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Legal Citation - OSCOLA: General Information

An online guide for citing commonly used legal resources.

General Information

This session provides guidelines for adding footnotes to your written work, including a helpful video tutorial on creating footnotes in MS Word. You will also gain knowledge on how to properly handle short and long quotations, as well as tips for creating an accurate table of cases, table of legislation, and bibliography.

Footnote 

  • Include all of your citations in footnotes. You can learn how to do this in MS Word from this video.
     
  • Place footnote(s) at the bottom of page and closed with a full stop. 
    Click to see an example
  • When providing multiple citations within a single footnote reference, separate them with a semicolon.
    Click to see an example
  • Author names should be formatted as First name | Surname, e.g. Stuart Hargreaves.

Footnote Marker

  • Footnote markers should appear after the punctuation in the text.
    Click to see an example
  • You can add a footnote maker immediately after the relevant information, especially when referencing multiple sources in the same sentence.
    Click to see an example

Subsequent Citations

  • When citing a reference that you have already cited in a footnote, you can use a shorten reference with a brief identification of the source, followed by a cross-citation in brackets.  
     
  • For subsequent citations of cases, a short form of the case name is sufficient.
    Click to see an example
  • For subsequent citations of legislation, you may use abbreviations or other short forms if you have included them in round brackets after the full citation. 
    Click to see an example
  • For subsequent citations of secondary sources, only the surname(s) of the author(s) is required. 
    Click to see an example

    If you cited several works of the same author, include both the surname(s) and the title of the works.
    Click to see an example

  • If the subsequent citation is in the footnote immediately following the full citation, you can use "ibid", which means "in the same place". Please note that "ibid" should not be italicized or capitalized.
    Click to see an example

  • It is also acceptable to give full citation every time a source is cited, particularly if the previous citation was in an earlier chapter in your book or thesis.

Order of Sources 

  • When citing both legislation and case law for a single proposition, put the legislation before the cases.
  • When citing both primary and secondary sources for a single proposition, list the primary source before the secondary ones.
  • When citing more than one source of the same kind for a single proposition, arrange them in chronological order, starting with the oldest source.
  • If one or more of the sources are more directly relevant than the others, cite these sources first and then include the less relevant ones in a separate sentence beginning with 'See also'.
    Click to see an example

Short Note in a Footnote

  • You may include a short note in a footnote when additional information would be useful to the reader, but including it in the main text would disrupt the flow of the argument.
    Click to see an example

Short Quotation (Direct quotation within three lines of words)

  • For a short quotation, you can incorporate it into the text using single quotation marks and provide a pinpoint reference in the footnote.
    Click to see an example
  • If you need to include a quotation within a short quotation, use double quotation marks.
    Click to see an example
  • When a quotation begins in the middle of a sentence in the text, the first letter of the quotation should only be capitalized if the quotation itself is a complete sentence. Otherwise, the first letter should be lowercase.
    Click to see an example

Long Quotation (Direct quotation over three lines of words)

  • A long quotation should be introduced with a colon and presented in an indented paragraph without quotation marks, and include a pinpoint reference in the footnote.
    Click to see an example

Ellipsis (...)

  • You can use an ellipsis to indicate that you have omitted some of the original text. Leave a space between an ellipsis and any text or punctuation, except when it comes before or after a quotation mark. 
    Click to see an example
  • Judicious omission of text can demonstrate your understanding of the source rather than simply copying all of the text into your work.

For essay or article...

  • Provides footnotes only are sufficient. There is no need to include a list of abbreviations, tables, and bibliography.
     

For longer legal work, such as a thesis or a book...

  • Prepare a list of abbreviations, tables of all the cases, legislation and other primary legal sources cited in the work in the preliminary pages.
  • In addition, create a bibliography that lists all secondary sources cited.  This should be placed after the main body of text and any appendices.
     

1) Lists of abbreviations

  • Define any unfamiliar abbreviations in a list of abbreviations in the preliminary pages.
  • However, do not define abbreviations that are commonly used in the legal field, such as ‘DPP’.
     

2) Table of cases

  • Lists case names in regular form (not italicized) in alphabetical order of first significant word, without a full stop at the end.
    Click to see an example
  • Divide the table into separate sections for different jurisdictions.
     

3) Table of legislation

  • List the legislation in alphabetical order of first significant words of the title, not chronologically by date of enactment.
  • Create separate lists for each jurisdiction.
  • After the table of legislation, list other primary legal sources, if any.  Such as international treaties and conventions, UN documents, official papers and policy documents.
     

4) Bibliography

  • Listing all secondary sources cited in the work.
  • Items in bibliography should take the same form as citations in footnote, except:
    • the author’s surname preceding his or her initial(s), 
    • only initials should be used (not forenames),
    • the titles of unattributed works preceded by a double em-dash (——),
    • do not include pinpoint refereces,
    • do not add full stops at the end of each item.
    Click to see an example
  • Works should be arranged in alphabetical order of author surname, with unattributed works being listed at the beginning of the bibliography in alphabetical order of first major word of the title.
  • Do not separate sources by type; books, articles, websites, etc. should all be mixed in one alphabetical list.
  • If citing several works by the same author in a bibliography, list the author’s works in chronological order, and in alphabetical order of first major word of the title within a single year. Replace the author’s name with a double em-dash after the citation of the first work. 
    Click to see an example

Numbers and Years

  • Use both figures for numbers between 10 and 20 (e.g. 1-6, 11-17).
  • For numbers above 20, use as few figures as possible, but always use at least two for the final number (e.g. 21-26, 121-221, 1782-83, 1782-812).
  • If the range of numbers indicates years, and the years span centuries, give the final year in full (e.g. 1871-1914, 1925-27, 1965-75, 1989-2001).
     

Foreign Words

  • Italicize foreign words and phrases instead of using quotations.
  • Provide a translation immediately afterward in brackets, or in a footnote, if required.
      Click to see an example

Citing foreign materials

  • Cite primary sources as in their home jurisdiction, but omit full stops in abbreviations.

Create Footnotes in MS Word

What is a Pinpoint Reference?

A pinpoint reference is a precise citation to a particular page, paragraph, or section of a cited source. It enables readers to locate the exact information being cited, aiding in verifying the accuracy of the citation and facilitating further research on the topic.

In legal and academic writing, a pinpoint reference is required when using a direct quotation.

See examples of pinpoint references when citing cases, legislation, books, and journal articles.

How to add a double em-dash?

You can find em-Dash in MS Word of a Windows or Mac computer, by clicking on Insert > Symbols > Symbol > More Symbols... > Special Characters.

Click to enlarge the screenshot: