If you encounter a situation that is not covered in this guide, make sure to check the bluebook for more detail. The number of district courts in a court of appeals circuit varies between one and thirteen, depending on. The district courts were established by congress under article iii of the united states constitution. Below is the list of standard docket text abbreviations adopted by this court, as well as a list of abbreviation codes for u. The trial courts are called the united states district courts. The abbreviation for the reporter in which the courts opinions are printed is listed under the name of the court.
In sum, combine the abbreviations on page 499 and the state abbreviations in t1 to indicate the court. Any information about state and court that is clear from the reporter name should be deleted from the parenthetica l. Looking for the abbreviation of code of maryland annotated relations. The first section is a list of commonly used citation abbreviations for illinois sources. Cite state opinions if the issue is one of state law or, in descending order after the u. A supreme court case number begins with an s, a court of appeals case number begins with an a, a tax courtregular division case number begins with tc, and a tax court.
Abbreviations to federal courts legal abbreviations. These regional reporters contain appellate case law from all 50 states plus the district of columbia. Instead, many cases from the district courts are published in wests federal supplement. This list only includes abbreviations for states court of appeals. The federal legal system has its own system of courts that is completely separate from the state court systems. A new edition of the official united states code is published every six years, with a cumulative supplement published annually. If possible, you should cite to the current official code or the supplement. Alwd federal citation formats below are examples of the association of legal writing directors alwd style citations most commonly used by students at college of dupage. Like the federal courts of appeals, cases from the federal district courts are not compiled in an official reporter. In material that covers both state and federal law, to avoid confusion its helpful to add state before references to north carolinas toplevel court the state supreme court if deci.
If a district court case is published in the federal supplement, the bluebook dictates that you cite to it table 1, p. The following are lists of standard abbreviations for the major federal and california case reporters as well as for the u. Federal court abbreviations toggle dropdown other federal court abbreviations. The abbreviation for a bankruptcy court is the same as for the district court with bankr. Thus, the abbreviation for the bankrupty court of the district of wyoming is. Free in two different ways that are equally important. West also publishes the california reporter and the new york supplement, which contain appellate case law from california and new york. These rules are found in t1 on page 235, in t7 on page 499, and in t1. Table t1 identifies which reporter to cite to the preferred reporter with the phrase cite to reporter abbreviation, if therein. Find out what is the most common shorthand of code of maryland annotated relations on. Federal courts bluebook guide guides at georgetown law. Govt of republic of ghana are the names of the parties in the case. List of united states district and territorial courts.
Appeals from the district courts are made to one of the courts of appeals, organized geographically. Below is a list of state supreme court and court of appeals abbreviations. North carolina supreme court, one can use the supreme court lowercase in subsequent references. Statutes bluebook legal citation tarlton law library. Courts of appeals and courts of last resort alabama. Parallel citations are used when the same case is printed in two or more different reporters.
Supreme court plurality, concurring or dissenting opinions c. You should give the statutes name and original section number only if it is commonly cited that way or if it would aid the identification of the statue. The abbreviation for the court is in the parenthetical after the name of the court. The bluebook requires citation only to the official report supreme court opinions are also published in three unofficial reporters. Court name abbreviations pennsylvania state university. Not surprisingly, the highest court in the federal system is called the united states supreme court the intermediate appellate courts are called the united states circuit courts of appeals. Finding maryland case law the maryland peoples law library. State abbreviations bb alwd ib state abbreviations 1. In the trial court, first name is the plaintiff the party bringing the suit and the name after the v.
There is a bankruptcy court for every united states district court. This is a citation to a california court of appeal case, published in volume 14 of the fourth series of california appellate reports as well as in volume 17 of the second series of california reporter. Citing cases bluebook guide guides at georgetown law. Bluebook rule 10 covers how cases should be cited in legal documents. School of government legal citation and style guide. Bt2 jurisdictionspecific citation rules and style guides.
A list of 1 reporters and reporter abbreviations, 2 courts and court abbreviations, and 3 preferred sources to cite for federal courts and each states courts. The courts hear civil and criminal cases, and each is paired with a bankruptcy court. For example, the court of special appeals issued an opinion interpreting section 82 of the maryland code, real property. What is the abbreviation for code of maryland annotated. If you have any further questions regarding this issue, please contact our customer services counter at 602 3227200 or 520 2054200. Most commonly used abbreviations in legal citations. Citing case law sample bluebook citations libguides at. Supreme court abbreviations bluebook quick reference. Marylands courts, court offices, and court administrative offices will be closed in observance of presidents day, monday, february 17. Usually, each courts cases are published in one or more competing reporters. Information and translations of bluebook in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on. The indigo book offers a couple of important advantages to users, compared with the bluebook. Cases bluebook legal citation tarlton law library at. First, the indigo book is given to you free of charge.
For example, the abbreviation for the district of wyoming is. List of all most popular abbreviated court terms defined. West publishes seven 7 regional reporters as part of the national reporter system. The court hierarchy means that if a higher maryland court disagrees with a lower maryland court about the meaning of maryland law, the higher courts interpretation is used.
The state boat of maryland is the skipjack, state tree is the white oak, state crustacean is the maryland blue crab, state dog is the ch esapeake bay retriever, state insect is the baltimore checkerspot butterfly, and the state sport is jousting maryland was inhabited by indians as early as ca. The supreme court of the united states is the only federal court to officially report its cases. Nonconsecutively paginated periodicals abbreviations u. The trial courts consider evidence presented in a case and make judgments based on the facts, the law and legal precedent prior legal decisions from a higher court.
These tables give the various abbreviations for the u. The following is a list of the most commonly abbreviations used in the legal citation system. If you prefer to search by state supreme court or court of appeals exclusively, click on the links in the left hand navigation bar for. Court name abbreviations table 7 in a nutshell normally, the abbreviation for state intermediate appellate courts is x ct. Considering that the uniform system of citation has become a basic piece of infrastructure for. The third section will list citations for general legal materials. For example, under the entries for arizona you have supreme court ariz. Some basics on bluebooking with a focus on maryland rules this is a quick guide to citing maryland cases and statutes, based on bluebook rules 10 and 12. Browse the list of 2 770 court abbreviations with their meanings and definitions. Finding federal case law the maryland peoples law library. Call or chat with a lawyer who can help you represent yourself in your civil case.