and
Preferred Law Reports
(Examples)
Unofficial
Law Reports
(Examples)
United States
of America
United States Reports (US)
Federal Reporter (F 3d)
Federal Supplement (F Supp)
Atlantic Reporter (A)
California Reporter
(Cal Rptr)
New York Supplement (NYS)
North Eastern Reporter (NE)
North Western Reporter
(NW)
Pacific Reporter (P)
South Eastern Reporter (SE)
Southern Reporter (So)
South Western Reporter (SW)
Supreme Court
Reporter (S Ct)
Lawyer’s Edition (L Ed
2d)
Court and Jurisdiction
Abbreviations for courts
Court
Abbreviation
Constitutional Court
Const Ct
Constitutional Tribunal
Const Trib
County Court
County Ct
Court of Appeal
CA
Court of Criminal Appeal
CCA
District Court
Dist Ct
Divisional Court
Div Ct
Federal Court
FC
Full Court
Full Ct
High Court
HC
House of Lords
HL
Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
PC
Magistrate’s Court
MC
Supreme Court
SC
Abbreviations for jurisdictions
Jurisdiction
Singapore
Abbreviation
S’pore
Appendix 1B: Examples for Citation Rules
…7
Jurisdiction
Australia
Abbreviation
Aust
Commonwealth of Australia
Cth
Australian Capital Territory
ACT
New South Wales
NSW
Northern Territory
NT
Queensland
Qld
South Australia
SA
Tasmania
Tas
Victoria
Vic
Western Australia
WA
Canada
Can
Alberta
Alta
British Columbia
BC
Manitoba
Man
New Brunswick
NB
Newfoundland and Labrador
Nfld & Lab
Northwest Territories
NWT
Nova Scotia
NS
Nunavut
Nvt
Ontario
Ont
Prince Edward Island
PEI
Québec
Qc
Saskatchewan
Sask
Yukon
Y
Malaysia
M’sia
New Zealand
NZ
United Kingdom
UK
England and Wales
Eng
Northern Ireland
NI
Scotland
Scot
United States of America
US
SLR Style Guide 2015
…8
United States cases
Examples
Loving v Virginia 388 US 1 (1967)
Bradley v Harris Resources, Inc 275 F 3d 884 (9th Cir, 2001)
Miller v Indiana Hosp 562 F Supp 1259 (WD Pa, 1983)
2–1.2 Citation of Unreported Judgments and Cases
2–1.2.1
Cases with Neutral Citations
Singapore neutral citations
Court
Court Designator
Constitutional Tribunal
SGCT
Court of Appeal
SGCA
High Court
SGHC
District Court
SGDC
Magistrate’s Court
SGMC
Juvenile Court
SGJC
Small Claims Tribunal
SGSCT
(See the Supreme Court Practice Directions, para 91, and the Subordinate
Courts Practice Directions, para 151.)
Examples
Tan Kim Seng v Victor Adam Ibrahim [2003] SGCA 49
Diva XL Pte Ltd v Lalasis Trading Pte Ltd [2003] SGHC 97 at [11]
Royal Brompton Hospital NHS Trust v Hammond [2001] EWCA Civ
778
2–1.2.2
Cases without Neutral Citations
Examples
Lim Teck Choon v PP Magistrate’s Appeal No 475 of 1990 (29 February
1992) at [12]
XX v YY (12 June 1980, CA) (NZ)
Appendix 1B: Examples for Citation Rules
…9
The suit or application indicator should be set out as shown in the first
column of the table below. Thereafter, if it is necessary to refer to the suit
or application indicator, it should be abbreviated as shown in the second
column:
Suit or Application
Originating Applications: Civil
Suit No 1 of 2004
Originating Summons No 1 of 2003
Originating Motion No 1 of 2004
Originating Petition No 1 of 2004
Constitutional Reference No 1 of 2004
Admiralty in Rem No 1 of 2004
Admiralty in Personam No 1 of 2004
Companies Winding Up No 1 of 2004
Originating Applications: Criminal
Criminal Case No 1 of 2004
District Arrest Case No 1 of 2004
Magistrate’s Arrest Case No 1 of 2004
Building Control Division Summons No 1 of
2004
Land Transport Authority Summons No 1 of
2004
Maritime and Port Authority Summons No 1 of
2004
Ministry of Manpower Summons No 1 of 2004
Registry of Companies and Businesses
Summons No 1 of 2004
Traffic Police Summons No 1 of 2004
Private Summons No 1 of 2004
Family and Juvenile Court Applications
Divorce Petition No 1 of 2004
Originating Summons Family No 1 of 2004
Maintenance Summons No 1 of 2004
Summons No 1 of 2004
(applications for protection orders and
expedited orders; and beyond parental
control orders and care and protection
orders)
Adoption Petition No 1 of 2004
Juvenile Arrest Case No 1 of 2004
Abbreviation
Suit 1/2004
OS 1/2004
OM 1/2004
OP 1/2004
Const Ref 1/2004
Adm in Rem 1/2004
Adm in Pers 1/2004
CWU 1/2004
CC 1/2004
DAC 1/2004
MAC 1/2004
BCD 1/2004
LTA 1/2004
MPA 1/2004
MOM 1/2004
RCB 1/2004
TP 1/2004
PS 1/2004
D 1/2004
OSF 1/2004
MSS 1/2004
SS 1/2004
AP 1/2004
JAC 1/2004
SLR Style Guide 2015
Suit or Application
Interlocutory Applications
Summons in Chambers No 1 of 2004
Appeals: Civil and Criminal
Civil Appeal No 1 of 2004
Criminal Appeal No 1 of 2004
District Court Appeal No 1 of 2004
Magistrate’s Appeal No 1 of 2004
Registrar’s Appeal No 1 of 2004
Registrar’s Appeal from the Subordinate Courts
No 1 of 2004
… 10
Abbreviation
SIC 1/2004
CA 1/2004
Cr A 1/2004
DCA 1/2004
MA 1/2004
RA 1/2004
RAS 1/2004
2–1.3 Citation of Cases Published in Electronic Form
2–1.3.1
Cases from Electronic Databases
Examples
United States v Carlisle No 90-2465SI, 1991 US App LEXIS 5863 at *3
(8th Cir, 10 April 1991)
Leong Ker Han v Baker Andrew, unreported, Originating Summons No
23 of 1996, 14 June 1996, [1996] WL 675447 at [2]
2–1.3.2
Cases from the Internet
Examples
Palmer v The Queen [1998] HCA 2 <http://austlii.edu.au/au/cases/
cth/high_ct/1998/2.html> (accessed 21 January 1998) at [11]
Padilla v Rumsfeld Nos 03-2235 (L), 03-2438 (Con) (2nd Cir, 2003)
<http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/data2/circs/2nd/032235p. pdf> (accessed
26 December 2003)
Appendix 1B: Examples for Citation Rules
… 11
2–1.4 Citation of Digests of Cases
Examples
… digested at Academy Digest, Supreme Court/Subordinate Courts Series, Issue
No A/B-24/2003, 4 December 2003 at 7 [if no paragraph number]
… digested at 3(2) Mallal’s Digest (4th ed, 2003 reissue) 1847
… digested at [2002] Mallal’s Digest (4th ed) 626
… digested at [2002] CLY 4554 [Current Law Yearbook]
… digested at [2003] 10 CL 345 [Current Law Monthly]
… digested at 46(2) Digest (2001, 2nd reissue) 4797
2–1.5 Subsequent References
Examples
The principle established by Rylands v Fletcher ([14] supra) …
In the Reynolds case ([75] supra) at 423, Lord Bridge of Harwich commented…
2–2
CITATION OF LEGISLATION
2–2.1 Citation of Singapore Legislation.
2–2.1.1
Constitution
Example
Constitution of the Republic of Singapore (1999 Reprint) Art 14(1)
SLR Style Guide 2015
2–2.1.2
… 12
Statutes.
2–2.1.2.1 Statutes without Chapter Numbers
Citation formats for Singapore statutes without chapter numbers
Period
22 November 1834
–
1 April 1867
Status of Singapore
Part of Straits
Settlements under
Indian
administration
Citation Format
Title of Act (Indian Act No
number of year)
pinpoint
[Indicate the Act number in
Arabic, not Roman,
numerals.]
1 April 1867 –
15 February 1942
Part of Straits
Settlements under
British
administration
Short Title of
Act/Ordinance year (SS
Ord No number of year)
pinpoint
[Statutes were erroneously
termed ‘Acts’ in 1867
only.]
15 February 1942 –
15 August 1945
Under Japanese
Military
Administration
15 August 1945 –
31 March 1946
Under British
Military
Administration
–
Name of Proclamation
(Procl No number, date)
pinpoint
1 April 1946 –
2 June 1959
Crown Colony
Short Title of Ordinance
year (No number of
year) pinpoint
3 June 1959 –
8 August 1965
State
(State in the
Federation of
Malaysia from 16
September 1963 – 8
August 1965)
Short Title of Ordinance
year (No number of
year) pinpoint
Appendix 1B: Examples for Citation Rules
… 13
Citation formats for Singapore statutes without chapter numbers
Period
9 August 1965 –
present
Status of Singapore
Republic
Citation Format
Short Title of Act year (No
number of year)
pinpoint
Examples
An Act to Extend the Indian Penal Code to the Straits Settlements
(Indian Act No 5 of 1867)
War Offences Ordinance 1941 (SS Ord No 68 of 1941)
Military Administration Proclamation (Procl No 1, 7 September 1945)
Criminal Justice (Temporary Provisions) Ordinance 1954 (No 20 of
1954)
Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 2001 (Act 39 of 2001)
2–2.1.2.2 Statutes with Chapter Numbers
Examples
Printing Presses Ordinance (SS Cap 208, 1936 Rev Ed)
Misuse of Drugs Act (Cap 185, 2001 Rev Ed) s 2(1)
2–2.1.3
Subsidiary Legislation
2–2.1.3.1 Subsidiary Legislation without Chapter Numbers
Citation formats for Singapore Subsidiary Legislation
without Chapter Numbers
Period
22 November 1834
–
15 February 1942
Status of Singapore
Part of Straits
Settlements under
Indian and British
administration
Citation Format
Short Title of Subsidiary
Legislation year (GN
No S number/year)
pinpoint
[‘GN’ stands for ‘Gazette
Notification’.]
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 14
Citation formats for Singapore Subsidiary Legislation
without Chapter Numbers
Period
Status of Singapore
Citation Format
15 February 1942 –
31 March 1946
Under Japanese
Military
Administration and
British Military
Administration
–
1 April 1946 –
2 June 1959
Crown Colony
3 June 1959 –
8 August 1965
State
Short Title of Subsidiary
Legislation year (GN
No S number/year)
pinpoint
3 June 1959 –
31 December 1959
State
Short Title of Subsidiary
Legislation year (GN
No S (NS) number/year)
pinpoint
[‘NS’ stands for ‘New
Series’.]
1 January 1959 –
15 September 1963
State
Short Title of Subsidiary
Legislation year (GN
No S number/year)
pinpoint
16 September 1963
–
8 August 1965
State in the
Federation of
Malaysia
Short Title of Subsidiary
Legislation year (GN Sp
No S number/year)
pinpoint
[‘Sp’ stands for
‘Singapore’.]
9 August 1965 –
present
Republic
Short Title of Subsidiary
Legislation year (GN
No S number/year)
pinpoint
Appendix 1B: Examples for Citation Rules
… 15
Examples
Proclamation [of Martial Law Throughout the Settlement of Singapore]
(GN No S 894/1941) [Descriptive title added editorially in brackets
as subsidiary legislation lacks one.]
Singapore (Constitution) Order in Council 1958 (Responsibility of the
Prime Minister) Notification 1959 (GN No S (NS) 8/1959)
Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore (State Constitutions) Order in Council
1963 (GN Sp No S 1/1963)
Prevention of Pollution of the Sea (Oil) Regulations 1991 (S 58/1991)
reg 3
2–2.1.3.2 Subsidiary Legislation with Chapter Numbers
Examples
Central Provident Fund (Investment Schemes) Regulations
(Cap 36, Rg 9, 2002 Rev Ed)
Rules of Court (Cap 322, R 5, 1997 Rev Ed) O 14 r 1
2–2.1.4
Bills
Examples
Terrorism (Suppression of Financing Bill 2002 (No 18 of 2002),
<http://www.parliament.gov.sg/Legislation/Htdocs/Bills/020018.pdf
> (accessed 5 January 2004)
Computer Misuse (Amendment) Bill 2003 (No 22 of 2003) cl 4
SLR Style Guide 2015
2–2.1.5
… 16
Other Materials Published in the Government Gazette
Examples
Singapore Jury List (SS Govt Gazette, 19 November 1875) at 856–864
[No Gazette Notification number.]
Proclamation [Settlement of Malacca Subject to Preservation of Peace
Ordinance No VI of 1872] (SS GN No 303/1875) [Proclamation
lacks a descriptive title.]
War Offences (Amendment) Bill 1942 (SS GN No 251/1942)
List of Advocates & Solicitors who have Taken Out Practising
Certificates for the Practice Year Ending 31st March 2004 (as at 30th
April 2003) (GN Supp No 11/2003)
Shaw Theatres Cinema Supervisors’ Agreement 2002 (CA 251/ 2002,
GN No IR 410/2003)
2–2.2 Citation of Foreign Legislation
2–2.2.1
Australia and New Zealand Legislation
Word or Phrase
Abbreviation
chapter
ch
schedule (Australian legislation; do not abbreviate for
New Zealand legislation)
sch
Statutory Regulation (New Zealand)
SR
Examples
Workplace Relations Act 1996 (Cth) ss 518–520
Rules of Procedure in Miscellaneous Civil Proceedings 1988 (Vic) ch II
r 2.01
Employment Contracts Act 1991 (NZ)
Public Trust Regulations 2002 (SR 2002/198) (NZ) reg 17
2–2.2.2
Canadian Legislation
Word or Phrase
Abbreviation
Appendix
App
article(s) (in Quebec codes)
art(s)
Appendix 1B: Examples for Citation Rules
Word or Phrase
… 17
Abbreviation
chapter
c
Revised Statutes, Re-enacted Statutes
RS
Schedule
Sch
Sessional Volume
S
Supplement
Supp
2–2.2.2.2 Jurisdiction
Jurisdiction
Abbreviation
Canada
C
Lower Canada
LC
Upper Canada
UC
Alberta
A
British
Columbia
BC
Manitoba
M
New Brunswick
NB
Newfoundland and Labrador
NL
Northwest
Territories
NWT
Nova Scotia
NS
Nunavut
Nu
Ontario
O
Prince Edward
Island
PEI
Québec
Q
Saskatchewan
S
Yukon
Y
2–2.2.2.3 Revised Regulations
Examples
Emergency Planning Act, SS 1989–90, c E-8.1 (Can)
Social Services Tax Act, RSBC 1979, c 388 (Can) s 2
SLR Style Guide 2015
2–2.2.3
… 18
Malaysian Legislation
Examples
Film Censorship Act 2002 (No 620 of 2002) (M’sia) s 5
Islamic Banking (Amendment) Act 2002 (No A1145 of 2002) (M’sia)
National Anthem (Modification
(PU(A) 313/2003) (M’sia)
of
Tempo)
Order
2003
Notice of Contested Election: Constituency of No 8 Indera Kayangan
(No PU(B) 19/2002) (M’sia)
2–2.2.4
United Kingdom Legislation
Word or Phrase
Abbreviation
Appendix
App
article(s)
art(s)
chapter
c
Order
Ord
Statutory Instrument
SI
Schedule
Sch
2–2.2.4.1 Year (UK Legislation)
Examples
Statute Law Revision Act 1908 (c 49) (UK)
Dealing in Cultural Objects (Offences) Act 2003 (c 27) (UK)
s3
Electronic Communications (Universal Service) Regulations
2003 (SI 2003 No 33) (UK)
Appendix 1B: Examples for Citation Rules
2–2.2.5
… 19
United States of America Legislation
Examples
US Constitution Art III § 2 cl 3
US Constitution Amend XIV § 1
Non-Detention Act 18 USC (US) § 4001(a) (2000)
Americans with Disabilities Act 42 USC (US) § 12101 (1990)
3 CFR (US) §102.130 (2003)
2–2.3 Subsequent References (Legislation)
Examples
Constitution Art 14(1)
… : MDA s 2.
