An Introduction to The Bluebook

Rule 16 governs citation to periodical materials, including law reviews and journals, other scholarly and professional publications, magazines, newsletters, and newspapers. 

Note the following:

• Rules 16.1 and 16.3 specify that article titles should be italicized, while periodical titles appear in small caps and are abbreviated according to Tables T13 (Institutional Names in Periodical Titles) and T10 (Geographic Terms).
• Rule 16.1 allows institutional authors to be listed either in full or abbreviated if commonly recognized (e.g., DOJ, ACLU).
• Rule 16.1(c) permits omission of “Note” or “Comment” before student-written article titles when the title clearly signals authorship (e.g., “Case Note”).
• Rule 16.7 addresses special citation forms, including student-written law review articles, book reviews, commentaries, symposia, and multipart works.
• Rule 16.8 governs citations to online-only periodicals and those found in databases. It includes updated guidance on using Perma.cc for archival stability.
• Rule 16.9 explains how to use id. and supra when citing periodicals in short form.
• Rule 18.2 allows citation to reliable online sources that reproduce the printed version exactly. HeinOnline provides scanned PDFs of most law reviews and journals.

Tip: HeinOnline generates Bluebook-style citations. Click the “Cite” button above the article's table of contents. Always double-check the citation against The Bluebook for accuracy. 

• Rule 16.4 covers consecutively paginated periodicals, such as most law reviews. Pagination continues across all issues within a volume (e.g., Issue 1: pp. 1–100; Issue 2: pp. 101–200, etc.).
• Rule 16.5 covers nonconsecutively paginated periodicals, including most magazines and newsletters, where page numbers start over in each new issue (e.g., each issue begins with page 1).

• Rule 16.6 covers citations to newspapers, generally treated as nonconsecutively paginated periodicals. Use the full date and include the page number if citing the print version.
• Rule 16.6(f) permits citation to the online version of the newspaper. These may be cited in place of the print version when the article is publicly accessible. Rule 18.2.2 also applies.