The United States Reports (U.S.) is the official reporter for decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States. Under Bluebook Rule 10, U.S. Reports is the only reporter that should be cited for Supreme Court cases. Parallel citations to the Supreme Court Reporter (S. Ct.) or the Lawyers' Edition (L. Ed.) should not be used when the official U.S. Reports citation is available.
A unique feature of Supreme Court citations is that no court abbreviation is needed in the date parenthetical. Because only the Supreme Court publishes in U.S. Reports, the reporter itself identifies the court. Simply include the year of the decision in parentheses after the page number.
For very early Supreme Court cases, decisions were reported under the names of individual reporters: Dallas (1 U.S. -- 4 U.S.), Cranch (5 U.S. -- 13 U.S.), Wheaton (14 U.S. -- 25 U.S.), Peters (26 U.S. -- 41 U.S.), Howard (42 U.S. -- 65 U.S.), Black (66 U.S. -- 67 U.S.), and Wallace (68 U.S. -- 90 U.S.). Modern Bluebook practice uses the U.S. Reports volume number rather than the nominative reporter abbreviation.
Standard Citation
Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. 137 (1803)
With Pinpoint
Brown v. Bd. of Educ., 347 U.S. 483, 495 (1954)
Modern Case
Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966)
Recent Case
Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Org., 597 U.S. 215 (2022)
No. Because U.S. Reports is the exclusive reporter for the Supreme Court, the reporter abbreviation alone identifies the court. Your parenthetical should contain only the year, e.g., (1954).
Only if the official U.S. Reports citation has not yet been assigned. Once a U.S. Reports volume is published, you must cite to that and should not include parallel citations to S. Ct. or L. Ed.
Use the U.S. Reports volume number. For example, cite McCulloch v. Maryland as 17 U.S. 316 (1819), not 4 Wheat. 316. The Bluebook prefers the official U.S. Reports numbering over nominative reporter names.
Add the pinpoint page after the first page, separated by a comma and a space. For example: Brown v. Bd. of Educ., 347 U.S. 483, 495 (1954).
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Format citations for U.S. Courts of Appeals decisions published in the Federal Reporter series, from the original F. through the current F.4th.
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Disclaimer: While this guide follows Bluebook 21st edition rules, always verify citations with official Bluebook resources or your institution's requirements. This content is for educational assistance only.