According to s 7(2) of the CPF Act, …
2–3
CITATION OF GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS
2–3.1 Citation of Parliamentary Debates
Examples
Colony of Singapore, Legislative Council Proceedings (21 September 1954) at
B261
Singapore Parliamentary Debates, Official Report (31 October 2002) vol 75 at
cols 1424–1426 (David T E Lim, Acting Minister for Information, Communications
and the Arts)
Singapore Parliamentary Debates, Official Report (12 November 2012) vol 89
(Teo Chee Hean, Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for National
Security and Minister for Home Affairs)
Commonwealth (Australia), House of Representatives, Parliamentary Debates
(4 December 2003) at 23761, <http://www.aph.gov.au/hansard/reps/dailys/dr041203.pdf> (accessed 5 January 2004) (Peter Costello, Treasurer)
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 20
United Kingdom, House of Lords, Parliamentary Debates (4 July 2003), vol 650 at
col 1148, <http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200203/ldhansrd/vo030704/
text/30704-01.htm#30704-01_head1> (accessed 7 January 2004) (Baroness
Pitkeathley)
United Kingdom, House of Commons, Parliamentary Debates (4 July 1947)
vol 439 at col 1678, <http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1947/jul/04/
crown-proceedings-bill-lords> (accessed 1 July 2007) (Attorney-General
(Sir Hartley Shawcross))
2–3.2 Citation of Parliamentary Papers
Examples
Report of the Select Committee on the Advance Medical Directive Bill (Bill
No 40/95) (Parl 1 of 1996, 11 March 1996)
Ministry of Home Affairs, The Jemaah Islamiyah Arrests and the Threat of
Terrorism (White Paper, Cmd 2 of 2003, 7 January 2003)
United Kingdom, Report of the Committee on Homosexual Offences and
Prostitution (Cmnd 247, 1957) at 42 (Chairman: Sir John Frederick Wolfenden)
UK command paper reference numbers and abbreviations
2–4
Series
Year
Command Paper
Numbers
Abbreviation
1st series
1833–1869
1–4222
c
2d series
1870–1899
1–9550
C
3d series
1900–1918
1–9239
Cd
4th series
1919–1956
1–9889
Cmd
5th series
1957–
1–
Cmnd
CITATION OF BOOKS
2–4.1 Citation of Bound Books
Examples
Colin Tapper, Cross and Tapper on Evidence (Butterworths, 9th Ed, 1999) at p 74
Kevin Y L Tan, Yeo Tiong Min & Lee Kiat Seng, Constitutional Law in Malaysia
and Singapore (Malayan Law Journal, 1991)
Appendix 1B: Examples for Citation Rules
… 21
Lee Poh Onn, The Water Issue Between Singapore and Malaysia: No Solution in
Sight? (Economics and Finance Working Paper No 1) (Institute of Southeast
Asian Studies, 2003)
Jaroslav Pelikan et al, The Idea of the University: A Reexamination (Yale
University Press, 1992)
Singapore Court Practice 2003 (Jeffrey Pinsler gen ed) (LexisNexis, 2003) at
para 74/2-3/1
Benjamin’s Sale of Goods (A G Guest gen ed) (Sweet & Maxwell, 6th Ed, 2002) at
para 10-039
2–4.2 Citation of Bound Books that are Part of a Set
Examples
Halsbury’s Laws of Singapore vol 5 (Butterworths Asia, 2001) at para 60.142
Butterworths’ Annotated Statutes of Singapore vol 6 (Butterworths Asia, 1997
issue) at p 507
Halsbury’s Laws of England vol 8(3) (Butterworths, 4th Ed Reissue, 2003) at
para 405
2–4.3 Citation of Looseleaf Books
Examples
Malaysian and Singapore Company Law and Practice (CCH Company Law eds)
(1990, 2002 release) at para 20-090
Woodfall’s Law of Landlord and Tenant (Kim Lewison gen ed) (Sweet & Maxwell,
Looseleaf Ed, 1994, October 2000 release) at para 9.001
2–4.4 Subsequent References (Books)
Examples
Cane at p 45
Cane, Administrative Law at p 45
Cross and Tapper on Evidence at p 74
SLR Style Guide 2015
2–5
… 22
CITATION OF ARTICLES
2–5.1 Citation of Articles in Law Journals or Reviews
Examples
Peter Birks, “No Consideration: Restitution After Void Contracts” (1993)
23 UWALR 195 at 203
Walter Woon, “The Applicability of English Law in Singapore” in The Singapore
Legal System (Kevin Y L Tan ed, 2nd Ed, 1999) ch 6 at p 230
G W Bartholomew, “The Singapore Legal System” in Management of Success: The
Moulding of Modern Singapore (Kernial Singh Sandhu & Paul Wheatley eds,
1989) at p 601
Mei-lan E Wong, Note, ‘The Implications of School Choice for Children with
Disabilities’ (1993) 103 Yale L J 827 at 830
2–5.2 Citation of Articles in Serial Publications
Examples
Ho Ka Wei & Ben Nadarajan, “Thwarting the Cyber Terrorist”, The Straits Times
(14 November 2003) at H1
“Intellectual Property – The New Boundaries”, Inter Se (May–June 2002) at 3
Michael Walsh, “Asia’s Different Drum”, Time (14 January 1991) at 17–18
Jeremy Summers, “We’re Innocent Until We’re Proved Guilty … or Until Our
Assets are Seized”, The Times (London) (29 November 2003) at 34
2–5.3 Citation of Articles Published in Electronic Form
2–5.3.1
Articles Available in Electronic Databases
Examples
“Legality of Space Station Questioned”, UPI (31 October 2001) at 14,
available in LEXIS, Nexis Library, UPI File
“Justice Minister Calls for Solving Int’l Legal Conflicts”, Japan
Economic Newswire Plus (22 April 1991), available in DIALOG,
File No 612
Appendix 1B: Examples for Citation Rules
2–5.3.2
… 23
Articles from the Internet
Examples
David Bainbridge, “Trademark Infringement, the Internet and
Jurisdiction” [2003] 1 JILT [Journal of Information, Law and
Technology]
(4 July
2003)
<http://elj.warwick.ac.uk/jilt/031/bainbridge.htm> (accessed 23 April 2004)
Katherine Weston, “The Impact of TRIPs on Agricultural Economies in
the
Developing
World”
(2003)
10(3) E Law
<http://www.murdoch.edu.au/elaw/issues/v10n3/weston103. html>
(accessed 26 December 2003) at [25]–[27]
Joanne Mariner, “Battlefield Chicago? In the Padilla Case, a Federal
Court Says No”, FindLaw, 23 December 2003 <http://
www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/12/22/findlaw.analysis.mariner.
