The 10 most common Bluebook citation mistakes
3 min readChecked against the Bluebook, 22nd ed. (2025)
The ten Bluebook errors that appear in most briefs: the wrong form, the right form and the rule for each. Check a citation against them in a minute.
The ten
Most citation errors in a filed brief come from about ten rules, the ones every citation meets: the pincite, the parenthetical, the short form, the signal. The example throughout is Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242 (1986).
| Mistake | Wrong | Right | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Page span repeats digits | 247-248 | 247-48 | 3.2(a) |
| No pincite | 477 U.S. 242 (1986) | 477 U.S. 242, 248 (1986) | 3.2(a) |
| Comma before the parenthetical | 242, 248, (1986) | 242, 248 (1986) | 10.5 |
| Court the reporter already names | (U.S. 1986) | (1986) | 10.4 |
| Court missing from a regional reporter | 162 N.E. 99 (1928) | 162 N.E. 99 (N.Y. 1928) | 10.4 |
| Case name abbreviated in a sentence | In Palsgraf v. Long Island R.R. Co., the court… | In Palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad Co., the court… | 10.2.1 |
| Short form without the reporter | Anderson at 250 | Anderson, 477 U.S. at 250 | 10.9 |
| Id. after a string cite | Anderson, 477 U.S. at 248; Celotex, 477 U.S. at 322. Id. at 323. | … Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323. | 4.1 |
| Comma after a signal | See, Anderson | See Anderson | 1.2 |
| Italics past the case name | Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242 | Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242 | B2 |
Four that need explaining
In a citation, the words in Table T6 are abbreviated (Railroad → R.R., Company → Co., Association → Ass'n). In a textual sentence, only the eight short words are: &, Ass'n, Bros., Co., Corp., Inc., Ltd., No.
The parenthetical names the court only when the reporter does not. U.S. Reports is the Supreme Court, so the year stands alone; F.4th could be any circuit, so the circuit goes in: (6th Cir. 2021). A state's highest court is not named — (N.Y. 1928), not (N.Y. Ct. App. 1928) — and the state is left out when the reporter gives it away.
- Wrong
- Palsgraf v. Long Island R.R. Co., 162 N.E. 99 (N.Y. Ct. App. 1928).
- Right
- Palsgraf v. Long Island R.R. Co., 162 N.E. 99 (N.Y. 1928).
When a citation carries more than one parenthetical, the order is fixed: the date, then the weight of authority, then a “quoting” or “citing” parenthetical, then the explanation.
- Wrong
- Anderson, 477 U.S. at 268 (arguing that the standard is unworkable) (Rehnquist, J., dissenting).
- Right
- Anderson, 477 U.S. at 268 (Rehnquist, J., dissenting) (arguing that the standard is unworkable).
A statute takes the section symbol with a space after it, is never italicised, and under the current edition a U.S. Code citation carries no year.
- Wrong
- 42 U.S.C. §1983 (2018)
- Right
- 42 U.S.C. § 1983
Questions people ask
- How do you write a page range in a Bluebook citation?
- Drop the digits the two page numbers share and keep at least the last two: 247-48, 1147-48, 305-06. Pages that are not consecutive are separated by commas: 247, 250.
- Do you need a pincite in every case citation?
- Yes, whenever you cite a case for something it says. A citation without one is proper only when you refer to the case as a whole.
- Is the “v.” in a case name italicized?
- In a court document the whole case name is italicised or underlined, including the v. The italics stop before the comma; the volume, reporter and parenthetical are roman.
- Does a U.S.C. citation need a year?
- No. Under the current Bluebook a citation to the United States Code takes no date: 42 U.S.C. § 1983. State codes cited to a bound volume still give the year on the volume.
