It is customary for attorneys, scholars, the courts, and professionals from all fields to utilize specific, highly technical rules of citation when citing legal authority. These rules are often overly complex and not tailored for use by individuals who have not been exposed to legal writing courses or law school. However, it is important for professionals from other fields to be familiar with these rules. Proper citation increases credibility and adds an additional element of authoritativeness to any piece utilizing legal authority.
Once the citation rules are broken down and taken in their purest form, however, and after eliminating technicalities that rarely arise in practical experience, the rules are quite simple. Basic citation forms exist for most regularly cited legal sources that are easily adapted to different situations once one comprehends the basic rules underlying the citation system.
In Florida, two authorities are helpful for appropriate citation. The Rules of Appellate Procedure, Rule 9.8, sets forth a Uniform Citation System. This Rule applies to all legal documents, including court opinions, and takes precedence over all other citation rules. It is the primary authority in determining how to cite a source.1 The scope of the Rules of Appellate Procedure, however, is limited and the Rules do not encompass many of the sources that one may wish to cite.
Where the Florida Rules do not address a particular citation, The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation, published by the Harvard Law Review Association controls. The Bluebook, as it is commonly referred to, spans more than three hundred pages. The editors published a new Eighteenth Edition in 2005 that encompasses several changes.
We will briefly review the basic citation forms that are applicable for judicial, executive, statutory, and administrative materials. We will then point out citation forms for several other commonly used sources, such as electronic databases. Finally, we will review several underlying rules that apply to all citations. For purposes of contrast, the citations will be bolded; but it should be noted that, in practice, cites are not bolded.
