Citing Legislation
This session provides guidelines for citing legislation from different jurisdictions, including Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, the People's Republic of China, the European Union, and International treaties and agreements. We highly recommend familiarizing yourself with the General Principles for Legislation Citation before exploring the specific examples in each jurisdiction. These principles cover crucial aspects of legislation citation and can help you navigate the specific guidelines more efficiently.
General Principles for Legislation Citation
A footnote citation is not required if the source information is provided in the text.
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A footnote is necessary when the name of the legislation is not included in the text.
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When using a pinpoint reference, abbreviations should be used.
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Primary Ordinance
Basic Law & National Security Law
Subsidiary Legislation
Bills
Primary Legislation
Statutory Instruments
Bills
Constitution
Primary Legislation
Amendment Legislation
Judicial Interpretations
Administrative Regulations
EU Treaties and Protocols
Regulations, Directives, Decisions, Recommendations and Opinions
International Treaties
Bilateral Treaties
World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreements
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) Documents
Abbreviations for Pinpointing
Full Forms | Abbreviations |
part / parts | pt / pts |
section / sections | s / ss |
subsections / subsections | sub-s / sub-ss |
paragraph / paragraphs | para / paras |
subparagraph / subparagraphs | subpara / subparas |
schedule / schedules | sch / schs |
regulation / regulations | reg / regs |
rule / rules | r / rr |
article / articles | art / arts |