padilla/index.html> (accessed 26 December 2003)
2–5.4 Subsequent References (Articles)
Examples
Woon at 231
Woon, “Applicability of English Law” at 231
2–6
CITATION OF UNPUBLISHED, FORTHCOMING AND OTHER TYPES OF
MATERIALS
2–6.1 Citation of Unpublished Materials
2–6.1.1
Manuscripts
Examples
John Smith, Copyright Law in North America (12 February 1998)
(unpublished, archived at McGill Law Journal)
Surinder Kaur Verma, Plant Genetic Resources, Biological Inventions
and Intellectual Property Rights: The Case of India, Intellectual
Property and Biological Resources Conference, Singapore (2003) at
p 5 (unpublished, archived at the Singapore Academy of Law)
SLR Style Guide 2015
2–6.1.2
… 24
Dissertations, Essays and Theses
Examples
S M Huang, Equality Before the Law: Article 8: Constitution of the
Federation of Malaya (1963) (unpublished LLM thesis, University
of Singapore, archived at the C J Koh Law Library, National
University of Singapore)
Michael Bryan, Aspects of Breach of Confidence (1976) (unpublished
PhD thesis, Oxford University, archived at the Bodleian Law
Library)
2–6.1.3
Letters, E-mails and Memoranda
Examples
Letter from Jane Friedman, Senior Editor, American Civil Liberties Law
Review, to Martin Buerkle, Executive Editor, University of Kansas
Law Review (7 April 1996)
Memorandum from the Ad Hoc Committee on Women and Clerkships
to the Faculty of Oklahoma Law School (13 July 1993) at para 14
2–6.1.4
Interviews
Examples
Telephone interview with Paul Rolino, Editor, District of Columbia
Political Monthly (1 October 2001)
Michael Teo, interview with Patricia Hampton, Managing Partner,
Burke, Petersen & Smith, London, UK (15 August 1998)
E-mail interview with Dr Kenson Kwok, Director, National Heritage
Board (29 December 2002)
2–6.1.5
Speeches and Press Releases
Examples
Lee Boon Yang, Minister for Information, Communications and the
Arts, “Towards a Global Media City”, lunch talk at the Singapore
Press Club Lunch (12 November 2003)
S R Nathan, President of Singapore, speech at the Opening Ceremony of
the 8th General Assembly of the ASEAN Law Association
(29 November
2003),
<http://app.sprinter.gov.sg/
data/pr/2003112902.htm>
Appendix 1B: Examples for Citation Rules
… 25
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, “MFA Spokesman’s Comments”, press
statement on the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea
judgment
(9 October
2003)
<http://app.sprinter.gov.sg/
data/pr/2003100901.htm>
Goh Chok Tong, Prime Minister of Singapore, “Reshaping Alliances in
the New World Order”, keynote address at the Opening Dinner
Speech for the Europe/East Asia Economic Summit (12 October
1994),
in
Singapore
Government
Press
Release,
No 18/OCTOBER/02-1/94/10/12
Prime Minister’s Office, “Deployment of Senior Civil Servants”, press
statement (8 October 1994), in Singapore Government Press
Release, No 17/OCT/02-0/94/10/08
2–6.2 Citation of Forthcoming Materials
Examples
Donald Rublé, “Law and Psychology” 118 Harv L Rev (forthcoming, January
2004)
Kevin Y L Tan “A Short Legal and Constitutional History of Singapore” in Essays
in Singapore Legal History (Kevin Y L Tan ed, forthcoming, 2004) (manuscript
at para 3)
2–6.3 Citation of Law Reform Working Papers and Reports
Examples
Law Reform Committee, Singapore Academy of Law, Report of the Sub-Committee
on the Status of Children Born Through Artificial Conception (26 September
1997) at para 1.2 (Chairman: Jeffrey Chan Wah Teck)
Law Reform and Revision Division, Attorney-General’s Chambers, Proposed
Amendment to the International Arbitration Act on Rules of Arbitration: Report
(LRRD No 11/2002, 2 October 2002)
Report of the Constitutional Commission (1996) (Chairman: Wee Chong Jin)
Australian Law Reform Commission, Sentencing: Penalties (Discussion Paper
No 30, 1987) at para 286
Canada, Royal Commission on New Reproductive Technologies, Proceed with
Care: Final Report (1993)
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 26
United Kingdom, Royal Commission on Criminal Justice, Report (Cmnd 2263,
1993) (Chairman: Viscount Runciman of Doxford)
2–7
CITATION OF INTERNATIONAL MATERIALS
2–7.1 Citation of Treaties
Examples
Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
(4 November 1950), Eur TS No 5, 312 UNTS 221, 1953 UKTS No 71, Art 6
(entered into force 3 September 1953) (“European Human Rights Convention”)
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (19 December 1966),
999 UNTS 171, 6 ILM 368, Arts 9–14 (entered into force 23 March 1976)
(“ICCPR”)
Agreement Between the Government of the Republic of Singapore and the
Government of the Federal Republic of Germany on Maritime Transport
(15 June
2000),
GN No T 1/2002,
Bilateral
Treaty
No B329
<http://www.lawnet.com.sg>
Free Trade Agreement Between the EFTA States (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway
& Switzerland) and Singapore (26 June 2002), Bilateral Treaty No B348
<http://www.lawnet.com.sg> (entered into force 1 January 2003)
United
States–Singapore
<http://www.fta.gov.sg>
Free
Trade
Agreement
(6 May
2003),
2–7.2 Citation of International Cases
2–7.2.1
International Court of Justice and Permanent Court of International
Justice
Examples
Chorzów Factory (Germany v Poland) (Jurisdiction) [1928] PCIJ
(ser A) No 17
Diversion of Water from the Meuse (Netherlands v Belgium) [1937]
PCIJ (ser A/B) No 70, at 7
Interpretation of Peace Treaties with Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania
(Advisory Opinion) [1950] ICJ 65
Case Concerning East Timor (Portugal v Australia) [1995] ICJ 90 at
Appendix 1B: Examples for Citation Rules
… 27
[35],
<http://www.icj-cij.org/icjwww/icases/ipa/ipa_ijudgments/ipa_ijudgment_19950630.pdf> (accessed 5 January 2004)
Memorial of the United Kingdom (UK v Albania) [1949] ICJ Pleadings
(1 Corfu
Channel)
17
at
[94],
<http://www.icjcij.org/icjwww/icases/icc/icc_ipleadings/
icc_ipleadings_19470930_memorial_04.pdf> (accessed 5 January
2004)
Memorial of Denmark, Legal Status of Eastern Greenland (Denmark v
Norway) [1933] PCIJ (ser C) No 62 at 12
2–7.2.2
Court of Justice of the European Communities
Examples
Elz v Commission Case 58/1969, (1970) 16 ECR 507
Etablissements Consten SARL v Commission Joined Cases 56 &
58/1964, [1966] ECR 299
