During legal proceedings, lawyers present legal arguments. Judges write their opinions and also cite authority. They support the representation about what the law is and how it is applied to a given situation in reference to an official source. They are also referred to the secondary literature, such as journal articles. Hence, it is really important that people, who are legal aspirants, read and write law must master the language of “Legal citation.”
What is a legal citation?
A legal citation is the practice of referring or crediting the authoritative documents and sources. The most common sources of citation of authority are court decisions, regulations, statues, treaties, government documents and scholarly writing. The legal citation has the power to strongly support the writer’s propositions.
What is a case citation?
A case citation is a citing reference. It is used by legal professionals. Mainly, there are four parts of the case citation - Case Name, Volume number, Name of the court and a Page number.
Importance of a legal citation:
A case citation holds an utmost importance in law. Afterall, all the legal decisions are not based on what the outcome to be, but it emphasizes on what the law or a statutory law says. A legal citation enables a reader to identify and refer to the preferred source.
Benefits of a legal citation point wise:
- It gives credit to the author whose ideas or words are being incorporated into the judgment.
- It acknowledges the valuable information given in the important sources like statues, regulations, treaties etc.
- It also makes sure that the quoted words are not merely the choice of judges but that’s what prevails in the constitution.
Guide to a legal citation:
A “legal citation” identifies the document and its part where the writer is referring. It also provides the reader with sufficient information to find the document part in the sources. Above all, it furnishes additional information about the referenced material. Here is a guide to a legal citation in detail:
1. The source of a legal citation should be well researched: The first and foremost thing the legal professionals should remember is that the legal resource should be reliable. They must take assistance from documents like - previous decisions, statues, regulations, scholarly writing and other government documents.
2. The format of a legal citation should be synchronized: The basic format of a legal citation must be followed. It includes the case name, name of a law reporter; name of the court, along with the beginning page or a section number. The citation also includes the year in which the final judgment was rendered.
Kesavananda Bharti Vs. State of Kerala; AIR 1973 SC 1461
In some of the cases volume number is also mentioned. Have a look:
SR Bommai Vs. Union of India (1994) 2 SCR 644
Here are the structures provided as per the legal source:
- Constitution: This includes amendment and section only.
For example: India. Const, amend. XIV, § 2
- Statues: While citing statutes, only statutes and sections are mentioned.
For example: The Indian Penal Code, Section 30
- Regulations: At the time of citing regulations, the name of the regulation and the year must be included.
For example: Central Board of Regulation Year, 1963
3. Cite electronic source properly: The legal citations must include where the information was electronically published. In case, the cited material is not available from multiple publication sites, then the citation must provide the specific electronic source publication that enables the reader to access it.
CBSE Vs. Aditya Bandopadhyay & Ors, Civil Appeal No. 6454,
Conclusion:
Legal citation or documenting the sources used in the research is a great practice. It provides credit to the authors of whose idea is incorporated and also brings more validity towards legal judgment. It also allows the user to locate sources and learn more about the ideas that are included in the paper.