Bluebook 101
Cases
Rule 10
Tables T.1, T.6, T.8
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What’s in a case citation?
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Name
Published source(s)
Court and jurisdiction
Date of decision
Subsequent history
Maybe parenthetical info or prior
history
» R.10.1
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Case Names
• Who ever
dreamed they
could be so
complicated?
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Italics, Underlining,
etc.
• In law review text and text
sentences, italicize case names,
but in footnotes don’t.
• In briefs and memos, always
italicize or underline (your
choice, just be consistent!).
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Sentences vs. Citations
• In a citation, abbreviate more of
the case name.
» R. 10.2
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Examples
• Under Erie Railroad v. Tompkins,
304 U.S. 64 (1938), the court must
apply Oregon law.
• Erie R.R. v. Tompkins, 304 U.S.
64 (1938)
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First and Only
• Only give the first party on each
side:
Andersen v. King County
not . . .
» R. 10.2.1(a)
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Heather Andersen and
Leslie Christian; Peter
Ilgenfritz and David Shull;
•
JANET HELSON and BETTY LUNDQUIST; DAVID SERKIN-POOLE and MICHAEL
SERKIN-POOLE; VEGAVAHINI SUBRAMANIAM and VAIJAYANTHIMALA NAGARAJAN;
ELIZABETH REIS and BARBARA STEELE; and MICHELLE ESGUERRA; and BOO
TORRES DE ESGUERRA, Respondents, v. KING COUNTY; RON SIMS, King County
Executive; and DEAN LOGAN, King County Director of Records, Elections and Licensing
Services Division, Appellants, STATE OF WASHINGTON, Appellant, SENATOR VAL
STEVENS; REPRESENTATIVE GIGI TALCOTT; COALITION FOR COMMUNITY
DEVELOPMENT AND RENEWAL; NUWANDA ADAMS; TRACEY ARMSTRONG; GERALD
BAKER; RICHARD BLAIR; ED COOK; RICK DANNER, SR.; BILL DEMPS; HARVEY
DRAKE; GEORGE FROST; ELVIN GLADNEY; AARON HASKINS; RICK KINGHAM;
SAMUEL K. LAW; JIMMIE W. LEE; DAN MAGALEI; DANA McCLENDON; TONY MORRIS;
NATE MULLEN; PAUL OLVER; JOSEPH PHILLIPS; DAVID PIERSON; JOHN PENTON;
KENNETH J. RANSFER, SR.; WILLIE C. SEALS, JR.; PAUL STOOT; WASHINGTON
TALAGA; DANIEL VILLA; DAVID WALLACE; THOMAS L. WESTBROOK; DOUG
WHEELER; EARNEST WILLIAMS; REGGIE WITHERSPOON; NATHANIEL WOLF; GRANT
ZWEIGLE; and WASHINGTON EVANGELICALS FOR RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT,
Appellants/Intervenors. CELIA CASTLE and BRENDA BAUER; PAMELA COFFEY and
VALERIE TIBBETT; GARY MURELL and MICHAEL GYDE; CHRISTINA GAMACHE and
JUDITH FLEISSNER; KEVIN CHESTNUT and CURTIS CRAWFORD; JEFF KINGSBURY
and ALAN FULLER; LAURI CONNER and LEJA WRIGHT; ALLAN HENDERSON and JOHN
BERQUIST; MARGE BALLACK and DIANE LANTZ; TOM DUKE and PHUOC LAM; and
KATHY and KARRIE CUNNINGHAM, Respondents, v. STATE OF WASHINGTON,
Appellant.
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Abbreviate:
• Common acronyms (e.g., YMCA)
– &, Ass’n, Bros., Co., Corp., Inc., Ltd.,
and No.
• Exception
• Lots more in citations.
» R. 10.2.1(c)
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Leave out:
• Party’s job title
– Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, not
– Hamdan v. Rumsfeld,
Secretary of Defense
» R.10.2.1(e)
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Example
• Whitman, Administrator of
Environmental Protection Agency, et al.
v. American Trucking Associations,
Inc., et al.
becomes:
• Whitman v. Am. Trucking Ass’ns
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State Name:
• In the court’s state:
• State v. Blakely, 111 Wash. App.
851, . . .
• In another court:
• Blakely v. Washington, 542 U.S.
296
» R10.2.1(f)
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Geographical Terms:
• PUD No. 1
– Not PUD No. 1 of Jefferson County
• But include if part of full name
of business or organization;
include “City of”:
– ACLU of Washington v. City of Seattle
» R. 10.2.1(k)
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Leave out:
• First names
– Miranda v. Arizona
• Unless that’s all there is
– Michael M. v. Superior Court
• Or it’s a company name
» R. 10.2.1(g)
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In citations, abbreviate
• Everything in T.6
• States (T.10) unless the state is
the whole party name
– Wash. Dep’t of Ecology
» R. 10.2.2
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Do NOT abbreviate
• “United States” if that’s the party’s
whole name.
–United States v. Microsoft
Corp.
» R. 10.2.2
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Reporters
• Parallel:
– State v. Blakely, 111 Wash.
App. 851, 47 P.3d 149 (2002)
• Regional only:
– Hawkins v. McGee, 146 A. 641
(N.H. 1929)
» R. 10.3
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Jurisdiction, Court,
Year
• If you can’t tell by the reporter,
include in parentheses
– Hawkins v. McGee, 146 A. 641
(N.H. 1929)
» R. 10.4
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No Superscripts!
• Right: Lara v. Ryan, 455 F.3d
1080 (9th Cir. 2006)
• Wrong: Lara v. Ryan, 455 F.3rd
1080 (9th Cir. 2006)
» R. 6.2(b)
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Parentheticals
•
•
•
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(unpublished)
(en banc)
(Sanders, J., dissenting)
(citing Erie R.R. v. Tompkins, 304 U.S.
64 (1938))
• (upholding “Three Strikes” law)
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Prior and Subsequent
History
•
•
•
•
, aff’d,
, vacated,
, cert. denied,
, modifying,
» R. 10.7 & T. 8
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Short Form
• Whitman v. Am. Trucking
Ass’ns, 531 U.S. 457 (2000)
• In American Trucking Ass’ns,
the Court …
» R. 10.9(a)(i)
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Help & Examples
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Legal & General Writing Resources
Cite-Checking & Library Research
Prince’s Dictionary of Legal Citations
Columbia, Harvard, Penn & Yale
Reference librarians, of course!
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