Citation Guides/a Case

How to Cite a Case in Bluebook Format

Learn the correct Bluebook format for citing judicial opinions, including U.S. Supreme Court cases, federal circuit decisions, and state court opinions. Covers case names, reporters, pinpoint cites, and court parentheticals.

Citation Format

[Case Name], [Volume] [Reporter] [First Page], [Pinpoint Page] ([Court] [Year]).

Citation Components

Case Name

Italicized names of the parties. Abbreviate procedural phrases and common words per Bluebook T6. Use only the first-listed party on each side. Omit 'Inc.' if another business designation is present.

Example: Miranda v. Arizona

Volume Number

The volume of the reporter in which the case appears. Always an Arabic numeral.

Example: 384

Reporter Abbreviation

The abbreviated name of the reporter series. Use the official reporter when available (e.g., U.S. for Supreme Court, F.3d for federal circuit, S.E.2d for state). See Bluebook T1 for the correct reporter.

Example: U.S.

First Page

The page number on which the case begins in the reporter volume.

Example: 436

Pinpoint Page

The specific page(s) referenced, separated from the first page by a comma and a space. Use when citing a specific passage. Omit if citing the case generally.

Example: 444

Court Parenthetical

Identifies the court and the year of the decision. Omit the court name for U.S. Supreme Court cases (the U.S. Reports reporter makes it clear). For all other courts, include the court abbreviation.

Example: (1966)

Examples

U.S. Supreme Court case with pinpoint cite

Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 444 (1966).

U.S. Supreme Court case without pinpoint cite

Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954).

Federal circuit court case (Ninth Circuit)

United States v. Comprehensive Drug Testing, Inc., 621 F.3d 1162, 1177 (9th Cir. 2010).

Federal district court case

Apple Inc. v. Samsung Elecs. Co., 909 F. Supp. 2d 1147, 1151 (N.D. Cal. 2012).

State court case (California Supreme Court)

Li v. Yellow Cab Co., 13 Cal. 3d 804, 809 (1975).

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Forgetting to include the court abbreviation in the parenthetical for non-Supreme Court cases -- the reporter alone does not always identify the court
Using the wrong reporter: for Supreme Court cases in academic citation, always use U.S., not S. Ct. or L. Ed. 2d (those are practitioner forms)
Failing to italicize the case name in citation sentences and clauses (Bluebook Rule 2)
Including too many parties -- only the first party on each side should appear, and 'et al.' is generally not used in case names
Putting a comma after the case name but before 'v.' -- the comma goes only after the full case name, before the volume number
Confusing first page with pinpoint page -- the first page is where the case starts, while the pinpoint is the specific page being referenced

Tips for Getting It Right

For U.S. Supreme Court cases, never include the court in the parenthetical -- the U.S. Reports designation makes it obvious
Use 'Id.' to cite the same case and page as the immediately preceding citation, and 'Id. at [page]' for the same case at a different page
When citing multiple pages, use a comma between non-consecutive pages (e.g., 436, 444) and an en dash for consecutive pages (e.g., 436-38)
Short form citations after the first full citation: use the case name, volume, reporter, and 'at' plus the pinpoint page (e.g., Miranda, 384 U.S. at 444)
Always check Bluebook Table T1 to determine the correct reporter for each jurisdiction