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Chicago Style (18th ed.) - Notes & Bibliography Format

Guide and examples for citations in Notes-Bibliography CMOS.

Note from the Librarian

The Chicago Manual of Style, like both MLA and APA, defers to The Bluebook for legal citations.

Legal publications only need to be cited in the notes, not the bibliography (unless you have a secondary publication, like a book in which the legal publication appears, in which case CMOS takes over).

Abbreviations

Congress Cong.
document Doc.
House (of Representatives) H. or H. R.
number No.
Resolution R.  (e.g. S. R. for a Senate resolution)
report Rep. (e.g. H. R. Rep. for a House report)
Senate S.
session Sess.

Legislation (Enacted Bills/Statutes)

Laws are initially collected in the United States Statutes at Large (Stat.), and later are incorporated into the United States Code (U.S.C.). These publications are broadly called reporters.

For session laws, the year it was passed should be included at the end in parentheses.
Skip the parenthetical year if... 1. the year is part of the bill's name. or, 2. you're citing from the federal code (USC).

1. Name of the Bill, vol# Reporter Name series# (year).

CMOS 14.183

1. Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Pub. L. No. 111-148, 124 Stat. 119 (2010).

2. Homeland Security Act of 2002, 6 U.S.C. §101.

3. Chinese Exclusion Act, 22 Stat. 58 (1882), https://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?flash=true&doc=47&page=transcript.

Bills and Resolutions (Proposed Laws)

1. Name of the Bill, Bill No., No. of the Congress, section # (year).

CMOS 14.184

1. Restore Our Parks and Public Lands Act, H.R. 1225, 116th Cong. (2019).

Court Cases & Court Decisions

The full case name in the first citation will be plain text, but when you abbreviate for the shortened note, italicize. (You'll also italicize if you mention the case name in your writing.)

You only need to add the abbreviated name of the court before the year if it's not clear from the reporter info.

What the heck is a "reporter"?  It's not a journalist! It refers to the published "reports" that officially collect/publish the court decisions. When you see something like "588 U.S. 310," that's the reporter: volume 588 of the United States Reports series 310.

Full Note:

1. Name1 v. Name2, volume# Reporter Name (abbrev.) series# pg (Abbreviated Name of Court Year), url.

Concise Note:

2. Name, Reporter at page#.

CMOS 14.177-180

US Supreme Court Cases:

1. Citizens United v. Federal Election Comm'n, 558 U.S. 310 (2010).

2. Citizens United, 558 U.S. at 322.

3. Obergefell v. Hodges, 135 S. Ct. 2584 (2015).

Dissenting Opinion

4. Students For Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College, 600 U.S. 20-1199 (2023) (Jackson, J., dissenting).

With URL:

1. State v. Griffin, 211 W. Va. 508, 566 S.E.2d 645 (2002), http://www.courtswv.gov/supreme-court/docs/spring2002/30433.htm.

With a Court Specified before Year:

1. Profit Sharing Plan v. Mbank Dallas, N.A., 683 F.Supp. 592 (N.D. Tex. 1988).

2. United States v. Christmas, 222 F.3d 141, 145 (4th Cir. 2000).

3. Christmas, 222 F.3d at 145.

Hearings/Testimony

1. Published Title of the Recorded Testimony, Before the Relevant Committee, number of the Congress, page# (year) (statement of Speaker's Name, Title and Affiliation).

CMOS 14.185

1. Homeland Security Act of 2002: Hearings on H.R. 5005, Day 3, Before the Select Comm. on Homeland Security, 107th Cong. 203 (2002) (statement of David Walker, Comptroller General of the United States).

Report for Congress

Reports, legislative documents, and pamphlets may be cited following Chicago rules rather than deferring to the Bluebook of legal citations, usually.

Federal Legislative Agency Reports:

Bluebook Style:

The institution producing the report must be included along with individual author(s), if any are named. Include the report number as part of the title.

1. Author Name, Name of Research Entity, Report #, Title of the Report: In Its Entirety (Year).

 

Federal Congressional and Committee Reports:

Chicago Style:

1. Title of the Report: In Its Entirety, prepared by the (Organization), Department Name, Date, page#.

CMOS 14.186

Federal Legislative Agency Reports:

1. Lisa N. Sacco and Emily J. Hanson, Cong. Research Serv., R45410, The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA): Historical Overview, Funding, and Reauthorization (2019).

2. Select Comm. on Homeland Security, Homeland Security Act of 2002, H.R. Rep. No. 107-609, pt. 1 (2002).

3. S. Doc. No. 77-148, at 2-5 (1941).