The Queen v Secretary of State for Transport ex parte Factortame Ltd
Case C-213/1989, [1990] ECR I-2433, [1990] 3 CMLR 1
Alfons Lütticke GmbH v Commission Case 4/1969, [1971] ECR 325,
[1971–1973
Transfer
Binder]
CM Rep
¶
8136,
<http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/index.html> (accessed 5 January
2004)
2–7.2.3
European Court and European Commission of Human Rights
Examples
Sunday Times v United Kingdom (1979) 30 Eur Ct HR (ser A), 2 EHRR
245
Y v Netherlands (1982) 32 Eur Comm HR DR 345 at 358
Udo Walendy v Germany (1995) 38 YB Eur Conv HR 51, Eur Comm
HR
Salgueiro da Silva Mouta v Portugal (2001) 31 EHRR 47, <http://
hudoc.echr.coe.int> (accessed 5 January 2004)
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 28
2–7.3 Citation of United Nations Materials
2–7.3.2
Official Records
Examples
GA Res 832, UN GAOR, 9th Sess, Supp No 21 at 19, UN Doc A/2890
(1954)
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, GA Res 217A, UN GAOR,
3rd Sess, 183rd plen mtg, UN Doc A/Res/217A (1948)
UN GAOR Special Political Comm, 27th Sess, 806th mtg at 5, UN
Doc A/SPC/SR.806 (1972)
SC Res 780, UN SCOR, 47th Sess, 3119th mtg, UN Doc S/Res/ 780
(1992), 31 ILM 1476
Permanent Missions to the UN: Report of the Secretary-General, UN
GAOR 6th Comm, 4th Sess, Annex, Agenda Item 50 at 16, UN
Doc A/C.6/Annexes (1949)
2–7.3.3
Yearbooks and Periodicals
Examples
“Human Rights in the Union of Burma in 1953” [1953] YB on HR 31,
UN Sales No 1955.XIV.1
“Report of the International Law Commission to the General
Assembly”, UN GAOR, 19th Sess, Supp No 9 at 1, UN Doc A/5509
(1963), reprinted in [1963] 2 YB Int’l L Comm’n 187, UN
Doc A/CN.4/SER.A/1963/Add.1
2–7.4 Citation of European Communities Materials
2–7.4.1
The Council and Commission: Legislation
Examples
Framework Directive (Directive on a Common Regulatory Framework
for Electronic Communications Networks and Services), EC Council
Directive 2002/21/EC, [2002] OJ L 108/33 <http://europa.eu.int/eurlex/pri/en/oj/dat/2002/l_108/l_
10820-020424en00330050.pdf>
(accessed 5 January 2004)
Regulation Establishing the Standard Import Values for Determining the
Entry Price of Certain Fruits and Vegetables, EC Commission
Appendix 1B: Examples for Citation Rules
… 29
Regulation No 15/95, [1995] OJ L 4/8
Regulation on Interim Measures Applicable After the Unification of
Germany, EC Council Regulation 2684/90, Art 4, [1990] OJ L 263/1
at p 2 <http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/index.html> (accessed
5 January 2004)
Decision on the State Aid Implemented by Germany for Dessauer
Geräteindustrie GmbH, EC Commission Decision 2001/1/EC, Doc
No C(2000) 515, [2001] OJ L 1/1
2–7.4.2
The Council and Commission: Other Publications
Examples
EC Court of Justice, Codified Versions of the Rules of Procedure, the
Supplementary Rules and the Instructions to the Registrar, Art 76,
[1982] OJ C 39/1 at 3, <http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/ index.html>
(accessed 5 January 2004)
EC Commission, Amended Proposal for an Eleventh Council Directive
on Company Law Concerning Disclosure Requirements in respect of
Branches Opened in a Member State by Certain Types of Companies
Governed by the Law of Another State, [1988] OJ C 105/6
2–7.4.3
European Parliament
2–7.4.3.2 Other Parliamentary Documents
Examples
European Parliament, Committee on Development and Co-operation,
Report on the Commission Communication on the Update of the EC
Programme for Action: Accelerated Action on HIV/AIDS, Malaria
and Tuberculosis in the Context of Poverty Reduction; Outstanding
Policy Issues and Future Challenges (2003), COM (2003) 93 –
2003/2146(INI) at para 21, <http://www.europarl.eu.int> (accessed
5 January 2004)
2–7.5 Citation of Council of Europe Materials
2–7.5.1
Parliamentary Debates
Examples
Council of Europe, PA, 45th Sess (1994) Debates, vol 4 at p 747
Council of Europe, PA, 2002 Sess, 1st Pt (23 January 2002),
SLR Style Guide 2015
… 30
<http://assembly.coe.int> (accessed 3 January 2004) (Mike Moore,
WTO Director-General)
2–7.5.2
Other Parliamentary Documents
Examples
Council of Europe, CA, 21st Sess, 3rd Pt (1970) Texts Adopted, Rec 585
at p 1
Council of Europe, PA, Iraq, 2003 Sess, 1st Pt, Res 1316 (30 January
2003), <http://assembly.coe.int> (accessed 3 January 2004)
Council of Europe, CA, 21st Sess, 2nd Pt, The Situation in
Czechoslovakia (1969) Orders, 10th Sitting at p 20
Council of Europe, PA, 2003 Sess, 2nd Pt, The Human Rights Situation
in
the
Chechen
Republic,
Ord 586
(2 April
2003),
<http://assembly.coe.int> (accessed 3 January 2004)
Council of Europe, PA, 38th Sess, 3rd Pt, Written Declaration No 150
on the Protection of the Archaeological Site of Pompeii (1987)
Documents, vol 7, Doc 5700 at p 1
Council of Europe, PA, 2004 Sess, 1st Pt, Situation of Palestinian
Refugees: Reply from the Committee of Ministers, Doc 10014
(9 December 2003), <http://assembly.coe.int> (accessed 3 January
2004)
Council of Europe, Committee of Ministers, ‘Recommendation R(82)1’
(1980) 12 Inf Bull 58
2–7.6 Citation of World Trade Organisation and General Agreement on Tariffs and
Trade Materials
2–7.6.1
Panel Decisions, Rulings and Recommendations
Examples
Freedom of Contract in Transport Insurance, GATT CP Rec of 27 May
1959, 15th Sess (1960) BISD (8th Supp) 26
Accession of Guatemala, GATT CP Dec L/6824, 47th Sess, (1991)
BISD (38th Supp) 16
Committee on Anti-Dumping Practices, Recommendation Regarding
Annual Reviews of the Anti-Dumping Agreement, WTO
Appendix 1B: Examples for Citation Rules
Rec G/ADP/9 of 27 November 2002 (29 November
<http://docsonline.wto.org> (accessed 3 January 2004)
… 31
2002),
Accession of Least-Developed Countries, WTO General Council
Dec WT/L/508 of 10 December 2002 (20 January 2003),
<http://docsonline.wto.org> (accessed 3 January 2004)
2–7.6.2
Reports and Minutes of Meetings
Examples
WTO, Report of the Working Party on the Accession of Bulgaria, WTO
Doc WT/ACC/BGR/5 (20 September 1996), <http:// docsonline.wto.org> (accessed 3 January 2004)
GATT, Committee on Trade and Development, Report Presented to and
Adopted by the Contracting Parties on 4 December 1991, GATT
Doc L/6929 (1991) BISD (38th Supp) 24
WTO, Committee on Market Access, Minutes of Meeting, WTO
Doc G/MA/M/34 (held on 26 March 2003), <http://docsonline.
