how to quote legislation in an essay

How to Cite U.S. Government Documents in APA Citation Style: Federal Laws/Statutes

• House and Senate Reports and Documents
• Congressional Hearings & Testimony
• Congressional Record
• Congressional Bills and Resolutions
• Federal Laws/Statutes

Statute (law/act) appears in a single section of the United States Code

Statute (act/law) spans a range of sections in the united states code, statute (public law/act) is spread out among different sections of the code, law (statute) does not yet appear in the united states code.

• Executive Documents -- Presidential Papers, Proclamations and Executive Orders
• Rules/Regulations -- Code of Federal Regulations (C.F.R.) and the Federal Register
• Foreign Relations of the United States
• State Legislative Documents
• State Statutes (Laws)
• Court Cases
• Government Agencies
• Other legal citations

Statutes (laws/acts) are "codified" on a continuous basis in the online United States Code (U.S.C.) by the Office of Law Revision Counsel. In general, you should cite statutes (laws/act) to their location in the online United States Code (U.S.C.)

You can find the relevant U.S.C. title and section(s) in the text of the law. You can find official sources of the law in:

• Congress.Gov: Public Laws (1974 - current)
• Govinfo: Statutes at Large (1951- 2013) 
• Proquest Congressional Publications (library subscription database)

In the U.S.C., or in the Public Law, look for statements about where the law applies to the Code ( U.S.C. "Titles" and "sections" ) .

• If the law spans a ranges of sections, add "et seq." after the U.S.C. number to indicate "and what follows." Note: You do not include U.S.C. "chapters" in citations.
• If the statute (law/act) is spread out among scattered sections of the U.S.C . , and you wish to cite the law as a whole, cite using the Public Law number, and include the parallel citation to the law's location in the Statutes at Large , when available.
• If the statute (law/act) does not appear in the United States Code , cite using the Public Law number, and include the parallel citation to its location in Statutes at Large, when available.

See examples, below.

When a statute is codified in a single section of the United States Code (U.S.C.), cite to the U.S.C..

Example: Impact Aid Coronavirus Relief Act .

In the header for this Act, you will see the U.S.C. citation: 20 U.S.C. § 6301. This is the start of the range of sections it applies to, but if you read this Act closely, you will see that the Act itself appears in section 7705, Impact Aid .

In Reference List:

• Impact Aid Coronavirus Relief Act. 20 U.S.C § 7705 (2020).

Explanation: This Act appears (was codified) in a single section of the the U.S.C. in Title 20, section 7705, in 2020.

Note: You can find the section symbol in Word > Insert > Symbols > Special Characters

• (Impact Aid Coronavirus Relief Act, 2020)
• Impact Aid Coronavirus Relief Act (2020)

If the law spans a ranges of sections, add " et seq. " after the U.S.C. number to indicate "and what follows."

Tip: Browse and search the official United States Code to find the "reference notes: "

Pub. L. 111–260, §1(a), Oct. 8, 2010, 124 Stat. 2751 , provided that: "This Act [enacting sections 615c and 616 to 620 of this title , amending sections 153, 225, 303, 330, 402, 503, 610, and 613 of this title , and enacting provisions set out as notes under sections 153, 303, 613, and 619 of this title ] may be cited as the 'Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010'."

• (Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act, 2020)
• Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (2020)

Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2020. 47 USC 609  et seq. (2009). URL

When a statute applies to numerous sections of the Code , and you wish to cite the Act as a whole, cite using the Public law number.

To determine where the statute is codified (where it appears in the United States Code ), follow this process:

• Find the U.S.C. number listed in the header of the law. For example, the Energy Policy Act of 2005 includes this location in the United States Code: 42 U.S.C. § 15801 .

Energy Policy Act of 2005, Pub. L. No. 109-58, 119 Stat. 594 (2005). https://www.congress.gov/109/plaws/publ58/PLAW-109publ58.pdf

Explanation: In the example above, Pub. L. No. 109-58 refers to Public Law number 58  from the 109th Congress, with a parallel citation to its location in volume 119, page 594 of the US Statutes at Large (119 Stat. 594). Because I retrieved this from a publicly available website, rather than an academic database, the URL is appended to the end.

• (Energy Policy Act, 2005)
• Energy Policy Act (2005)

If the law has just passed and does not yet appear in the United States Code, cite to the Public Law Number with a parallel citation to its location in Statutes at Large.

Example: If you were citing this law shortly after it passed in 2005, and it had not yet appeared in the United States Code.*

* There may be only a few months lag between when a law is passed and when it appears in the United States Code. See Office of Law Revision Council, Currency and Updating .

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• Library Guides

APA 7th Referencing

• Legislation & Cases

APA 7th Referencing: Legislation & Cases

• In-text referencing
• Compiling a Reference list
• Citing tables and figures
• DOIs and Live hyperlinks
• Secondary sources
• Journal Articles
• Reports & Grey Literature
• Conference Materials
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• Sample Reference List

On this page

Basic format to reference legislation and cases.

• Referencing legislation and cases: Examples

The APA style guide refers readers wishing to reference legal materials to The Bluebook: A uniform system of citation ; however, The Bluebook is unsuitable for use in Australia.  The fourth edition of the Australian Guide to Legal Citation (AGLC4) should be used for reference list entries for Australian and international legal materials.  The examples in this guide are based on AGLC4 style.  For more examples, please see our AGLC4 guide .

In text references must adhere to APA7 style.  Most references should follow the format for works without an author.  

Please note:  Students studying Law units at VU should use the Australian Guide to Legal Citation (AGLC).

The basics of a reference list entry for an Act:

• Short Title of Act (in italics ).
• Year (in italics).
• Jurisdiction abbreviation (in round brackets).
• The first line of each citation is left adjusted. Every subsequent line is indented 5-7 spaces.

Example:  Yarra River Protection (Wilip-Gin Birrarung Murron) Act 2017 (Vic)

The basics of a reference list entry for a Bill:

• Short title of bill (no italics).
• Year (no italics).

Example:  Disability Services Safeguards Bill 2018 (Vic)

The basics for a reference list entry for a Case:

• Case name (in italics ).
• Year (in round brackets).
• Volume number.
• Law report abbreviation.
• First page number.

Example:  Minister for Immigration and Border Protection v Kumar (2017) 260 CLR 367

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APA 7th referencing style

• About APA 7th
• Printing this guide
• In-text references
• Direct quotations
• Reference list
• Author information
• Additional referencing information
• Using headings
• Book chapter
• Brochure and pamphlets
• ChatGPT and other generative AI tools
• Conferences
• Dictionary or encyclopaedia

About referencing legislation

Parliamentary debates (hansard), australian jurisdiction abbreviations.

• Journal article
• Lecture notes and slides
• Legal sources
• Newspaper or magazine article
• Other web sources
• Patents and standards
• Personal communication
• Press (media) release
• Secondary source (indirect citation)
• Social media
• Software and mobile apps
• Specialised health information
• Television program
• Works in non-English languages
• Works in non-English scripts, such as Arabic or Chinese

The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association refers to The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation  for referencing legislation. However, this does not cover Australian materials. 

For Australian legislation, the Australian Guide to Legal Citation (3rd ed.) has been used. The examples for this guide are based on this format.

Source: (Melbourne University Law Review Association & Melbourne Journal of International Law, 2010, p. 65).

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Documenting Legal Works in MLA Style

Gaining familiarity with the legal-citation practices used to document legal works may be impractical for student writers and sometimes even for scholars working in nonlegal fields. Nonspecialists can use MLA style to cite legal sources in one of two ways: strict adherence to the MLA format template or a hybrid method incorporating the standard legal citation into the works-cited-list entry. In either case, titles of legal works should be standardized in your prose and list of works cited according to the guidelines below.

Legal Style

Legal publications have traditionally followed the style set forth in the Harvard Law Review Association’s Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation , although some law reviews, such as the University of Chicago Law Review , have published their own style manuals. A more streamlined version of the Bluebook ’s legal-citation method, the ALWD Guide to Legal Citation , was introduced in 2000. The Legal Information Institute, a nonprofit associated with Cornell Law School, publishes an online guide to legal citation geared toward practitioners and nonspecialists instead of academics.

Those working in law are introduced to the conventions of legal citation during their professional training. Legal style is a highly complex shorthand code with specialized terminology that helps legal scholars and lawyers cite legal sources succinctly. It points specialists to the authoritative publication containing the legal opinion or law, regardless of the version the writer consulted.

Students and scholars working outside the legal profession and using MLA style should follow the MLA format template to cite laws, public documents, court cases, and other related material. Familiarize yourself with the guidelines in the MLA Handbook , sections 5.17–22, for corporate authors and government authors.

Following one of the fundamental principles of MLA style, writers citing legal works should document the version of the work they consult—not the canonical version of the law, as in legal style. As with any source in MLA style, how you document it will generally depend on the information provided by the version of the source you consulted.

Titles pose the greatest challenge to citing legal works in MLA style. Since MLA style keys references in the text to a list of works cited (unlike court filings, which cite works in the text of the brief, or academic legal writings, which cite works in footnotes ), writers should, with a few exceptions (noted below), standardize titles of legal sources in their prose and list of works cited. Following the MLA Handbook , italicize the names of court cases (70):

Marbury v. Madison

When you cite laws, acts, and political documents, capitalize their names like titles and set them in roman font (69):

Law of the Sea Treaty

Civil Rights Act

Code of Federal Regulations

When a legal source is contained within another work—for example, when the United States Code appears on a website that has a separate title—follow the MLA Handbook and treat the source as an independent publication (27). That is, style the title just as you would in prose—in italics if it is the name of a court case, in roman if it is a law or similar document; even though the legal source appears within a larger work, do not insert quotation marks around the title:

United States Code. Legal Information Institute , Cornell Law School, www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text.

