Free Bluebook Citation Generator
Generate free Bluebook citations instantly — paste a DOI, URL, or search by topic. CiteMe searches records from active academic indexes and formats footnotes and reference entries following Bluebook rules for US legal writing. No signup required.
Used in law reviews, court briefs, legal memoranda, and academic legal writing
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What to do next
How to generate Bluebook citations
Search a paper, DOI, URL, or title
Find the source in active academic indexes instead of formatting a Bluebook citation manually.
Review the citation details
Check author names, title, publication information, and date before copying the final Bluebook entry.
Copy the citation
Use the generated Bluebook citation in your law review article, brief, or memo. Export to BibTeX or RIS if needed.
Why Use Our Bluebook Citation Generator?
Source records with provenance
Search current records from OpenAlex, Semantic Scholar, and CrossRef. Results identify their metadata source and include DOI links when present.
Bluebook 21st Edition Compliant
Automatically formatted according to the Bluebook 21st edition rules. Correct formatting for cases, statutes, books, and journal articles.
Law Review & Brief Ready
Get properly formatted citations ready for law review footnotes or practitioner briefs. Copy and paste into your legal document.
Legal & Non-Legal Sources
Works for cases, statutes, regulations, treaties, books, journal articles, websites, and other sources commonly cited in legal writing.
How to Cite in Bluebook Format
The Bluebook provides rules for citing legal and non-legal sources. Here are the most common templates:
Case
Statute
Book
Journal Article
Practitioner vs Law Review Format
- Practitioner (Bluepages) — Used in briefs, memos, and court filings:
- Citations embedded in text
- Case names underlined or italicized
- Signal conventions (e.g., See, Cf.)
- Law Review (Whitepages) — Used in law review and academic articles:
- Citations in footnotes
- Case names italicized
- Full citation on first reference, short form after
Bluebook Citation Examples
Case Citation
Statute Citation
Book Citation
Law Review Article
Federal Regulation
Examples formatted in Bluebook 21st edition style
Bluebook Footnote Citations
Full Citation (First Use)
Complete citation in the footnote:
Short Form (Subsequent)
Use id., supra, or hereinafter:
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Bluebook citation style?
The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation (21st edition) is the definitive citation guide for American legal writing. It is used in law reviews, court briefs, memoranda, and other legal documents. It provides rules for citing cases, statutes, books, articles, and other legal and non-legal sources.
What is the difference between Bluebook and OSCOLA?
Bluebook is the standard for US legal citation, while OSCOLA (Oxford Standard for the Citation of Legal Authorities) is used in UK law. Bluebook uses footnotes or embedded citations depending on the document type. OSCOLA always uses footnotes. Formatting rules for cases, statutes, and other sources differ significantly between the two systems.
How do I cite a case in Bluebook format?
Bluebook case citations include: Case Name (italicized), Volume Reporter Page (Court Year). Example: Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. (1 Cranch) 137 (1803). Include the court only if not obvious from the reporter abbreviation.
How do I cite a statute in Bluebook format?
Bluebook statute citations use: Title Code Section (Year). Example: 42 U.S.C. Section 1983 (2018). For state statutes, include the state code abbreviation. Use the official code when available.
What is the difference between practitioner and law review format?
Bluebook has two main formats: practitioner (used in briefs and memos) uses citations embedded in text with case names underlined. Law review format (used in academic articles) uses footnotes with case names italicized. The Bluepages section covers practitioner format; the main rules cover law review format.
Is this Bluebook citation generator free?
Yes! CiteMe offers free Bluebook citations with a generous monthly limit. Search by DOI, title, or author to generate properly formatted legal references for your law review articles, briefs, and memos.
Does Bluebook use footnotes or in-text citations?
It depends on the context. Law review articles use footnotes (white pages rules). Court documents and briefs use in-text citations (blue pages rules). Our generator handles law review footnote formatting.
What is the difference between Bluebook and ALWD?
Both are US legal citation systems. Bluebook is used by most law reviews and many courts. ALWD (Association of Legal Writing Directors) Guide is used by some law schools for teaching. The formats are very similar but differ in some details.
How Bluebook Compares to Other Styles
| Style | System | Field | In-Text Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bluebook | Footnotes (academic) | US Law | ¹Brown v. Board, 347 U.S. 483. |
| OSCOLA | Footnotes | UK/EU Law | ¹Smith v Jones [2024] UKSC 1. |
| AGLC | Footnotes | Australian Law | ¹Smith v Jones (2024) HCA 1. |
| Chicago | Notes-Bibliography | History | ¹Smith, Title, 45. |
| McGill | Footnotes | Canadian Law | ¹Smith v Jones, 2024 SCC 1. |
Common Bluebook citation mistakes
Avoid the most frequent formatting errors with a quick checklist by source type.
Open mistakes guide →Cite by Source Type in Bluebook
Start with the source pages most readers need, then explore the full set of examples and formatting rules for this style.
Citation tools & comparisons
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