wto.org> (accessed 3 January 2004)
APPENDIX 2: CITATIONS OF COMMON LAW REPORTS
[Paragraph 2–1.1.2]
Singapore
Singapore Law Reports
[the Official Reporter for Singapore cases from 2010 onwards]
Citation Style
Years
Volume Numbers
[year–year] SLR page
[1965–1968], [1969–1971],
[1972–1974], [1975–
1977], [1978–1979]
–
[year] SLR page
[1986] to [1991]
–
[year] vol SLR page
[1992]
1 or 2
[1993] to [1998]
1, 2 or 3
[1999] to present
1, 2, 3 or 4
Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
[the Official Reporter for Singapore cases from 1965 to 2009]
Citation Style
Years
Volume Numbers
[year–year] SLR(R) page
[1965–1967], [1968–1970],
[1971–1973], [1974–
1976], [1977–1978],
[1979–1980], [1981–
1982], [1983–1984],
[1985–1986]
–
[year] SLR(R) page
[1987]
–
[year] vol SLR(R) page
[1988] to [1991], [2002]
1 or 2
[1992] to [2001]
1, 2 or 3
[2003] to [2009]
1, 2, 3 or 4
Malaysia
Malayan Law Journal
Citation Style
Years
Volume Numbers
[year] MLJ page
[1932] to [1964]
–
[year] vol MLJ page
[1965] to [1987], [1992]
1 or 2
[1988] to [1991], [1993],
[1994]
1, 2 or 3
SLR Style Guide 2015
…2
[1995]
1, 2, 3 or 4
[1996], [1997]
1, 2, 3, 4 or 5
[1998], [2000]
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7
[1999], [2001] to [2004]
1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6
Canada
Dominion Law Reports
Citation Style
Years
Volume Numbers
(year) DLR page
(1912) to (1922)
1 to 70
[year] vol DLR page
[1923] to [1954]
1, 2, 3 or 4
[1955]
1, 2, 3, 4 or 5
(year) vol DLR (2d) page
(1956) to (1968)
1 to 70
(year) vol DLR (3d) page
(1969) to (1984)
1 to 150
(year) vol DLR (4th) page
(1984) to present
1 to 376, and so on
Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
Hong Kong Cases
Citation Style
Years
Volume Numbers
[year–year] HKC page
[1946–1972], [1973–1976],
[1977–1979]
–
[year] HKC page
[1980] to [1982], [1984],
[1986], [1988]
–
[1983], [1985], [1989] to
[1993]
1 or 2
[1987], [1994], [1995]
1, 2 or 3
[1996] to present
1, 2, 3 or 4
[year] vol HKC page
Hong Kong Law Reports
Citation Style
Years
Volume Numbers
(year) vol HKLR page
(1905) to (1956)
1 to 40
[year] HKLR page
[1957] to [1987]
–
Appendix 2: Abbreviations of Reports of Singapore and Malaysian Cases
[year] vol HKLR page
[1988] to [1996]
1 or 2
[year] HKLRD page
[1997]
–
[year] vol HKLRD page
[1998]
1 or 2
[1999] to present
1, 2 or 3
…3
United Kingdom
The Law Reports (published by the Incorporated Council of Law Reporting for England
and Wales)
Citation Style
Full Name of Report
Years
Volume Nos
(year) LR vol A & E
page
Admiralty &
Ecclesiastical Cases
(1865) to (1875)
1 to 4
(year) vol App Cas
page
Appeal Cases
(1875) to (1890)
1 to 15
[year] AC page
Appeal Cases
[1891] to [1915],
[1917] to [1920],
[1923] to [1966],
[1968], [1970] to
[1982], [1984] to
[1989], [1993],
[1996] to [1998]
–
[year] vol AC page
Appeal Cases
[1916], [1921], [1922],
[1967], [1969],
[1983], [1990] to
[1992], [1994],
[1995], [1999] to
present
1 or 2
(year) LR vol Ch App
page
Chancery Appeals
(1865) to (1875)
1 to 10
(year) vol Ch D page
Chancery Division
(1875) to (1890)
1 to 45
[year] vol Ch page
Chancery Division
[1891] to [1894]
1, 2, 3
[1895] to [1924],
[1927], [1929] to
[1932], [1969]
1 or 2
[year] Ch page
Chancery Division
[1925], [1926], [1928],
[1933] to [1968],
[1970] to present
–
(year) LR vol CP page
Common Pleas
(1865) to (1875)
1 to 10
(year) vol CPD page
Common Pleas
(1875) to (1880)
1 to 5
SLR Style Guide 2015
Citation Style
Full Name of Report
…4
Years
Volume Nos
Division
(year) LR vol CCR
page
Crown Cases Reserved
(1865) to (1875)
1 to 2
(year) LR vol Eq page
Equity Cases
(1865) to (1875)
1 to 20
(year) LR vol Exch
page
Exchequer Cases
(1865) to (1875)
1 to 10
(year) vol Ex D page
Exchequer Division
(1876) to (1880)
1 to 5
[year] Fam page
Family Division
[1972] to present
–
(year) LR vol HL page
English & Irish
Appeals
(1866) to (1875)
1 to 7
(year) LR vol PC page
Privy Council Appeals
(1865) to (1875)
1 to 6
(year) LR vol P & D
page
Probate & Divorce
(1865) to (1875)
1 to 3
(year) vol PD page
Probate Division
(1875) to (1890)
1 to 15
[year] P page
Probate Division
[1891] to [1971]
–
(year) LR vol QB page
Queen’s Bench
Division
(1865) to (1875)
1 to 10
(year) vol QBD page
Queen’s Bench
Division
(1875) to (1890)
1 to 25
[year] vol QB page
Queen’s Bench
Division
[1891] to [1900]
1 or 2
[year] vol KB page
King’s Bench Division
[1901] to [1919]
1 or 2
[year] vol KB page
King’s Bench Division
[1920], [1921]
1, 2 or 3
[year] vol KB page
King’s Bench Division
[1922] to [1951]
1 or 2
[1952] 1 KB page
King’s Bench Division
[1952] 2 QB page
Queen’s Bench
Division
[year] vol QB page
Queen’s Bench
Division
[1953] to [1972],
[1990], [1991]
1 or 2
[year] QB page
Queen’s Bench
Division
[1973] to [1989],
[1992] to present
–
(year) LR vol Sc & Div
page
Scotch & Divorce
Appeals
(1866) to (1875)
1 to 2
Notes
Appendix 2: Abbreviations of Reports of Singapore and Malaysian Cases



…5
Generally, from 1865 to 1875, round brackets are used for the year and “LR” appears
in the citation, followed by the volume number.
From 1875 to 1890, round brackets are used for the year and “D” usually appears, eg,
“Ch D”, “CPD”, “Ex D”, “QBD”
From 1891 onwards, square brackets are used for the year.
All England Law Reports
Citation Style
Full Name of Report
[year–year] All ER Rep All England Law
Reports Reprint
page
Years
Volume
Nos
[1895-1899], [19001903], [1904-1907],
[1908-1910], [19111913], [1914]1915],
[1916-1917], [19181919]
–
[year] All ER Rep page
All England Law
Reports Reprint
[1920] to [1935]
–
[year] vol All ER page
All England Law
Reports
[1936], [1941], [1954]
to [1990]
1, 2 or 3
[1937] to [1940],
[1991] to present
1, 2, 3 or 4
[1942] to [1953]
1 or 2
[1999] to present
1 or 2
[year] vol All ER
(Comm) page
Fleet Street Reports
Citation Style
All England Law
Reports Commercial
Years
Volume Numbers
[year] FSR page
[1963] to [2000]
–
[year] FSR case number
[2001] onwards
–
Lloyd’s Law Reports
Citation Style
Full Name of Report
Years
Volume
Nos
(year) vol Ll L Rep
page
Lloyd’s List Law
Reports
(1919) to (1950)
1 to 84
[year] vol Lloyd’s Rep
page
Lloyd’s Law Reports
[1951] to present
1 or 2
[year] Lloyd’s Rep
Lloyd’s Law Reports
[1998] to [2001]
–
SLR Style Guide 2015
Citation Style
Bank page
[year] Lloyd’s Rep
Med page
Full Name of Report
…6
Years
Volume
Nos
Banking
Lloyd’s Law Reports
Medical
[1998] to present
Reports of Patent, Design and Trade Mark Cases
Citation Style
Years
–
Volume Numbers
(year) vol RPC page
(1884) to (1955)
1 to 72
[year] RPC page
[1956] to [2000]
–
[year] RPC case number
[2001] onwards
–
APPENDIX 3: ABBREVIATIONS OF SELECTED LAW REPORTS AND
OTHER WORKS CONTAINING REPORTS OF SINGAPORE
AND MALAYSIAN CASES
[paragraph 2–1.1.4]
Law Reports and Other Works
Period of
Reported Cases
Abbreviation
1993–
AMR
1993–1996
AIPR
–
BHCR
Braddell’s Law of the Straits Settlements
Roland Braddell, The Law of the Straits Settlements
(2nd Ed) (Singapore: Kelly & Walsh, 1931–1932).
2 vols. Contains judgments of the Privy Council on
appeal from the Straits Settlements.
1875–1931
BLSS
Braddell’s Common Gaming Houses
Roland Braddell, Common Gaming Houses: A
Commentary on Ordinance No 45 (Common Gaming
Houses) (Singapore: Kelly & Walsh, 1932). Contains
cases relevant to the interpretation of the Common
Gaming Houses Ordinance 1888 (No 5 of 1888).
1886–1925
BCGH
Business Law Journal
(Selangor, Malaysia: Malaysian Current Law Journal,
1993–1996). Continuation of Malaysian Tax Cases;
continued by Current Law Journal Supplementary
Series.
1993–1996
BLJ
CLAS News
(Singapore: Criminal Legal Aid Scheme, Law Society
of Singapore, 1981– ). Cite 1987–1992 issues by year
and issue number; cite issues from 1993 onwards by
year and volume number.