For more on titles in legal citations in MLA style, see “Tips on Titles,” below.

Commonly Cited Sources

A few examples of using MLA style for commonly cited legal sources follow.

United States Supreme Court Decisions

United states supreme court dissenting opinions, federal statutes (united states code), public laws, federal appeals court decisions, federal bills, executive orders, state court of appeals, unpublished decisions, state senate bills, constitutions, international governing bodies.

Where you read the opinion of a United States Supreme Court decision will dictate how you cite it in MLA style. Legal-citation style, in contrast, points to the opinion published in the United States Reports , the authoritative legal source for the United States Supreme Court’s decisions, and cites the elements of that publication.

For example, the case Brown v. Board of Education is commonly abbreviated “347 U.S. 483” in legal citations: 347 is the volume number of United States Reports ; “U.S.” indicates that the opinion is found in United States Reports , which is the official reporter of the Supreme Court and indicates the opinion’s provenance; and the first page number of the decision is 483. (The American Bar Association has published a useful and concise overview of the components of a Supreme Court opinion .)

Regardless of the version you consult, you must understand a few basic things about the source: that it was written by a member of the United States Supreme Court on behalf of the majority and that, when you cite the opinion, the date on which the case was decided is the only date necessary to provide.

Following are examples of works-cited-list entries in MLA style for Brown v. Board of Education . The entries differ depending on whether the information was found on the Legal Information Institute website, published by Cornell University Law School, or on the Library of Congress website.

Legal Information Institute

The works-cited-list entry includes

• the government entity as author
• the name of the case (“Title of source” element)
• the year of the decision; it would also not be incorrect to include the day and month if it appears in your source
• the title of the website containing the case (“Title of container” element)
• the publisher of the website
• the website’s URL (“Location” element)

United States, Supreme Court. Brown v. Board of Education . 17 May 1954. Legal Information Institute , Cornell Law School, www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/347/483.

Library of Congress

The Library of Congress site allows researchers to link to or download a PDF of the opinion from the United States Reports . To locate the case, the researcher must know the volume number of the United States Reports in which Brown v. Board of Education was published. A works-cited-list entry in MLA style would include the author (the government entity) and the title of the case, as well as the following information for container 1:

• United States Reports (“Title of container” element)
• vol. 347 (“Number” element)
• the date of the decision (“Publication date” element)
• page range (“Location” element)

Container 2 includes the name of the website publishing the case and its location, the URL. The publisher of the site is omitted since its name is the same as that of the site.

United States, Supreme Court. Brown v. Board of Education . United States Reports , vol. 347, 17 May 1954, pp. 483-97. Library of Congress , tile.loc.gov/storage-services/service/ll/usrep/usrep347/usrep347483/usrep347483.pdf.

Sometimes, Supreme Court justices write dissenting opinions that accompany the published majority opinion. They are part of the legal record but not part of the holding—that is, the court’s ruling. If you cite only the dissent, you can treat it as the work you are citing:

Ginsburg, Ruth Bader. Dissenting opinion. Lilly Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. United States Reports , vol. 550, 29 May 2007, pp. 643-61. Supreme Court of the United States , www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/boundvolumes/550bv.pdf.

In MLA style, it will generally be clearest to create an entry for the United States Code in its entirety and cite the title and section number in the text, especially if you are referring to more than one section of the code.

If an online search directs you to the web page for a specific section of the United States Code, it would not be incorrect to cite the page for that section alone. For example, if you want to use MLA style to document title 17, section 304, of the United States Code—commonly abbreviated 17 U.S.C. § 304 in legal citations—title 17 can be treated as the work and thus placed in the “Title of source” slot on the MLA template, or if you cite the United States Code in its entirety, title 17 can be placed in the “Number” slot.

Your entry will once again depend on the version you consult. Below are examples from various websites.

website for the United States Code

On the website for the United States Code, you would likely determine that the United States House of Representatives is the author of the code. The United States Code is the title of the source, and since the source constitutes the entire website, no container needs to be specified: the source is self-contained, like a book (see p. 34 of the MLA Handbook ). The site lists the Office of the Law Revision Counsel as publisher, so you would include that name in the “Publisher” slot, followed by the date on which the code was last updated, and the URL as the location:

United States, Congress, House. United States Code. Office of the Law Revision Counsel, 14 Jan. 2017, uscode.house.gov.

The body of your text or your in-text reference must mention title 17 and section 304 so the reader can locate the information you cite. It would not be wrong to include chapter 3 as well (title 17, ch. 3, sec. 304), although a discerning researcher will note that section numbers (304) incorporate chapter numbers (3), making “chapter 3” unnecessary to include.

If you do not include title 17 and section 304 in the text, you must include that information in the works-cited-list entry:

United States, Congress, House. United States Code. Title 17, section 304, Office of the Law Revision Counsel, 14 Jan. 2017, uscode.house.gov.

A nonspecialist would not be able to determine from the Legal Information Institute site that the United States House of Representatives is the author of the United States Code. A basic citation would include the title of the code as displayed on the site, the title of the website as the title of the container, the publisher of the website, and the location:

Government Publishing Office website

The website of the Government Publishing Office (variously referred to as the Government Printing Office) displays each statute heading (or “title”) as a web page:

You can treat title 17 as the work and the United States Code as the title of the container, as follows:

Title 17. United States Code, U.S. Government Publishing Office, 2011, www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/USCODE-2011-title17/html/USCODE-2011-title17.htm.

Or you can treat the United States Code as the title of the source and title 17 as a numbered section within the code, by placing title 17 in the “Number” slot on the MLA template:

United States Code. Title 17, U.S. Government Publishing Office, 2011, www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/USCODE-2011-title17/html/USCODE-2011-title17.htm.

Below are examples of how to cite other common legal sources in MLA style.

United States, Congress. Public Law 111-122. United States Statutes at Large , vol. 123, 2009, pp. 3480-82. U.S. Government Publishing Office , www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/STATUTE-123/pdf/STATUTE-123.pdf.

United States, Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Moss v. Colvin . Docket no. 15-2272, 9 Jan. 2017. United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit , www.ca2.uscourts.gov/decisions.html. PDF download.

It is customary to title court cases by using the last name of the first party on each side of the v . You may also wish to shorten a long URL, as we have done here .

United States, Congress, House. Improving Broadband Access for Veterans Act of 2016. Congress.gov , www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/6394/text. 114th Congress, 2nd session, House Resolution 6394, passed 6 Dec. 2016.

United States, Congress, House, Committee on Education and Labor. The Future of Learning: How Technology Is Transforming Public Schools . U.S. Government Publishing Office, 16 June 2009, www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CHRG-111hhrg50208/html/CHRG-111hhrg50208.htm. Text transcription of hearing.

After a president signs an executive order, the Office of the Federal Register gives it a number. It is then printed in the Federal Register and compiled in the Code of Federal Regulations. Executive orders usually also appear as press releases on the White House website upon signing.

United States, Executive Office of the President [Barack Obama]. Executive order 13717: Establishing a Federal Earthquake Risk Management Standard. 2 Feb. 2016. Federal Register , vol. 81, no. 24, 5 Feb. 2016, pp. 6405-10, www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2016-02-05/pdf/2016-02475.pdf.

Minnesota State, Court of Appeals. Minnesota v. McArthur . 28 Sept. 1999, mn.gov/law-library-stat/archive//ctapun/9909/502.htm. Unpublished opinion.

Wisconsin State, Legislature. Senate Bill 5. Wisconsin State Legislature , 20 Jan. 2017, docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2017/related/proposals/sb5.

If a constitution is published in a named edition, treat it like the title of a book:

The Constitution of the United States: A Transcription . National Archives , U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, 28 Feb. 2017, www.archives.gov/founding-docs/constitution-transcript.

The Constitution of the United States, with Case Summaries . Edited by Edward Conrad Smith, 9th ed., Barnes and Noble Books, 1972.

References to the United States Constitution in your prose should follow the usual styling of titles of laws:

the Constitution

But your in-text reference should key readers to the appropriate entry:

( Constitution of the United States, with Case Summaries )

If the title does not indicate the country of origin, specify it in the entry:

France. Le constitution. 4 Oct. 1958. Legifrance , www.legifrance.gouv.fr/Droit-francais/Constitution/Constitution-du-4-octobre-1958.

Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. United Nations, 1998, nfccc.int/resource/docs/convkp/kpeng.pdf. Multilateral treaty.

United States, Senate. Beijing Treaty on Audiovisual Performances. Congress.gov , www.congress.gov/114/cdoc/tdoc8/CDOC-114tdoc8.pdf. Treaty between the United States and the People’s Republic of China.

Swiss Confederation. Bundesverfassung der Schweizerischen Eidgenossenschaft. 18 Apr. 1999. Der Bundesrat , 1 Jan. 2016, www.admin.ch/opc/de/classified-compilation/19995395/index.html.

United Nations, General Assembly. Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Resolution 217 A, 10 Dec. 1948. United Nations , www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/. PDF download.

