Can you use abbreviations in in text citations?

Sometimes an abbreviation is presented along with an in-text citation. If the spelled-out version of the term appears in the narrative for the first time, put the abbreviation and the author–date citation in parentheses after it, separated by a semicolon.

Do you abbreviate case names in text?

So, the short answer is “it depends.” If the case is cited in text, the first word would never be abbreviated, unless it’s a widely known acronym.

How are abbreviations spelled out in the Bluebook?

The Bluebook has both light and heavy methods for abbreviating words in case names. The light version only abbreviates eight words, while the heavy abbreviation system abbreviates more. The first word of the case name is always spelled out in both systems, and the entire case name is spelled out in a textual sentence.

How to cite a case in the Bluebook?

You should review the rest of this section on citing cases (and the relevant rules in The Bluebook) before trying to format a case citation for the first time. However, the basic format of a case citation is as follows:

When to use the case name in a citation?

When the case is being referred to in a sentence of the text itself rather than simply as a citation only the words starred [* ] in the table below should be abbreviated, and then only when not at the beginning of a party’s name. Be aware, though, that there are other approaches to case name abbreviation practiced by courts…

Is the Bluebook legal citation system still relevant?

Below is a two-part recording of a Bluebook training class. It was offered by HLS research librarian Jennifer Allison for LLM students in March 2020. Although it references the 20th edition of the Bluebook, the class is still relevant and provides a good basic introduction to general Bluebook style and citation rules for US and foreign sources.