1981–
CLAS News
All Malaysia Reports
All Malaysia Reports: The Weekly Law Report on
Malaysian Cases (Petaling Jaya, Malaysia: Central
Law Book Corporation, 1993– )
Asia Intellectual Property Reports
Chew Kherk Ying & Ang Kwee Tiang gen eds, Asia
Intellectual Property Reports: Being Reports of
Judgments from Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong,
Thailand and the Philippines (Singapore:
Butterworths Asia, 1993–1996)
Borneo High Court Reports
Syed Ahmad Idid ed, Borneo High Court Reports
(Subang Jaya, Malaysia: Pelanduk, 1999)
SLR Style Guide 2015
…2
Law Reports and Other Works
Period of
Reported Cases
Abbreviation
Current Law Journal
Current Law Journal: CLJ (Kuala Lumpur: Malaysian
Current Law Journal, 1988– ). Continuation of
Malaysian Current Law Journal.
1988–
CLJ
Current Law Journal Supplementary Series
(Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Malaysian Current Law
Journal, 1997– ). Continuation of Business Law
Journal.
1997–
CLJ
De Mello’s Manual of the Law of Extradition and
Fugitive Offenders
Aloÿsius de Mello, A Manual of the Law of
Extradition and Fugitive Offenders Applicable to the
Eastern Dependencies of the British Empire (the
Straits Settlements, Hong-Kong, India, Ceylon and the
Protected States of Malaya and Borneo) (2nd Ed)
(Singapore: Printed at the Government Printing
Office, 1933)
1877–1913
De Mello
Federated Malay States Law Reports
(Kuala Lumpur: the Government, 1922–1947;
reprinted Yeovil, Somerset: Legal Library
(Publishing) Services). volume numbers omitted from
1931 onwards.
1906–1941
FMSLR
Industrial Law Reports
(Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Malaysian Current Law
Journal, 1983– ). Continuation of Malaysian Labour
Law Reports.
1983–
ILR
Innes’ Registration of Title
J R (James Rose) Innes, A Short Treatise on
Registration of Title in the Federated Malay States:
With Reports of Cases Decided in the Supreme Court
under the Land and Mining Laws from 1907 to 1913
(Kuala Lumpur: Printed by the Government Printers,
1913; reprinted Yeovil, Somerset: Legal Library
(Publishing) Services)
1907–1913
Innes
Johore Law Reports
The Law Reports of the State of Johore (Singapore:
Printed by Lithographers, 1939–1941). 2 vols.
1915–1940
JLR
Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal
Asiatic Society
(Singapore: Malayan Branch, Royal Asiatic Society,
1923–1964)
–
JMBRAS
Appendix 3: Abbreviations of Reports of Singapore and Malaysian Cases
Law Reports and Other Works
…3
Period of
Reported Cases
Abbreviation
1808–1884
1808–1884
1808–1884
1885–1890
1 Ky
2 Ky
(Crim, Adm,
Bank, Eccl,
HC)
3 Ky
4 Ky
1884–1893
MAC
1908–1973
1 MC
Kyshe’s Reports
James William Norton-Kyshe ed, Cases Heard and
Determined in Her Majesty’s Supreme Court of the
Straits Settlements, 1808-1884 (Singapore: Printed at
the Singapore and Straits Printing Office, 1885-1890)
vol I: Civil Cases
vol II: Criminal Rulings, Admiralty, Bankruptcy,
Ecclesiastical and Habeas Corpus Cases
(separate page numbering for each type of
case)
vol III: Magistrates’ Appeals
vol IV: Cases on all subjects
Magistrates’ Appeal Cases
Reports of cases in the Supreme Court of the Straits
Settlements, Settlement of Penang, 1884-1893
([Singapore?]: Straits Settlements Supreme Court,
[1894?]). Includes Magistrates’ Appeals from
Malacca and Singapore.
Malayan Cases
Bashir A Mallal & Nazir A. Mallal eds, Malayan
Cases: Old and Important Cases Which are Still Law:
volume 1 (Singapore: Malayan Law Journal Office,
1939, 1958)
Bashir A Mallal ed, Malayan Cases: Important cases
Hitherto Unreported: volume 2 (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal Office, 1958)
2 MC
Bashir A Mallal ed, Malayan Cases: Being a
Collection of Important Cases Hitherto Unreported:
volume 3 (Singapore: Malayan Law Journal, 1964)
3 MC
Al-Mansor Adabi comp, Malayan Cases: Being a
Collection of Important Cases Hitherto Unreported:
volume 4 (Singapore: Malayan Law Journal, 1980)
4 MC
Malayan Law Journal
(Singapore; Kuala Lumpur: Malayan Law Journal,
1932– )
1932–
MLJ
SLR Style Guide 2015
Law Reports and Other Works
…4
Period of
Reported Cases
Abbreviation
1948–1949
[1948–49]
MLJ Supp
1949
[1949]
MLJ Supp
Malayan Law Reports
Malayan Law Reports: Containing Reports of Cases
Decided in the Federation of Malaya and the Colony
of Singapore (Kuala Lumpur: Printed at the Federation
of Malaya Government Press, 1951–1956)
1950–1954
MLR
Malayan Union Law Reports
Morris Edgar ed, The Law Reports of the Malayan
Union (Kuala Lumpur: Printed by the Government
Press, 1948–1950). 2 vols.
1946–1947
MULR
Malaysian and Singapore Company and Securities
Law Cases
(Singapore: CCH Asia, 1998– )
1950–2000
MSCLC
Malaysian and Singapore Company and Securities
Law Reports
Walter Woon Cheong Ming advisory ed (Singapore:
Butterworths Asia, 1994–1997)
–
CSLR
Malaysian and Singapore Tax Cases
(Singapore: CCH Asia, 1989– )
1950–1998
MSTC
Malaysian Current Law Journal
(Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Malaysian Current Law
Journal, 1981–1988). Continued by Current Law
Journal.
1981–1988
CLJ
Malaysian Labour Law Reports
(Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Industrial Court, 1976–
1987). Continued by Industrial Law Reports.
1965–1982
MLLR
Malaysian Tax Cases
Malaysian Tax Cases: A Quarterly Journal (Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia: Malaysian Law Publishers, 1985–
1992). Continued by Business Law Journal.
1985–1992
MTC
Malayan Law Journal 1948–49 Supplement
(Singapore: Malayan Law Journal Ltd, 1957).
Contains full reports of cases noted in [1949] MLJ
under ‘Notes of Cases’ and a few hitherto unreported
cases.
Malayan Law Journal 1949 Supplement
(Singapore: Malayan Law Journal Ltd, 1951).
Contains full reports of a few cases noted in [1949]
MLJ under ‘Notes of Cases’.
Appendix 3: Abbreviations of Reports of Singapore and Malaysian Cases
Law Reports and Other Works
…5
Period of
Reported Cases
Abbreviation
Military Court of Appeal Law Reports 1973–1995
(Singapore: Legal Services, Ministry of Defence,
1997)
1973–1995
MCALR
Privy Council Cases
Visu Sinnadurai (Kuala Lumpur: Professional Law
Books, 1990). 4 vols.
1875–1990
PCC
1 January 1926 –
30 September 1927
QN
1946–1949
1953–1956
SLR
The Singapore Law Reports (Singapore: Singapore
Academy of Law, 1992– )
1992–
1965–1991
(backset)
SLR
SLR Rev Ed
Singapore Property Tax Cases
Leila bte Abdul Rahman comp, Singapore Property
Tax Cases: Being a Collection of Cases Decided by
the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, the Court
of Appeal and the High Court, and the Valuation
Review Board of Singapore 1959–1986 (Singapore:
Malayan Law Journal, 1987)
1959–1986
SPTC
June 1888 –
May 1889
June 1889 –
May 1890
June 1890 –
December 1890
January 1891 –
June 1891
July 1891 –
April 1892
1 SLJ
Quarterly Notes of Cases Decided in the Supreme
Court of the Straits Settlements
(Singapore: Printed by the Government Printing
Office, 1926–1927)
Singapore Law Reports
The Singapore Law Reports (Singapore: Printed by the
Government Printing Office, 1950–1951)
Colony of Singapore Law Reports (Singapore: Printed
by the Government Printing Office, 1953–1957)
Straits Law Journal
(Singapore: Walter Makepeace, 1888–1892)
vol I
vol II
vol III
vol IV
vol V
2 SLJ
3 SLJ
4 SLJ
See Straits
Law Reports
(New Series)
SLR Style Guide 2015
Law Reports and Other Works
…6
Period of
Reported Cases
Abbreviation
Straits Law Reports
Stephen Leicester, Straits Law Reports: Being a
Report of Cases Decided in the Supreme Court of the
Straits Settlements, Penang, Singapore and Malacca
(Penang: [sn], 1877).