Writing for Specialists: A Hybrid Method

A writer using MLA style to document a legal work for a specialized readership that is likely to be familiar with the conventions of legal documentation may wish to adopt a hybrid method: in place of the author and title elements on the MLA format template, identify the work by using the Bluebook citation. Then, follow the MLA format template to list publication information for the version of the source you consulted.

For example, to cite the United States Code using the hybrid method, treat the section cited as the work. As above, you can omit the title of the website, United States Code , since the code constitutes the entire website and is thus a self-contained work.

17 U.S.C. § 304. Office of Law Revision Counsel, 14 Jan. 2017, uscode.house.gov.

If you are citing a court case, begin the entry with the title of the case before listing the Bluebook citation. In the hybrid style, cite Brown v. Board of Education as found on the Legal Information Institute website thus:

Brown v. Board of Education . 347 U.S. 483. Legal Information Institute , Cornell Law School, www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/347/483.

Other sources (public laws, federal appeals court decisions, etc.) can be handled similarly.

If using the hybrid method, do not follow the handbook’s recommendation to alphabetize works that start with a number as if the number is spelled out. Instead, list works beginning with numbers before the first lettered entry and order numbered works numerically.

TIPS ON TITLES Styling titles when you document legal sources in MLA style may be challenging. Below are some guidelines. Standardize titles of legal sources in your prose unless you refer to the published version: as the MLA Handbook indicates, italicize the names of court cases, but capitalize the names of laws, acts, and political documents like titles and set them in roman font. When a legal source is contained within another work—for example, when the United States Code appears on a website with another title—follow the MLA Handbook , page 27, and treat the work as an independent publication. That is, style the title just as you would in prose—in italics if it is the name of a court case, in roman if it is a law or similar document; even though the legal source appears in a larger work, do not insert quotation marks around the title. In the names of court cases, use the abbreviation v. consistently, regardless of which abbreviation is used in the version of the work you are citing. To determine the name of a court case, use only the name of the first party that appears on either side of “v.” or “vs.” in your source; if the name is a personal name, use only the surname. To shorten the name of a court case in your prose after introducing it in full or in parenthetical references, use the name of the first-listed nongovernmental party. Thus, the case NLRB v. Yeshiva University becomes Yeshiva . If your list of works cited includes more than one case beginning with the same governmental party, list entries under the governmental party but alphabetize them by the first nongovernmental party: NLRB v. Brown University

NLRB v. Yeshiva University

Refer to the nongovernmental party in your prose and parenthetical reference, alerting readers to this system of ordering in a note .

Special thanks to Noah Kupferberg, of Brooklyn Law School, for assistance with these guidelines.

35 Comments

Laurie nebeker 08 august 2017 at 02:08 pm.

My eleventh-grade English students write research papers about Supreme Court cases. In the MLA 7th edition (5.7.14) there was a note about italicizing case titles in the text but not in the list of works cited or in parenthetical references. Has this changed for the 8th edition? Also, you've given examples about formatting SCOTUS rulings, but most of the resources my students use are articles about the cases from news sources, specialty encyclopedias, etc. Should case titles be italicized when they appear within article titles? Thanks!

Your e-mail address will not be published

Angela Gibson 09 August 2017 AT 07:08 AM

You are correct to note this change. To make legal works a bit easier to cite, we now recommend that writers italicize the names of court cases both in the text and the list of works cited. When the name of a court case is contained within another work, style the title just as you would anywhere else. Thus, a SCOTUS ruling in the title of a news article would appear in italics. Thanks for reading; I hope this helps!

Nia Alexander 31 January 2018 AT 06:01 PM

How would I cite the 2015 National Content Report? It contains information similar to that of a census.

Angela Gibson 01 February 2018 AT 07:02 AM

There is an example here: https://style.mla.org/citing-tables/.

Nathan Hoepner 12 February 2018 AT 01:02 AM

One of my students wants to use the Versailles Treaty (officially, "Treaty of Peace with Germany"). The Library of Congress has a pdf copy posted. Should he list the treaty in his sources with the URL, or, since is just a copy of the official treaty, just list title, date, and "multilateral treaty"?

ben zuk 17 March 2018 AT 06:03 PM

how would I cite Supreme Court case from Justia?

Patricia Morris 27 March 2018 AT 10:03 AM

Can you give an example for citing the Occupational Outlook Handbook, published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics?

Michael Park 03 May 2018 AT 12:05 PM

How do i cite a introduced bill into congress

ML Chilson 04 November 2018 AT 05:11 PM

How do I cite a pending case that is still at the trial court level, including citation to the briefs that have been filed by the various parties?

Blah 08 November 2018 AT 11:11 AM

how do you cite a complaint in mla format

Marlow Chapman 10 December 2018 AT 08:12 PM

How would one cite a Title (specifically Title VII) from the Civil Rights Act of 1964?

Angela Gibson 11 December 2018 AT 05:12 PM

How you cite it will depend on where you access it. Some points: following the MLA format template, your entry will start with the title of the law. This will either be Civil Rights Act or Title 7 (see the discussion of Federal Statutes above for considerations about which title to begin your entry with). Your in-text citation (whether in prose or parentheses) should direct the reader to the first element in your works-cited list (in other words, the title).

Jeff Jeskie 04 February 2019 AT 08:02 AM

How do my students properly list the Supreme Court cases that are linked on the Exploring Constitutional Law site by Doug LInder at UMKC Law School site?

http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/conlaw/home.html?

Patricia Moseley 14 February 2019 AT 10:02 AM

I need help. My 8th grade history class is answering questions on the US Constitution and citing their answer.

There are five rights in the First Amendment, which include freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, the right to peaceably assemble, and the right to petition the government for a redress of their grievances (U.S. Constitution).

Is this in-text citation done correctly? Also, are the amendments spell out or does one use the Roman numeral in text?

Thank You!!!

Angela Gibson 15 February 2019 AT 10:02 AM

If U.S. Constitution is the first element in the works-cited-list entry, the in-text citation is correct. Spell out ordinal numbers (First Amendment), but use numerals for numbers of count (Amendment V) and, by convention, use Roman numerals for divisions of legal works that use them.

Ella 05 December 2019 AT 08:12 PM

How would you cite a state supreme court case?

Ana 06 December 2019 AT 09:12 AM

How would I cite an Act? More precisely, I want to cite The New York State Dignity for All Students Act. How would I do it on in-text citations and on the work cited page? Thanks!

Amanda 17 April 2020 AT 05:04 PM

How would I cite a tribal constitution? Do I use the date of the original publication or the most recent amendment or resolution?

most are found on their tribal government websites so would i treat it like this:

(italicized) Title of Document: Subtitle if Given (italicized) . Edition if given and is not first edition, Name of Government Department, Agency or Committee, Publication Date, URL. Accessed Day Month Year site was visited.

yet, I still do not know what date to use. Or should i just cite it from a print publication or Nat. Archives so I can use the example given in your list above?

Angela Gibson 20 April 2020 AT 09:04 AM

Cite the version you're looking at and use the date of access if it's the only date you can provide.

Marissa 25 October 2020 AT 05:10 PM

How would you cite The Declaration of Independence?

Jennifer A. Rappaport 26 October 2020 AT 08:10 PM

Thanks for your question. Please consult Ask the MLA: https://style.mla.org/category/ask-the-mla/

Carol Holyoke 19 January 2021 AT 10:01 PM

Could you please tell me how to cite the Declaration of Independence? Do I put it in the Works Cited List?

Angela Gibson 20 January 2021 AT 09:01 AM

It is generally a good idea to create a works-cited-list entry for the version of the document you are transcribing a quotation from (e.g., see our example for the Constitution). Create your entry just as you would for any other source--follow the template of core elements and list any relevant elements that apply.

Diane 23 February 2021 AT 07:02 PM

How do I correctly cite a Congressional public law In Text? I can only find how to cite in works cited pages. Thank you!

Rowena 28 April 2021 AT 09:04 AM

If I quote sections from a piece of legislation does it need to be italicised as well as quotation marks?

Charlotte Norcross 15 November 2021 AT 11:11 AM

How do I correctly cite the congressional record from a specific session? Thanks!

Carl Sandler 02 February 2022 AT 02:02 PM

I am submitting a report to an attorney consisting of investigative findings related to an automobile accident. Some of the information in my report will be technical in nature and other information will be in the form of my opinion(s) based on conclusions drawn from deposition testimony of witnesses and persons knowledgeable of the event. Considering the report will be read by both legal professionals and others not of the legal profession, what approach and format (with examples, please) should be used to cite deposition testimony and also Exhibits presented during the taking of the deposition? I am familiar with Bluebook style of legal citations, however not all persons reading my report would have this same understanding.

Lev 18 April 2022 AT 11:04 AM

Dear MLA Editor: When citing court cases in another language (French), should I keep the title of the case in the original language, translate it, or provide a translation in brackets? The same question goes for the name of the docket number, court, date of publication, and other elements. The MLA manual does not offer any guidance on this! Thanks in advance for any help.

Heidi 27 April 2023 AT 10:04 AM

What is the proper way to reference a recently filed lawsuit (a pending case) in legal writing (letters and memos)? Thanks!

Jennifer Washington 13 February 2024 AT 11:02 PM

How are state educational codes shaping standards for textbooks and materials cited in-text and on works cited?

