To the end of constructing a cogent and powerful argument, each premise of the argument must be strongly substantiated. That is why legal referencing is so important. An essay unreferenced is the weakest kind of argument.
The writer must follow strictly the rules for legal referencing. A summary of some of these rules for referencing now follows.
Writing Academic Essays and Citation of Legal Sources
Footnotes should be used to provide information for the reader’s retrieval of the writer’s sources and quotations, which appear within the text. Often, several pages of a work are cited, in separate footnotes, within the essay. In this case, the first citation from that source must be cited in full. Each footnote should be completed with a full stop at its end.
The abbreviation ‘ibid’ should be used for subsequent footnotes from the same source work, where it is the only source provided in the immediately preceding footnote. This does not apply to citing legislation. See the Australian Guide for Legal Citation to learn how to reference other subsequent citations.
Writing Papers Which Require Citation of Legal Book Sources
When citing books, start with the full name of the author, followed by a comma. If there is more than one author, include them all, separating the last two in the list by the word ‘and’. Then, write the title of the book in italics. Then provide the publication year and edition information, then a space, then the page number, then a full stop.
A typical book citation will appear as follows.
Victor Smith, A Guide to Intellectual Property Law (2010) vol 8, 495.
Writing Papers Which Require Citation of Legal Journal Articles
When citing a scholarly legal journal in a footnote, start with the full name of the author, followed by a comma. Then write the title of the article within single quotation marks, then the year of the journal within parentheses, followed by the volume number. Then write the journal name in italics, leave a space, then the page number, then a full stop.
The rules become more complicated for different kinds of journal articles, so consult the Australian Guide for Legal Citation to learn more.
Writing Papers Which Require Citation of Legal Cases
The general rule for citing cases is to provide the case name in italics, then the year, volume, report series, page and pinpoint.
A typical example of a footnote citing a case would be as follows.
Walker v Smith (2000) 202 CLR 550, 556.
Writing the Bibliography to the Legal Academic Essay
Write the bibliography at the end of the essay on a separate page. The bibliography should cite all sources relied upon, even if they were not footnoted within the essay. The bibliography should be divided into the following sections, in the following order.
- Articles/Books/Reports.
- Case Law.
- Legislation.
- Treaties.
- Other Sources.
Cite sources in alphabetical order within each section of the bibliography. Consult the Australian Guide for Legal Citation to learn the detailed rules for setting up the bibliography.
Summary and Guide for the Writer
The academic legal essay should be well-referenced and often referenced. No assertion taken from another sources should go uncited, or else, this may be regarded as plagiarism.
Legal referencing is constructed essentially in two parts, as follows.
- The Footnotes.
- The Bibliography.
Most essays cite legislation, cases, books and scholarly journal articles. The writer should be very particular about the quality of the sources, and avoid commercial websites and online encyclopedias. There is also a view among academics who mark essays that citing text books is not referring to quality sources. This is because text books are mere summaries of summaries of the works of others.
In order to seek out the best possible sources, the writer should do carefully-considered research in the law library, in order to find and use specialist works from expert authors. Done properly, with a well-structured and well-researched argument, the writer will succeed.
Readers should access Argument Claim and Opinion in Legal IRAC Academic Writing.
Source:
The University of Melbourne, The Australian Guide to Legal Citation
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