Training and Q&A
Florida Law Review
2007 Write-On Competition
During tonight’s meeting, we’ll:
Get you acquainted with the layout of the
Bluebook (BB)
Provide general guidance on how to use the BB
Address difficult and tricky citation rules
Answer any questions you may have about
using the BB, the practice test, or the Write-On
Competition in general
Feel free to ask questions throughout the presentation!
Layout of the Bluebook
First, be sure you’re using the 18th edition!
Front cover
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Quick reference for Law Review footnotes
Bluepages (pg 3-43)
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Abbreviated intro to the rules w/ tips and references to rules
Full text of complete rules
Tables
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Used in conjunction w/ the rules
Index
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Very comprehensive
USE THIS TO CHECK EVERYTHING!!!!
Using the Bluebook
First- ask: What type of source is this?
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Common sources include:
Cases (R. 10)
Statutes (R. 12)
Legislative Material (R. 13)
Books & Reports (R. 15)
Periodicals (R. 16)
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Law Reviews/Journals
Newspapers
Electronic Media (Internet) (R. 18)
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If you’re not sure…look it up in the Index!
Blue text = example of citation
Black text = explanation of how to cite it
Hmm…how
do I cite the
Restatement
(2d) of Torts?
Using the Bluebook
Then- Find the right set of rules using the Front Cover,
Index, or Table of Contents


The set of rules will:
Begin with a few citation examples that give the proper
typeface and spacing
Walk you through the different parts of the basic, full citation
format for that source
Refer you to relevant tables
Give you the proper short citation form
 NOTE: This is usually the last rule in the set!!
The rules are very detailed so remember to
read closely!!
Tips for Tricky Citations
Next, we’ll discuss specific rules related to:
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Cases
Statutes
Books & Periodicals
Internet sources
As well as rules that apply:


To all sources
In the text of the article, the footnote, or a
parenthetical
Tips for Cases
Proper abbreviation for case names

Abbreviate ANY word in the case name that is listed in Table 6 (pg. 33537)—when in doubt, look it up!!
Selection of the correct reporter

Find the correct jurisdiction in Table 1. It will tell you which reporter to cite.
Proper numerical abbreviations – R. 6.2(b)
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“Second” = 2d NOT 2nd and “Third” = 3d NOT 3rd
Do NOT use superscript text in footnotes (ex: 1st not 1st) so undo it if your
computer automatically does it for you.
Correct spacing for reporter names – R. 6.1(a)

Close up adjacent single capitals (ex: S.D.N.Y.)
Individual numbers are treated as single capitals (ex: F.3d)
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Do NOT close up single capitals w/ longer abbreviations (ex: D. Mass)
Insert a space adjacent to any abbreviation containing two or more letters
(ex: So. 2d and F. Supp. 2d)
Tips for Cases
Italics – R. 2.1(a)
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Do NOT italicize full case name in footnote but DO italicize short form of case name
and the case name in the text
Always italicize procedural phrases, such as en banc, In re, ex rel., etc.
Cases w/ multiple dispositions – R. 10.2.1(k)

Use full case name in citation but put identifier of the number of the decision
parenthetically in italics
Ex: Hamdi v. Rumsfeld (Hamdi III)

Once it has been cited as such, the case can then be referred to using this
numerical identifier
Dissenting/Concurring opinions – R. 10.9(b)

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Provide the dissenting or concurring judge’s name in parenthetical after the case
citation
For multiple cites in a row to the same opinion, you do NOT have to include another
parenthetical until it switches to a different opinion
Gators v. Buckeyes, 84 So. 2d 75, 90 (Fla. 2007) (Oden, J., dissenting)
Id. at 98.
Id. at 80 (Meyer, J., concurring).
Id. at 75 (majority opinion).
Tips for Statutes
U.S.C. versus U.S.C.A. or U.S.C.S. – R. 12.2.1(a)

Only cite to the U.S.C.A. or U.S.C.S. if the federal law was enacted after
the most recent edition of the U.S.C.
Most recent edition of U.S.C. is 2000 – the 2006 version is not yet published.
Section symbols

Always include a space between the section symbol and the statute
number
28 U.S.C. § 1291 (2000).

When citing to multiple sections in a statute, use two section symbols
42 U.S.C. §§ 9601-9675 (2000).
Public law number – R. 12.2.2(b)

Only use the public law number from the session laws when citing to the
historical fact of the statute’s enactment, amendment, or repeal
Can put reference to the current USC version in parenthetical
Tips for Books & Periodicals
Small caps – R. 2.1(b)-(c)
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Books: Author’s name and title of book
Periodicals: Title of periodical only
Look up proper abbreviation of periodical in Table 13 (pg. 349-72)!