Margaret Handrow 09 April 2024 AT 09:04 AM

How are state laws and state house bills cited? What would be the in-text citations for state laws and state house bills?

Laura Kiernan 09 April 2024 AT 03:04 PM

For guidance on citing state laws, see this post on the Style Center .

Margaret Handrow 11 April 2024 AT 08:04 PM

The Works Cited for state laws I have. What do the parenthetical and narrative in-text citations look like?

Margaret Handrow 11 April 2024 AT 09:04 PM

MLA Handbook 6.6 has the following example for in-text citations for U.S. Supreme Court cases - A recent case held that "the immunity enjoyed by foreign governments is a general rather than specific reference" (United States, Supreme Court).

How does MLA handle more than one court case? For example: United States, Supreme Court. Ableman v. Booth. United States Reports, vol. 62, 7 March 1859, pp. 506-525 Range. Fastcase, https://public.fastcase.com/jaEE2PXzRXmZ99jOLMt1Il18sGeib03xlSTGPHuTkMPJngvbMveRhemGzelvNShH. [62 US 506] and United States, Supreme Court. Miles v. United States. United States Reports, vol. 103, October Term, 1880, pp. 304-316 Range. Fastcase, https://public.fastcase.com/waZtJvSA54UAurM2rmIZz8tSNJfRFb72tc2JnYR%2b1g3S9cDguTf04pkUdcNTnFEq [103 US 304] Would the following work as parenthetical in-text citations? (United States, Supreme Court, Ableman v. Booth 520) and (United States, Supreme Court, Miles v. United States 311)? Or would using (Ableman v. Booth 520) and (Miles v. United States 311) be better?

Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), for example - 28 CFR Part 551 Subpart G.

My best guess for the Works Cited would be something along this line - United States. Department of Justice. Bureau of Prisons. Department of Justice Institutional Management. “Miscellaneous, Administering of Polygraph Test, Purpose and Scope, Procedures,” Title 28, 29 June 1979, Part 551, Subpart G, https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-28/chapter-V/subchapter-C/part-551/subpart-G?toc=1.

Would the parenthetical in-text citation be - (United States. Department of Justice. Bureau of Prisons. Department of Justice Institutional Management 551)? This is for one source from 28 CFR Part 551 Subpart G. How would one differentiate a different Subpart that is on the same page?

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ACAP LEARNING RESOURCES

Reference with Harvard

• Introduction to the Author-Date System
• About In-Text Citations
• About Reference Lists
• Audio-visual
• Books & eBooks
• Conference Papers
• Government Reports
• Newspapers & Online News
• Other Sources & Variations
• Secondary Referencing
• Case Law & Legislation
• Writing style guide
• Differences Between APA & Harvard
• How to Reference
• Assignment Presentation Requirements

Reported Case Law

• Reference List
• In-text Citation

Do not use in-text citations for case law or legislation. Rather, mention the case or legislation in the written text. The reference list should have separate sections for cases and legislation where you list cases or Acts referred to in the body of the essay. See below for appropriate ways to cite these.

Reported Case Law in the Reference List

(This image has been taken from the AGLC4  p. 39. The AGLC4 and Style Manual follow the same format when referencing reported cases)

More examples of Reported Case Law in the Reference List:

R v Denyer [1995] 1 VR 186 R stands for Rex/Regina (King/Queen/Crown) Party names separated by v (which stands for and in civil matters and against in criminal matters) Denyer is the defendant [square brackets used around the year because the law report series has no independent volume number]. 1 refers to the part VR is the abbreviation for the  law report series - Victorian Reports 186 is the starting page of the case. Denyer v R (1997) 188 CLR 207 Party names separated by v. (round brackets used around the year because there is an independent volume number) 188 = volume number CLR is the abbreviation for the law report series 207 is the starting page

If you need to check a case law abbreviation, check the Monash Legal Abbreviations Page

According to the Navitas College of Public Safety Referencing Guide (p.20):

Do not use in-text citations for case law or legislation. Rather, mention the case or legislation in the written text. The references should have separate sections for cases and legislation where you list cases or Acts referred to in the body of the essay.

Case Law from AustLII (medium neutral citation format)

According to the Style Manual for Authors Editors and Printers, 6th edn, p.227.

'On first mention in the text, the authority should be cited in full. An abbreviated form or the name by which the case is commonly known can be given in parentheses following the formal citation. After that the abbreviated or common form can be used'. For example, when referencing the Mabo case from AustLII, use the following the first time: Mabo v Queensland (No 2) [1992] HCA 23 (3 June 1992) ("Mabo case"). Following on from this, you can refer to the Mabo Case in the body of your essay.

Remember - do not use in-text citations for case law or legislation. Rather, mention the case or legislation in the written text in full the first time and then you can use the abbreviated name for the rest of your essay.

The reference list should have separate sections for cases and legislation where you list cases or Acts referred to in the body of the essay. See below for appropriate ways to cite these. When referencing case law from AustLII, use the medium neutral citation referencing format. This is explained on page 54 of the AGLC4 .

The party names are separated by v The year is included in square brackets A unique court identifier is used instead of the court name The judgement number is listed The date is included in round brackets.

Re: the example above... When reading this case on AustLII, the information you need to reference a case is provided at the top of the page - see the diagram below. Simply copy this information and ensure that the party names are placed in italics

What is the green arrow in this diagram? It was one of the keywords used to locate this case on the database. Therefore, it is highlighted with a green arrow. For referencing purposes, ignore the green arrow.

'On first mention in the text, the authority should be cited in full. An abbreviated form or the name by which the case is commonly known can be given in parentheses following the formal citation. After that the abbreviated or common form can be used'.

For example, when referencing the Mabo case from AustLII, use the following the first time: Mabo v Queensland (No 2) [1992] HCA 23 (3 June 1992) ("Mabo case"). Following on from this, you can refer to the Mabo Case in the body of your essay.

Legislation

Legislation in the Reference List

(This image has been taken from the AGLC4  p. 67. The AGLC4 and Style Manual follow a similar format when referencing reported cases)

Crimes Act 1958 (Vic)

Crimes Act 1914 (Cwlth)

Note: The date is part of the title.

Note: Even though you are using the Harvard Author/Date referencing system, ACAP Criminology/Policing students are likely to see books and articles which use two different referencing styles - the Harvard and the Australian Guide to Legal Citation, 3rd ed., (AGLC3). There is a difference between the styles when referencing Commonwealth Legislation Harvard = Cwlth. Example: Crimes Act 1914 (Cwlth)  AGLC4 =  Cth. Example: Crimes Act 1914 (Cth)

• AGLC4 The AGLC4 was published in 2018.
• Major substantive changes between AGLC3 and AGLC4
• AGLC4 Corrections
• AGLC4 Summary Page
• << Previous: Secondary Referencing
• Next: Websites >>
• Last Updated: Oct 16, 2020 3:56 PM
• URL: https://libguides.navitas.com/harvard

APA 6th Referencing Style Guide

• APA referencing style
• In-text citation
• Reference list
• TV, film & video
• Tables, figures & images
• Conferences
• Personal communications
• Lecture notes
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Law and APA

Acts (Statutes)

Regulations (legislative instruments)

Cases - reported cases, cases - unreported cases, commentary on legislation and cases, new zealand parliamentary debates (hansard).

• Standards & patents
• Specific health examples
• Exhibition catalogue
• APA is not specifically designed for referencing New Zealand legal materials
• Law students at AUT should use the New Zealand Law Style Guide for referencing law materials, NOT APA.

Law students

Use the AUT Library Law subject guide , which contains Legal Referencing & Citation Tools  and the New Zealand Law Style Guide .

Non-law students

• Students studying other disciplines can use APA to cite the occasional Act or case
• The guidelines in the APA manual relate to American legislation and are inappropriate for New Zealand.
• The APA Referencing Style Guide here gives AUT interpretations on APA for New Zealand legal resources.
• An Act (also called a Statute) is a written law passed by a legislative body
• The date is part of the title of the Act and does not need parentheses or comma's to differentiate it

Reference format for an Act:

Reference list entry:

In-text citation:

Section of an Act

• Acts have section numbers
• Use the abbreviation s for a section or ss for sections
• Section numbers are not included in the reference list

In text citation:

• A Bill is a draft of a proposed law presented to parliament for discussion
• The Bill number is part of the title of the Bill and doesn't need a comma
• The date is part of the title of the Bill and does not need parentheses or comma's to differentiate it

Reference format for a Bill:

Citing clauses of a Bill

• Bills have clauses rather than sections
• Use the abbreviation cl for a clause or cls for clauses
• Clause numbers are not included in the reference list

Regulations

• A Regulation is a legislative instrument made by the Governor-General, ministers of the crown, and certain other bodies under powers conferred by an Act of parliament
• The date is part of the title of the Regulation and does not need parentheses or comma's to differentiate it

Reference format for a Regulation:

Citing clauses and regulations of a Regulation

• Regulations have clauses rather than sections
• Use the abbreviation cl for a clause or cls for clauses. Use the abbreviation reg for a regulation or regs for regulations.