1837–1875
Str LR Leic
Straits Law Reports (New Series)
(Singapore: Walter Makepeace, 1892). Issued in
connection with vol V of the Straits Law Journal.
July 1891 –
April 1892
Str LR (NS)
1884–1923
SSLR
Straits Settlements Law Reports
Old Series: Straits Settlements Law Reports
(Singapore: Printed and published for the Committee
of the Singapore Bar by the ‘Straits Times’ Press,
c1893–1931)
New Series: Straits Settlements Law Reports
(Singapore: Printed by the Government Printing
Office, 1927–1950)
1926–1942
1897–1899
SSLR Supp
Sarawak Supreme Court Reports: Pre-War, 1928-41;
Post-War, 1946-51 (Kuching: Sarawak: Printed by the
Government Printing Office, 1955)
1928–1941
1946–1951
SCR (Swk)
Supreme Court Reports (Kuching, Sarawak: Printed
by the Government Printing Office, 1955–1964).
Contains Sarawak, North Borneo and Brunei law
reports.
1952–1963
SCR (Swk,
NB, Bru)
Supreme Court Reports
Reports of Cases Before the Supreme Court,
Malaysia; the Court of Appeal, Brunei Darussalam;
and the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (on
Appeals from the Republic of Singapore and Brunei
Darussalam) (Kuala Lumpur: Professional Law
Books, 1988–1996)
–
SCR
Woods’ Oriental Cases
Robert Carr Woods jr, A Selection of Oriental Cases
Decided in the Supreme Courts of the Straits
Settlements (Penang: R C Woods, 1869)
1835–1869
WOC
Straits Settlements Law Reports, Supplement No 1
(Singapore: Committee of the Singapore Bar, 1900).
Cases determined by the Court of the Judicial
Commissioner of the Federated Malay States.
Supreme Court Reports
APPENDIX 4: CITATION OF SELECTED LAW JOURNALS AND
REVIEWS PUBLISHED IN SINGAPORE AND MALAYSIA
[paragraph 2–5.1.2]
Law Journal
or Review
Publication
Period
Citation Example
Asia Business Law Review
(Singapore: Butterworths
Asia for School of
Accountancy & Business,
Nanyang Technological
University)
1993–2003
Sonja Golser, “Contracting via
Internet: A Comparison Between the
Law of Singapore, Austria and the
European Union” (2003) 41 AsiaBLR
14
CLAS News
(Singapore: Criminal Legal
Aid Scheme, Law Society of
Singapore). Cite 1987–1992
issues by year and issue
number; cite issues from
1993 onwards by year and
volume number.
1987–
T K K Iyer, “Intoxication and
Criminal Liability” [1992] No 6 CLAS
News 4
Current Law Journal
(Kuala Lumpur: Malaysian
Current Law Journal).
Continuation of Malaysian
Current Law Journal (1981–
1988)
1988–
See Eng Teong, “The Bolam Test as it
has been Misunderstood” [2003] 2
CLJ v
Fiat Justitia
(Singapore: Faculty of Law,
University of Singapore)
1966–1967
Mohamed Suffian, “The Yang diPertuan Agong, Rulers and
Governors” [1967] 2 Fiat Justitia 101
Insaf: The Journal of the
Malaysian Bar
(Kuala Lumpur: Bar Council,
States of Malaya). Formerly
known as Insaf: The
Newsletter of the Bar Council
(1967–1974) and Insaf: The
Journal of the Bar Council
(1974–1980)
1980–
Kevin Kam Soon Aun, “The Role of
Fundamental Liberties in the
Evolution of Malaysia as a
Democratic Society” (2003) 32(2)
Insaf 50
Journal of Malaysian and
Comparative Law (Jurnal
Undang-Undang)
(Kuala Lumpur: Faculty of
Law, University of Malaya)
1974–
F A Trindade, “The Law of
Defamation in the New Millennium”
(2000) 27 JMCL 23
Ng Tju Lik, “Alcoholic Drinks: How
Much is Too Much?” [1993] 1 CLAS
News 5
SLR Style Guide 2015
Law Journal
or Review
Publication
Period
…2
Citation Example
Law Times
(Singapore: University of
Singapore Law Society)
1966–1983
Rajah Vijayakumar, “Civil
Jurisdiction: A Brief Examination of
the English and Singapore Positions”
Law Times (1981/82) at 2
Malaya Law Review
(Singapore: Faculty of Law,
National University of
Singapore). Continuation of
University of Malaya Law
Review; continued by
Singapore Journal of Legal
Studies.
1980–1990
Ng Siew Kuan, “The Spycatcher Saga:
Its Implications and Effect on the Law
of Confidence” (1990) 32 Mal LR 1
Malayan Law Journal
(Kuala Lumpur: Malayan
Law Journal Sdn Bhd)
1932–
Ong Hock Thye, “Law and Justice
Through the Cases” [1973] 2 MLJ
xxxv
Me Judice
(Singapore: Law Society,
Faculty of Law, University of
Singapore)
1958–1962
Harry E Groves, “Some Principles of
Constitutional Interpretation” (1962) 4
Me Judice 48
Singapore Academy of Law
Annual Review of Singapore
Cases
(Singapore: Singapore
Academy of Law)
2000–
Tan Sook Yee & Tang Hang Wu,
“Equity, Trust and Restitution” (2001)
2 SAL Ann Rev 198
Singapore Academy of Law
Journal
(Singapore: Singapore
Academy of Law)
1988–
Tan Boon Heng, “Property Rights in
Human Tissue: Call ‘A Spade, A
Spade’” (2003) 15 SAcLJ 61
Singapore Journal of
International and
Comparative Law
(Singapore: Faculty of Law,
National University of
Singapore). Continued by
Singapore year Book of
International Law.
1997–2003
Singapore Journal of Legal
Studies
(Singapore: Faculty of Law,
National University of
Singapore). Continuation of
Malaya Law Review.
1991–
Victor V Ramraj, “Comparative
Constitutional Law in Singapore”
(2002) 6 Sing JICL 302
Michael Hor, “Terrorism and the
Criminal Law: Singapore’s Solution”
[2002] Sing JLS 30
Appendix 4: Citation of Law Journals and Reviews Published in Singapore and Malaysia
Law Journal
or Review
Singapore Law Gazette
(Singapore: Law Society of
Singapore/LexisNexis)
Publication
Period
1992–
…3
Citation Example
Naresh Mahtani & Melissa Chen,
“‘Without Prejudice’: Principles and
Myths”, Singapore Law Gazette
(October 2003) at 14
1969–1972
1983–
Andrew Phang, “The Singapore Legal
System – History, Theory and
Practice” (2000–01) 21 Sing LR 23
Singapore year Book of
International Law
(Singapore: Faculty of Law,
National University of
Singapore). Continuation of
Singapore Journal of
International and
Comparative Law.
2004–
Adrian Briggs, “Crossing the River by
Feeling the Stones: Rethinking the
Law on Foreign Judgments” (2004) 8
SYBIL 1
Supreme Court Journal
(Kuala Lumpur: Professional
Law Books Publishers)
1988–1991
Harry Gibbs, “The Court as Guardian
of the Constitution: The Basic
Principle” (1988) 1 SCJ 33
University of Malaya Law
Review
(Singapore: Law Department,
University of Malaya in
Singapore). Continued by
Malaya Law Review.
1959–1961
L C Green, “The Right of Asylum in
International Law” [1961] UMLR 223
Singapore Law Review
(Singapore: Law Club,
National University of
Singapore)