If the title is not listed, then abbreviate the individual words as indicated
in either Table 13 or Table 10.
Essay in larger collection – R. 15.5.1
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If the author is citing to an article, but the article is actually an
essay in a collection, cite the article’s author and title as you
would for any other journal article, but then you follow normal
rules for citing a book compiled by an editor.
David L. Boren, A Recipe for the Reform of Congress, in THE
CONSTITUTION AND CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM 35, 35
(Frederick G. Slabach ed., 2d ed. 2006).
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Be sure to italicize the “in”!
No comma b/t editor’s last name and “ed.”!
Note: The book’s title should be small caps, not all caps—I just couldn’t get power point to
cooperate w/ the font…
Tips for Internet Sources
Parallel vs Direct citations – R. 18.2.2 & 18.2.3

Determine if internet source is a parallel citation or a direct citation
Parallel = If source is also available in traditional print format but is more
easily accessed online, then use “available at”

Paige M. Harrison & Allen J. Beck, Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S. Dep’t of
Justice, Prison and Jail Inmates at Midyear 2005 (2005), available at
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/pdf/ pjim05.pdf.
Direct = If source does NOT exist in a traditional printed format or it exists
but cannot be found or is so obscure that it is practically unavailable, then
do NOT use “available at”
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If unprinted source is analogous to a printed source, then use the typeface
conventions for the printed source. If there is no analogous printed source,
then do not use any special typefaces
Douglas Gantenbein, Mad Cows Come Home, SLATE, Jan. 5, 2004,
http://slate.msn.com/id/2093396/index.html.
If material is undated, then include the date that the website was last visited
Gatorzone.com, Men’s Basketball,
http://www.gatorzone.com/basketball/men/ (last visited Apr. 7, 2007).
Tips for All Sources
Quotation format – R. 5.1
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More than 50 words = block quotation w/ left and right indentation and no
quotation marks
Ellipsis – R. 5.3
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If omitting part of a quote, insert an ellipsis ( . . . ) with space before the first
and after the last period
Ellipsis should never begin a quotation
See rule for specifics on using ellipsis in different parts of quotation
Emphasis – R. 5.2(d)
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If emphasis is either added or omitted from a quotation, indicate this in a
parenthetical following the citation. But, do NOT indicate emphasis if it is
included in the original.
Use italics to indicate emphasis.
“Joakim Noah remembers the critics. . . . How could you turn down all the
money that goes to the top pick in the NBA draft?”
 Andy Staples, Gators Repeat Mantra: Returning Was Right Move, TAMPA
TRIB., Apr. 4, 2007, at A1 (emphasis added).
Tips for All Sources
Page numbers – R. 3.2
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When citing a range of pages, only provide the last two numbers in the range
(drop any repetitive digits)
Ex: 132-35 NOT 132-135. But 198-201 is okay.
Rule of Five – R. 10.9(a)
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Only use a case’s short form if the case has been cited (in either its full or short
form) in one of the five preceding footnotes
Gators v. Buckeyes, 84 So. 2d 75, 75 (Fla. 2007).
Id. at 76.
Andy Staples, Gators Repeat Mantra: Returning Was Right Move, TAMPA TRIB., Apr. 4, 2007, at A1.
Id.
Id.
Id.
Gators, 84 So. 2d at 78.
Infra & Supra – R. 4.2
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Use supra as the short form citation for an article or book.
Boren, supra note 6, at 36.
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Also use supra and infra to cite to earlier or later parts of the actual article.
See supra notes 10-11 and accompanying text.
See infra Part II.A.
Tips for Text
These tips apply for the text of the actual article, the footnote, or a parenthetical.
Numbers – R. 6.2(a)
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Spell out numbers zero to ninety-nine and round numbers (ex: hundred)
Capitalization – R. 8
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Very specific so check R. 8(b)
Speaking parentheticals – R. 1.5(a)
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When explaining something related to the source in a parenthetical following the
cite, always start with a present participle in lower case (ex: arguing that…)
When quoting one or more full sentences, then start with a capital letter (ex: “[T]
Florida Gators own the Ohio State Buckeyes.”)
Signals – R. 1.2 – 1.4
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Review R. 1.2 for the meaning of different signals (ex: see vs accord).
When a footnote uses multiple signals, the signals must be in the order in which
they appear in R. 1.2
When multiple sources follow a signal, the sources must be in the order given by
R. 1.4.
Any Questions
?