Reported cases

• Reported cases are court and tribunal decisions that have been reported or published in a report series
• The New Zealand Law Reports are the official (government authorised) report series for New Zealand
• Other law report series are published in New Zealand. These are unofficial reporting series and contain significant cases. Examples: the New Zealand Family Law Reports and the New Zealand Employment Law Reports
• Use the same reference format for cases published in official and unofficial report series
• If a case is not published in a report series, it is 'unreported'. See Cases - Unreported cases for the correct referencing style

Reference format for reported cases:

• Parties (people or organisations involved – sometimes substituted by a letter eg. X if a name is suppressed), separated by the letter v
• Year (year the case was reported). Brackets: follow the example used in your case title.
• Abbreviation (of the law report where the case is published or the court where the case was heard). Search Legal Citations of Aotearoa New Zealand for the correct abbreviation
• Volume and page number (or case number for unreported cases).  A volume number is not always available.
• Court identifier (for reported cases only - court name is found on the first page of the case you are using)

Unreported cases

• Unreported cases are court or tribunal decisions that have not been published in a law report series
• Unreported cases may be downloaded from the AUT law databases (LexisNexisNZ, WestlawNZ), or from the court, tribunal or commission who issued the decision
• Use the New Zealand Law Foundation's abbreviations for courts and tribunals
• Use the official neutral citation if available. Neutral citations are provided on the original copy of the case. See: Neutral citation
• If a neutral citation is not provided, use the case file number . See: No neutral citation

Reference format for an unreported case (with neutral citation):

Reference format for an unreported case (no neutral citation):

• Only include the registry information for a court or tribunal with multiple registries. For example, New Zealand has 58 district courts and 19 high courts. 
• Legal commentaries provide up-to-date, detailed information on a particular subject area. Texts, journal articles and legal encyclopedias are examples of commentaries.
• Commentaries are available through the AUT law databases
• If you cannot locate the general editor or author, omit this information
• If you cannot locate a date of publication for commentary found in the AUT databases, use n.d. (no date) in your reference list and in-text citation. See the examples below.

Reference format for printed New Zealand Parliamentary Debates

Reference format for electronic New Zealand Parliamentary Debates

Knowledge Basket (AUT database)

New Zealand Parliament website

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• Last Updated: Apr 20, 2023 1:46 PM
• URL: https://aut.ac.nz.libguides.com/APA6th

Referencing - UK & EU Law: Statute (Act of Parliament)

• Repeated references
• Bibliography
• Neutral citation
• Pre-1865 case
• Unreported case
• Judicial opinion
• EU unreported case
• Opinion of Advocate General
• Decision of the European Commission
• ECHR unreported case
• Statute (Act of Parliament)
• Statutory instrument (SI)
• EU regulation/directive (etc)
• Law Commission report/paper
• Command Paper
• Select Committee report
• Hansard (Parliamentary debates)
• European COM Docs
• Book with one author
• Book with two authors
• Book with three authors
• Book with more than three authors
• Edited book
• Contribution to an edited book
• Encyclopedia
• Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law
• Journal article
• Newspaper article
• Working paper
• Websites/Web documents
• Plagiarism & Copyright This link opens in a new window

How do I reference a statute (Act of Parliament)?

This guidance applies whether you found the statute in print or online.

short title | year

Footnote (if you HAVE given the short title and year in the text of your work): You do not need to create a footnote

Footnote (if you HAVE NOT given the short title and year in the text of your work): e.g. Shipping and Trading Interests (Protection) Act 1995

Bibliography: e.g. Shipping and Trading Interests (Protection) Act 1995

To pinpoint (for footnotes  only),  follow the citation with a comma, the relevant term or abbreviation and a number or letter.

e.g. Shipping and Trading Interests (Protection) Act 1995, s 4

To pinpoint (for footnotes  only),  several sections (for example), insert a dash between the section numbers.

Short title

A statute may have a short title (e.g. 'Finance Act 2015') and a long title (e.g. 'An Act to grant certain duties, to alter other duties, and to amend the law relating to the National Debt and the Public Revenue, and to make further provision in connection with finance'). Use the short title in your reference.

• Do not include 'The' at the beginning of the title
• Use capitals for the major words
• Do not insert a comma between the title and the year
• Do not use popular titles, e.g. ‘Lord Campbell’s Act’.

Parts of a statute

Statutes are divided into: parts; sections; subsections; paragraphs and subparagraphs.

The main text of the statute may be supplemented by schedules, which are divided into parts, paragraphs and subparagraphs.

These divisions are referenced using either a term (e.g. section 4) or an abbreviation (e.g. s 4) as follows:

• In a footnote, use the abbreviation
• In the text of your work, use either the term or the abbreviation but...
• Use the term at the beginning of a sentence
• When referring to subsections or paragraphs, always use the abbreviation.

If citing a paragraph or subsection as part of a section, use only the abbreviation for the section.  For example, paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of section 15 of the Human Rights Act 1998 is referenced as follows: Human Rights Act 1998, s 15(1)(b).

Explanatory notes to statutes

To cite explanatory notes to a statute, add 'Explanatory Notes to the...' before your reference, e.g. Explanatory Notes to the Charities Act 2006.

To pinpoint, follow the citation with a comma, then para(s) and the paragraph number(s), e.g. Explanatory Notes to the Charities Act 2006, para 15.

• << Previous: Bill
• Next: Statutory instrument (SI) >>
• Last Updated: Nov 20, 2023 4:47 PM
• URL: https://libguides.bournemouth.ac.uk/referencing-uk-eu-law

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• How to Quote | Citing Quotes in Harvard & APA

How to Quote | Citing Quotes in Harvard & APA

Published on 15 April 2022 by Shona McCombes and Jack Caulfield. Revised on 3 September 2022.

Quoting means copying a passage of someone else’s words and crediting the source. To quote a source, you must ensure:

• The quoted text is enclosed in quotation marks (usually single quotation marks in UK English, though double is acceptable as long as you’re consistent) or formatted as a block quote
• The original author is correctly cited
• The text is identical to the original

The exact format of a quote depends on its length and on which citation style you are using. Quoting and citing correctly is essential to avoid plagiarism , which is easy to detect with a good plagiarism checker .

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Table of contents

How to cite a quote in harvard and apa style, introducing quotes, quotes within quotes, shortening or altering a quote, block quotes, when should i use quotes, frequently asked questions about quoting sources.

Every time you quote, you must cite the source correctly . This looks slightly different depending on the citation style you’re using.

Citing a quote in Harvard style

When you include a quote in Harvard style, you must add a Harvard in-text citation giving the author’s last name, the year of publication, and a page number if available. Any full stop or comma appears after the citation, not within the quotation marks.

Citations can be parenthetical or narrative. In a parenthetical citation , you place all the information in brackets after the quote. In a narrative citation , you name the author in your sentence (followed by the year), and place the page number after the quote.

• Evolution is a gradual process that ‘can act only by very short and slow steps’ (Darwin, 1859, p. 510) . Darwin (1859) explains that evolution ‘can act only by very short and slow steps’ (p. 510) .

Complete guide to Harvard style

Citing a quote in APA Style

To cite a direct quote in APA , you must include the author’s last name, the year, and a page number, all separated by commas. If the quote appears on a single page, use ‘p.’; if it spans a page range, use ‘pp.’

An APA in-text citation can be parenthetical or narrative. In a parenthetical citation , you place all the information in parentheses after the quote. In a narrative citation , you name the author in your sentence (followed by the year), and place the page number after the quote.

Punctuation marks such as full stops and commas are placed after the citation, not within the quotation marks.

• Evolution is a gradual process that ‘can act only by very short and slow steps’ (Darwin, 1859, p. 510) .
• Darwin (1859) explains that evolution ‘can act only by very short and slow steps’ (p. 510) .

Complete guide to APA

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Make sure you integrate quotes properly into your text by introducing them in your own words, showing the reader why you’re including the quote and providing any context necessary to understand it.  Don’t  present quotations as stand-alone sentences.

There are three main strategies you can use to introduce quotes in a grammatically correct way:

• Add an introductory sentence
• Use an introductory signal phrase
• Integrate the quote into your own sentence

The following examples use APA Style citations, but these strategies can be used in all styles.

Introductory sentence

Introduce the quote with a full sentence ending in a colon . Don’t use a colon if the text before the quote isn’t a full sentence.

If you name the author in your sentence, you may use present-tense verbs, such as “states’, ‘argues’, ‘explains’, ‘writes’, or ‘reports’, to describe the content of the quote.

• In Denmark, a recent poll shows that: ‘A membership referendum held today would be backed by 55 percent of Danish voters’ (Levring, 2018, p. 3).
• In Denmark, a recent poll shows that support for the EU has grown since the Brexit vote: ‘A membership referendum held today would be backed by 55 percent of Danish voters’ (Levring, 2018, p. 3).
• Levring (2018) reports that support for the EU has grown since the Brexit vote: ‘A membership referendum held today would be backed by 55 percent of Danish voters’ (p. 3).

Introductory signal phrase

You can also use a signal phrase that mentions the author or source but doesn’t form a full sentence. In this case, you follow the phrase with a comma instead of a colon.

• According to a recent poll, ‘A membership referendum held today would be backed by 55 percent of Danish voters’ (Levring, 2018, p. 3).
• As Levring (2018) explains, ‘A membership referendum held today would be backed by 55 percent of Danish voters’ (p. 3).

Integrated into your own sentence

To quote a phrase that doesn’t form a full sentence, you can also integrate it as part of your sentence, without any extra punctuation.

• A recent poll suggests that EU membership ‘would be backed by 55 percent of Danish voters’ in a referendum (Levring, 2018, p. 3).
• Levring (2018) reports that EU membership ‘would be backed by 55 percent of Danish voters’ in a referendum (p. 3).

