How to Cite a Legal Case

A court’s decision in a case, such as a Supreme Court ruling.

What You'll Need

Case Name
Short title
Court
Docket or judgment number
Judge or judges
Jurisdiction
Reporter
Volume
Page
Date Decided

Use the official case citation from the court reporter. Note the court name, docket number, and decision date. Parallel citations may be required.

Example Citations

APA 7th edition
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 347 U.S. 483 (U.S. Supreme Court 1954).
In-text (Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 1954)
MLA 9th edition
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka. U.S., vol. 347, 17 May 1954, p. 483.
In-text (Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka)
Chicago 18th edition (notes and bibliography)
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 347 U.S. 483 (U.S. Supreme Court 1954).
Footnote Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 347 U.S. 483 (U.S. Supreme Court 1954).

Harvard (Cite Them Right 12th edition). Our Cite Them Right Harvard prints cases, legislation, bills, regulations and treaties without their citation numbers, so this guide shows no Harvard example. Add the numbers by hand, or use a legal style for legal work. What to check by hand

IEEE
[1]
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, vol. 347. 1954, p. 483.
In-text [1]

Numbered by order of appearance in your document.

Vancouver
1.
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka. Vol. 347, U.S. 1954. p. 483.
In-text (1)

Numbered by order of appearance in your document.

Other Source Types

Website Book Journal Article Newspaper Article Book Chapter Thesis/Dissertation Report Video Podcast/Broadcast Magazine Article Software Dataset Patent Legislation Bill Regulation Hearing Standard Treaty Conference Paper Manuscript Review Book Review Classic Work Reference Entry Dictionary Entry Encyclopedia Entry Periodical Collection Interview Speech Song Musical Score Graphic Figure Map Performance Event Pamphlet Preprint Document Post Blog Post Personal Communication Generative AI