When you quote text that itself contains another quote, this is called a nested quotation or a quote within a quote. It may occur, for example, when quoting dialogue from a novel.

To distinguish this quote from the surrounding quote, you enclose it in double (instead of single) quotation marks (even if this involves changing the punctuation from the original text). Make sure to close both sets of quotation marks at the appropriate moments.

Note that if you only quote the nested quotation itself, and not the surrounding text, you can just use single quotation marks.

• Carraway introduces his narrative by quoting his father: ‘ ‘ Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone, ‘ he told me, ‘ just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had ‘ ‘ (Fitzgerald 1).
• Carraway introduces his narrative by quoting his father: ‘”Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone,” he told me, “just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had “  (Fitzgerald 1).
• Carraway introduces his narrative by quoting his father: ‘“Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone,” he told me, “just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had”’ (Fitzgerald 1).
• Carraway begins by quoting his father’s invocation to ‘remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had’ (Fitzgerald 1).

Note:  When the quoted text in the source comes from another source, it’s best to just find that original source in order to quote it directly. If you can’t find the original source, you can instead cite it indirectly .

Often, incorporating a quote smoothly into your text requires you to make some changes to the original text. It’s fine to do this, as long as you clearly mark the changes you’ve made to the quote.

Shortening a quote

If some parts of a passage are redundant or irrelevant, you can shorten the quote by removing words, phrases, or sentences and replacing them with an ellipsis (…). Put a space before and after the ellipsis.

Be careful that removing the words doesn’t change the meaning. The ellipsis indicates that some text has been removed, but the shortened quote should still accurately represent the author’s point.

Altering a quote

You can add or replace words in a quote when necessary. This might be because the original text doesn’t fit grammatically with your sentence (e.g., it’s in a different tense), or because extra information is needed to clarify the quote’s meaning.

Use brackets to distinguish words that you have added from words that were present in the original text.

The Latin term ‘ sic ‘ is used to indicate a (factual or grammatical) mistake in a quotation. It shows the reader that the mistake is from the quoted material, not a typo of your own.

In some cases, it can be useful to italicise part of a quotation to add emphasis, showing the reader that this is the key part to pay attention to. Use the phrase ’emphasis added’ to show that the italics were not part of the original text.

You usually don’t need to use brackets to indicate minor changes to punctuation or capitalisation made to ensure the quote fits the style of your text.

If you quote more than a few lines from a source, you must format it as a block quote . Instead of using quotation marks, you set the quote on a new line and indent it so that it forms a separate block of text.

Block quotes are cited just like regular quotes, except that if the quote ends with a full stop, the citation appears after the full stop.

To the end of his days Bilbo could never remember how he found himself outside, without a hat, a walking-stick or any money, or anything that he usually took when he went out; leaving his second breakfast half-finished and quite unwashed-up, pushing his keys into Gandalf’s hands, and running as fast as his furry feet could carry him down the lane, past the great Mill, across The Water, and then on for a mile or more. (16)

Avoid relying too heavily on quotes in academic writing . To integrate a source , it’s often best to paraphrase , which means putting the passage into your own words. This helps you integrate information smoothly and keeps your own voice dominant.

However, there are some situations in which quotes are more appropriate.

When focusing on language

If you want to comment on how the author uses language (for example, in literary analysis ), it’s necessary to quote so that the reader can see the exact passage you are referring to.

When giving evidence

To convince the reader of your argument, interpretation or position on a topic, it’s often helpful to include quotes that support your point. Quotes from primary sources (for example, interview transcripts or historical documents) are especially credible as evidence.

When presenting an author’s position or definition

When you’re referring to secondary sources such as scholarly books and journal articles, try to put others’ ideas in your own words when possible.

But if a passage does a great job at expressing, explaining, or defining something, and it would be very difficult to paraphrase without changing the meaning or losing the weakening the idea’s impact, it’s worth quoting directly.

A quote is an exact copy of someone else’s words, usually enclosed in quotation marks and credited to the original author or speaker.

To present information from other sources in academic writing , it’s best to paraphrase in most cases. This shows that you’ve understood the ideas you’re discussing and incorporates them into your text smoothly.

It’s appropriate to quote when:

• Changing the phrasing would distort the meaning of the original text
• You want to discuss the author’s language choices (e.g., in literary analysis )
• You’re presenting a precise definition
• You’re looking in depth at a specific claim

Every time you quote a source , you must include a correctly formatted in-text citation . This looks slightly different depending on the citation style .

For example, a direct quote in APA is cited like this: ‘This is a quote’ (Streefkerk, 2020, p. 5).

Every in-text citation should also correspond to a full reference at the end of your paper.

In scientific subjects, the information itself is more important than how it was expressed, so quoting should generally be kept to a minimum. In the arts and humanities, however, well-chosen quotes are often essential to a good paper.

In social sciences, it varies. If your research is mainly quantitative , you won’t include many quotes, but if it’s more qualitative , you may need to quote from the data you collected .

As a general guideline, quotes should take up no more than 5–10% of your paper. If in doubt, check with your instructor or supervisor how much quoting is appropriate in your field.

If you’re quoting from a text that paraphrases or summarises other sources and cites them in parentheses , APA  recommends retaining the citations as part of the quote:

• Smith states that ‘the literature on this topic (Jones, 2015; Sill, 2019; Paulson, 2020) shows no clear consensus’ (Smith, 2019, p. 4).

Footnote or endnote numbers that appear within quoted text should be omitted.

If you want to cite an indirect source (one you’ve only seen quoted in another source), either locate the original source or use the phrase ‘as cited in’ in your citation.

A block quote is a long quote formatted as a separate ‘block’ of text. Instead of using quotation marks , you place the quote on a new line, and indent the entire quote to mark it apart from your own words.

APA uses block quotes for quotes that are 40 words or longer.

Cite this Scribbr article

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McCombes, S. & Caulfield, J. (2022, September 03). How to Quote | Citing Quotes in Harvard & APA. Scribbr. Retrieved 15 April 2024, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/working-sources/quoting/

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Citing and referencing legal resources using Harvard

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UK statutes

Uk statutory instruments, devolved legislation.

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• Other legal resources

A statute is another name for an Act of Parliament. 

As explained in Cite them right UK statutes (Acts of Parliament) , you will need to reference a statute in the following way: Title of Act year, chapter number. Available at: URL (Accessed: date).

In-text citation: The legislation (Food Standards Act 1999) states that...

Reference list: Food Standards Act 1999, c. 28 . Available at: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1999/28/contents (Accessed: 30 January 2018).

Cite them right also provides guidance on UK statutory instruments  (also known as secondary or delegated legislation). Your reference will be made up of the following elements: Name/title of SI year (SI year and number). Available at: URL (Accessed: date).

In-text citation: In relation to the Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013 ,....

Reference list: Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013 (SI 2013/2996). Available at: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2013/2996/made (Accessed: 24 January 2018).

Cite them right  gives details on how to cite and reference legislation from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland . You will need to consult this for details of how to cite Acts of the Scottish Parliament and Scottish Statutory Instruments; Acts of the Northern Ireland Assembly and Statutory Rules of Northern Ireland; and legislation of the National Assembly for Wales and Welsh Statutory Instruments.

A Bill is a draft law. It needs to be approved in the Houses of Parliament and receive Royal Assent before it becomes an Act of Parliament.

As explained by Cite them right Bills from the House of Commons or House of Lords , the type of information you need to include in your reference list is as follows: Title (year of publication). Parliament: House of Commons OR Parliament: House of Lords. Bill no.[  ]. Place of publication: publisher.

In-text citation: The Sugar in Food and Drinks (Targets, Labelling and Advertising) Bill (2016) had its first reading on....

Reference list: Sugar in Food and Drinks (Targets, Labelling and Advertising) Bill (2016). Parliament: House of Commons. Bill no. 70. London: The Stationery Office.

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Legal Citation – Citing Legislation with AGLC Referencing

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• 1st June 2019

If you know much about law in Australia, you should know the term “AGLC” already. It stands for the Australian Guide to Legal Referencing . This book sets the standards for citing Australian legal sources in academic writing , so it’s useful to know how AGLC referencing works. Previously, we’ve covered how to cite case reports . Today, we look at citing legislation.

Citing an Act in AGLC

AGLC uses superscript numbers (e.g., 1 , 2 , 3 ) to point to footnote citations at the bottom of the page. This is where you provide source details. The information required to cite an Act of legislation is as follows:

We can break this down as follows:

• The short title and year are italicized because they stand in for the full title (the long title of the Navigation Act 2012 , for example, is An Act relating to maritime safety and the prevention of pollution of the marine environment, and for related purposes , which is a lot more to write out).
• The jurisdiction of the Act goes in brackets. We use “Cth,” for example, for all Commonwealth Acts. However, the correct abbreviation may depend on where the legislation was enacted, so make sure to check.
• The pinpoint is the section of the text you’re citing. You won’t always need a pinpoint citation, but you should give one if you are citing or quoting a specific part of an Act.

This citation format covers most forms of Australian legislation. The other main type of legislation is a “Bill,” which we will look at next.

Citing a Bill in AGLC

A Bill is a draft Act of Parliament . The information required here is similar to citing an Act, except we do not need to italicize the short title and year. For example, we could cite a draft version of the Navigation Act as follows:

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1. Navigation Act 2010 (Cth).

It is thus vital to double-check italics when citing legislation.

Subsequent Citations

If you are citing the same source twice in a row in AGLC referencing, you need to use the Latin term “ibid.” This means “in the same place,” so it points to the source in the previous citation. Make sure to give a new pinpoint citation if you’re citing a different section, though:

1. Navigation Act 2012 (Cth) s 14. 2. Ibid. 3. Ibid s 23.

For non-consecutive repeat citations in AGLC referencing, you will need to use a shortened title plus a cross reference to the first footnote where the source is cited. Typically, you will give the shortened title at the end of the first citation. For instance:

1. Navigation Act 2012 (Cth) s 14 (“ Navigation ”). 2. Ruben Stein, Australian Law in Context (Lawbook, 2012). 3. Navigation (n 1) s12.

In the above, we have the full source information in the first footnote, including a shortened title. So when we cite it again in the third footnote, we only have to use the shortened title and a bracketed number to show the reader where the source is first cited. We then give a pinpoint citation to show that we’re citing a different part of the act.

Citing Legislation in the Bibliography

AGLC requires you to list all cited sources in a bibliography at the end of your document. Within this, Acts and Bills should be listed alphabetically under the heading “Legislation.”

Entries for Acts and Bills in an AGLC bibliography will be similar to the first footnote citations for these sources. The only differences are that you do not need a pinpoint reference or a period. For example, the Navigation Act 2012 would appear simply as:

Navigation Act 2012 (Cth) s 14

We hope that helps you with citing legislation, AGLC style, in your work! But feel free to get in touch if you need help proofreading your document.

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Q. How do I reference an Act of Parliament in Harvard style?

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Answered By: Anne Hutchinson Last Updated: 20 Nov, 2023     Views: 442446

Before 1963 an Act was cited according to the regnal year (that is, the number of years since the monarch's accession). You may see references to legislation in this format in early publications – for example, Act of Supremacy 1534 (26 Hen 8 c1). However, for all Acts (including pre-1963) you should use the short title of the Act, with the year in which it was enacted. Most Acts and parts of Acts are now available as PDFs or web pages to be viewed online, so reference the website where you located the Act.

NB As the date appears in the title of the Acts, there is no need to repeat the date in round brackets after the title.

If you are referencing documents from more than one country (jurisdiction), include the country (jurisdiction) in round brackets after the title of the documentation.

Most legislation is now available online, so to reference an Act of Parliament (post 1963) your citation order should be:

• Title of Act including year and chapter (in italics)
• Country/jurisdiction (only include this if you are referencing legislation from more than one country)
• Available at: URL (Accessed: date)

For example (whole Act):

Your in-text citation would be:

Recent social care legislation ( Health and Social Care Act 2012 ) ...

Your reference list entry would be:

Health and Social Care Act 2012, c.7 . Available at: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2012/7/contents/enacted (Accessed: 17 September 2018).

For example (section of an Act):

As defined in section 10(2) of the Act ( Children Act 2004 ) ...

Children Act 2004 , c. 31. Available at: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2004/31/contents (Accessed: 17 September 2018).

This advice is courtesy of Cite Them Right , 11th edition, or for more information on referencing see our Referencing Library Guide: https://libguides.brunel.ac.uk/referencing

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Q. How do I refer to parts of Statutes or Statutory Instruments in the OSCOLA referencing style?

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Answered By: Lisa Hawksworth Last Updated: Jan 08, 2021     Views: 117799

DISCOVER and the Library Catalogue have been replaced by Library Search . We're busy updating all of our links, but in the meantime, please use Library Search when searching for resources or managing your Library Account.

Statutes are divided into parts, sections, subsections, paragraphs and subparagraphs. In addition, the main text of the statute may be supplemented by schedules, which are divided into paragraphs and subparagraphs. In your work, you can use abbreviations to refer to specific sections of legislation. The abbreviations to use are listed below:

part/parts - pt/pts

section/sections - s/ss

subsection/subsections - sub-s/sub-ss

paragraph/paragraphs - para/paras

subparagraph/subparagraphs - subpara/subparas

schedule/schedules - sch/schs

When citing part of an Act in a footnote, insert a comma after the year, and a space but no full stop, between the abbreviation and the initial number, letter or opening bracket. For example:

Consumer Protection Act 1987, s 2.

Use the full form at the beginning of a sentence (e.g. ‘schedule’ or ‘section’), or when referring to a part of a statute without repeating the name of the Act. Elsewhere in the text, either form can be used, although you would usually use the abbreviation when referring to subsections or paragraphs. Use the short form in any footnotes.

If you are specifying a paragraph or subsection as part of a section, use just the abbreviation for the section. For example, paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of section 15 of the Human Rights Act 1998 is expressed as:

Human Rights Act 1998, s 15(1)(b).

There are several ways in which to refer to sections of legislation within the text of your work. For example:

… section 5(1)(a) of the Race Relations Act 1976… OR … the Race Relations Act 1976, s 5(1)(a).

… by virtue of section 11(1A) of the Limitation Act 1980…

Sub-section (1) does not apply to…

… as subs-s (3) shows …

In your footnotes:

16 Criminal Attempts Act 1981, ss 1(1) and 4(3).

17 Sexual Offences Act 2003, s 1(1)(c).

See the OSCOLA referencing page for more guidance.

Please note you should always refer to any departmental/school guidelines you’ve been given.

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Quick guide to Harvard referencing (Cite Them Right)

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There are different versions of the Harvard referencing style. This guide is a quick introduction to the commonly-used Cite Them Right version. You will find further guidance available through the OU Library on the Cite Them Right Database .

For help and support with referencing and the full Cite Them Right guide, have a look at the Library’s page on referencing and plagiarism . If you need guidance referencing OU module material you can check out which sections of Cite Them Right are recommended when referencing physical and online module material .

This guide does not apply to OU Law undergraduate students . If you are studying a module beginning with W1xx, W2xx or W3xx, you should refer to the Quick guide to Cite Them Right referencing for Law modules .

Table of contents

In-text citations and full references.

• Secondary referencing
• Page numbers
• Citing multiple sources published in the same year by the same author

Full reference examples

Referencing consists of two elements:

• in-text citations, which are inserted in the body of your text and are included in the word count. An in-text citation gives the author(s) and publication date of a source you are referring to. If the publication date is not given, the phrase 'no date' is used instead of a date. If using direct quotations or you refer to a specific section in the source you also need the page number/s if available, or paragraph number for web pages.
• full references, which are given in alphabetical order in reference list at the end of your work and are not included in the word count. Full references give full bibliographical information for all the sources you have referred to in the body of your text.

To see a reference list and intext citations check out this example assignment on Cite Them Right .

Difference between reference list and bibliography

a reference list only includes sources you have referred to in the body of your text

a bibliography includes sources you have referred to in the body of your text AND sources that were part of your background reading that you did not use in your assignment

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Examples of in-text citations

You need to include an in-text citation wherever you quote or paraphrase from a source. An in-text citation consists of the last name of the author(s), the year of publication, and a page number if relevant. There are a number of ways of incorporating in-text citations into your work - some examples are provided below. Alternatively you can see examples of setting out in-text citations in Cite Them Right .

Note: When referencing a chapter of an edited book, your in-text citation should give the author(s) of the chapter.

Online module materials

(Includes written online module activities, audio-visual material such as online tutorials, recordings or videos).

When referencing material from module websites, the date of publication is the year you started studying the module.

Surname, Initial. (Year of publication/presentation) 'Title of item'. Module code: Module title . Available at: URL of VLE (Accessed: date).

OR, if there is no named author:

The Open University (Year of publication/presentation) 'Title of item'. Module code: Module title . Available at: URL of VLE (Accessed: date).

Rietdorf, K. and Bootman, M. (2022) 'Topic 3: Rare diseases'. S290: Investigating human health and disease . Available at: https://learn2.open.ac.uk/mod/oucontent/view.php?id=1967195 (Accessed: 24 January 2023).

The Open University (2022) ‘3.1 The purposes of childhood and youth research’. EK313: Issues in research with children and young people . Available at: https://learn2.open.ac.uk/mod/oucontent/view.php?id=1949633&section=1.3 (Accessed: 24 January 2023).

You can also use this template to reference videos and audio that are hosted on your module website:

The Open University (2022) ‘Video 2.7 An example of a Frith-Happé animation’. SK298: Brain, mind and mental health . Available at: https://learn2.open.ac.uk/mod/oucontent/view.php?id=2013014&section=4.9.6 (Accessed: 22 November 2022).

The Open University (2022) ‘Audio 2 Interview with Richard Sorabji (Part 2)’. A113: Revolutions . Available at: https://learn2.open.ac.uk/mod/oucontent/view.php?id=1960941&section=5.6 (Accessed: 22 November 2022).

Note: if a complete journal article has been uploaded to a module website, or if you have seen an article referred to on the website and then accessed the original version, reference the original journal article, and do not mention the module materials. If only an extract from an article is included in your module materials that you want to reference, you should use secondary referencing, with the module materials as the 'cited in' source, as described above.

Surname, Initial. (Year of publication) 'Title of message', Title of discussion board , in Module code: Module title . Available at: URL of VLE (Accessed: date).

Fitzpatrick, M. (2022) ‘A215 - presentation of TMAs', Tutor group discussion & Workbook activities , in A215: Creative writing . Available at: https://learn2.open.ac.uk/mod/forumng/discuss.php?d=4209566 (Accessed: 24 January 2022).

Note: When an ebook looks like a printed book, with publication details and pagination, reference as a printed book.

Surname, Initial. (Year of publication) Title . Edition if later than first. Place of publication: publisher. Series and volume number if relevant.

For ebooks that do not contain print publication details

Surname, Initial. (Year of publication) Title of book . Available at: DOI or URL (Accessed: date).

Example with one author:

Bell, J. (2014) Doing your research project . Maidenhead: Open University Press.

Adams, D. (1979) The hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy . Available at: http://www.amazon.co.uk/kindle-ebooks (Accessed: 23 June 2021).

Example with two or three authors:

Goddard, J. and Barrett, S. (2015) The health needs of young people leaving care . Norwich: University of East Anglia, School of Social Work and Psychosocial Studies.

Example with four or more authors:

Young, H.D. et al. (2015) Sears and Zemansky's university physics . San Francisco, CA: Addison-Wesley.

Note: You can choose one or other method to reference four or more authors (unless your School requires you to name all authors in your reference list) and your approach should be consistent.

Note: Books that have an editor, or editors, where each chapter is written by a different author or authors.

Surname of chapter author, Initial. (Year of publication) 'Title of chapter or section', in Initial. Surname of book editor (ed.) Title of book . Place of publication: publisher, Page reference.

Franklin, A.W. (2012) 'Management of the problem', in S.M. Smith (ed.) The maltreatment of children . Lancaster: MTP, pp. 83–95.

Surname, Initial. (Year of publication) 'Title of article', Title of Journal , volume number (issue number), page reference.

If accessed online:

Surname, Initial. (Year of publication) 'Title of article', Title of Journal , volume number (issue number), page reference. Available at: DOI or URL (if required) (Accessed: date).

Shirazi, T. (2010) 'Successful teaching placements in secondary schools: achieving QTS practical handbooks', European Journal of Teacher Education , 33(3), pp. 323–326.

Shirazi, T. (2010) 'Successful teaching placements in secondary schools: achieving QTS practical handbooks', European Journal of Teacher Education , 33(3), pp. 323–326. Available at: https://libezproxy.open.ac.uk/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/log... (Accessed: 27 January 2023).

Barke, M. and Mowl, G. (2016) 'Málaga – a failed resort of the early twentieth century?', Journal of Tourism History , 2(3), pp. 187–212. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/1755182X.2010.523145

Surname, Initial. (Year of publication) 'Title of article', Title of Newspaper , Day and month, Page reference.

Surname, Initial. (Year of publication) 'Title of article', Title of Newspaper , Day and month, Page reference if available. Available at: URL (Accessed: date).

Mansell, W. and Bloom, A. (2012) ‘£10,000 carrot to tempt physics experts’, The Guardian , 20 June, p. 5.

Roberts, D. and Ackerman, S. (2013) 'US draft resolution allows Obama 90 days for military action against Syria', The Guardian , 4 September. Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/04/syria-strikes-draft-resolut... (Accessed: 9 September 2015).

Surname, Initial. (Year that the site was published/last updated) Title of web page . Available at: URL (Accessed: date).

Organisation (Year that the page was last updated) Title of web page . Available at: URL (Accessed: date).

Robinson, J. (2007) Social variation across the UK . Available at: https://www.bl.uk/british-accents-and-dialects/articles/social-variation... (Accessed: 21 November 2021).

The British Psychological Society (2018) Code of Ethics and Conduct . Available at: https://www.bps.org.uk/news-and-policy/bps-code-ethics-and-conduct (Accessed: 22 March 2019).

Note: Cite Them Right Online offers guidance for referencing webpages that do not include authors' names and dates. However, be extra vigilant about the suitability of such webpages.

Surname, Initial. (Year) Title of photograph . Available at: URL (Accessed: date).

Kitton, J. (2013) Golden sunset . Available at: https://www.jameskittophotography.co.uk/photo_8692150.html (Accessed: 21 November 2021).

stanitsa_dance (2021) Cossack dance ensemble . Available at: https://www.instagram.com/p/COI_slphWJ_/ (Accessed: 13 June 2023).

Note: If no title can be found then replace it with a short description.

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Q. How do I reference Australian legislation in APA style?

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Answered By: The Library Last Updated: Sep 26, 2022     Views: 51359

The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association: the official guide to APA style (7th ed) does not contain examples for non US legislation and suggests referring to other specialized law referencing styles. We have referred to the Bluebook  (Tables:T2.2 Australia) as a guide to create the following examples. 

You will need: 

• Short title of the act in italics.
• Year of passage in italics. Add the year of passage if it is not included in the short title of the act. (Reference to the year should be to the year the act was originally passed, not the year of amendment or compilation. Acts cited are presumed to be as amended. Amending acts do not need to be cited unless the amending act is being directly cited).
• Jurisdiction abbreviated e.g. Commonwealth or state legislation.
• Subdivision if relevant. If you are referring to multiple sections of the act, cite the act in full in your reference list entry and refer to the sections in text. 
• URL to the authorised government web page. e.g. https://www.legislation.gov.au....

Reference list entry.

If you are referring to multiple sections of the act, cite the act in full in your reference list entry and refer to the sections in text.

In text citation.

Abbreviations for subdivisions.

chapter(s)          ch, chs section(s)           s, ss schedule(s)        sch, schs part(s)                 pt, pts division(s)          div, divs subdivision(s)    sub-div, sub-divs paragraph(s)      para, paras

Where multiple abbreviations and numbers are needed, no comma should be used between them, e.g., pt III div 3

Short abbreviations for jurisdictions.

Commonwealth (Cth) New South Wales (NSW) Victoria (Vic) South Australia (SA) Western Australia(WA) Tasmania (Tas) Queensland (Qld) Northern Territory (NT) Australian Capital Territory (ACT)

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MLA Formatting Quotations

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When you directly quote the works of others in your paper, you will format quotations differently depending on their length. Below are some basic guidelines for incorporating quotations into your paper. Please note that all pages in MLA should be double-spaced .

Short quotations

To indicate short quotations (four typed lines or fewer of prose or three lines of verse) in your text, enclose the quotation within double quotation marks. Provide the author and specific page number (in the case of verse, provide line numbers) in the in-text citation, and include a complete reference on the Works Cited page. Punctuation marks such as periods, commas, and semicolons should appear after the parenthetical citation.

Question marks and exclamation points should appear within the quotation marks if they are a part of the quoted passage, but after the parenthetical citation if they are a part of your text.

For example, when quoting short passages of prose, use the following examples:

When using short (fewer than three lines of verse) quotations from poetry, mark breaks in verse with a slash, ( / ), at the end of each line of verse (a space should precede and follow the slash). If a stanza break occurs during the quotation, use a double slash ( // ).

Long quotations

For quotations that are more than four lines of prose or three lines of verse, place quotations in a free-standing block of text and omit quotation marks. Start the quotation on a new line, with the entire quote indented 1/2   inch  from the left margin while maintaining double-spacing. Your parenthetical citation should come  after the closing punctuation mark . When quoting verse, maintain original line breaks. (You should maintain double-spacing throughout your essay.)

For example, when citing more than four lines of prose, use the following examples :

Nelly Dean treats Heathcliff poorly and dehumanizes him throughout her narration: They entirely refused to have it in bed with them, or even in their room, and I had no more sense, so, I put it on the landing of the stairs, hoping it would be gone on the morrow. By chance, or else attracted by hearing his voice, it crept to Mr. Earnshaw's door, and there he found it on quitting his chamber. Inquiries were made as to how it got there; I was obliged to confess, and in recompense for my cowardice and inhumanity was sent out of the house. (Bronte 78)

When citing long sections of poetry (four lines of verse or more), keep formatting as close to the original as possible.

In his poem "My Papa's Waltz," Theodore Roethke explores his childhood with his father:

The whiskey on your breath Could make a small boy dizzy; But I hung on like death: Such waltzing was not easy. We Romped until the pans Slid from the kitchen shelf; My mother's countenance Could not unfrown itself. (qtd. in Shrodes, Finestone, Shugrue 202)

When citing two or more paragraphs, use block quotation format, even if the passage from the paragraphs is less than four lines. If you cite more than one paragraph, the first line of the second paragraph should be indented an extra 1/4 inch to denote a new paragraph:

In "American Origins of the Writing-across-the-Curriculum Movement," David Russell argues,

Writing has been an issue in American secondary and higher education since papers and examinations came into wide use in the 1870s, eventually driving out formal recitation and oral examination. . . .

From its birth in the late nineteenth century, progressive education has wrestled with the conflict within industrial society between pressure to increase specialization of knowledge and of professional work (upholding disciplinary standards) and pressure to integrate more fully an ever-widening number of citizens into intellectually meaningful activity within mass society (promoting social equity). . . . (3)

Adding or omitting words in quotations

If you add a word or words in a quotation, you should put brackets around the words to indicate that they are not part of the original text:

If you omit a word or words from a quotation, you should indicate the deleted word or words by using ellipses, which are three periods ( . . . ) preceded and followed by a space. For example:

Please note that brackets are not needed around ellipses unless they would add clarity.

When omitting words from poetry quotations, use a standard three-period ellipses; however, when omitting one or more full lines of poetry, space several periods to about the length of a complete line in the poem: