Skip to Main Content
ACAP Student Portal Schedule Appointments Room Bookings Contact Us
Search and Discover

ACAP LEARNING RESOURCES

Find

Find

Borrow

Borrow

Learn

Learn

My MultiSearch Login Advanced Search Google Scholar PubMed A-Z Journals A-Z Databases

Reference with Harvard

Reported Case Law

Do not use in-text citations for case law or legislation. Rather, mention the case or legislation in the written text.
The reference list should have separate sections for cases and legislation where you list cases or Acts referred to in the body of the essay. See below for appropriate ways to cite these.

Reported Case Law in the Reference List

(This image has been taken from the AGLC4 p. 39. The AGLC4 and Style Manual follow the same format when referencing reported cases)

More examples of Reported Case Law in the Reference List:

R v Denyer [1995] 1 VR 186
R stands for Rex/Regina (King/Queen/Crown)
Party names separated by v (which stands for and in civil matters and against in criminal matters)
Denyer is the defendant
[square brackets used around the year because the law report series has no independent volume number].
1 refers to the part
VR is the abbreviation for the  law report series - Victorian Reports
186 is the starting page of the case.

Denyer v R (1997) 188 CLR 207
Party names separated by v.
(round brackets used around the year because there is an independent volume number)
188 = volume number
CLR is the abbreviation for the law report series
207 is the starting page

If you need to check a case law abbreviation, check the Monash Legal Abbreviations Page

According to the Navitas College of Public Safety Referencing Guide (p.20):

Do not use in-text citations for case law or legislation. Rather, mention the case or legislation in the written text. The references should have separate sections for cases and legislation where you list cases or Acts referred to in the body of the essay.

Case Law from AustLII (medium neutral citation format)

According to the Style Manual for Authors Editors and Printers, 6th edn, p.227.

'On first mention in the text, the authority should be cited in full. An abbreviated form or the name by which the case is commonly known can be given in parentheses following the formal citation. After that the abbreviated or common form can be used'. For example, when referencing the Mabo case from AustLII, use the following the first time: Mabo v Queensland (No 2) [1992] HCA 23 (3 June 1992) ("Mabo case").
Following on from this, you can refer to the Mabo Case in the body of your essay.

Remember - do not use in-text citations for case law or legislation. Rather, mention the case or legislation in the written text in full the first time and then you can use the abbreviated name for the rest of your essay.

The reference list should have separate sections for cases and legislation where you list cases or Acts referred to in the body of the essay. See below for appropriate ways to cite these.

When referencing case law from AustLII, use the medium neutral citation referencing format.
This is explained on page 54 of the AGLC4.

The party names are separated by v
The year is included in square brackets
A unique court identifier is used instead of the court name
The judgement number is listed
The date is included in round brackets.

Re: the example above...
When reading this case on AustLII, the information you need to reference a case is provided at the top of the page - see the diagram below. Simply copy this information and ensure that the party names are placed in italics

What is the green arrow in this diagram? It was one of the keywords used to locate this case on the database. Therefore, it is highlighted with a green arrow. For referencing purposes, ignore the green arrow.

According to the Style Manual for Authors Editors and Printers, 6th edn, p.227.

'On first mention in the text, the authority should be cited in full. An abbreviated form or the name by which the case is commonly known can be given in parentheses following the formal citation. After that the abbreviated or common form can be used'.

For example, when referencing the Mabo case from AustLII, use the following the first time: Mabo v Queensland (No 2) [1992] HCA 23 (3 June 1992) ("Mabo case").
Following on from this, you can refer to the Mabo Case in the body of your essay.

Remember - do not use in-text citations for case law or legislation. Rather, mention the case or legislation in the written text in full the first time and then you can use the abbreviated name for the rest of your essay.

.

Legislation

Legislation in the Reference List

(This image has been taken from the AGLC4 p. 67. The AGLC4 and Style Manual follow a similar format when referencing reported cases)

Crimes Act 1958 (Vic)

Crimes Act 1914 (Cwlth)

Note: The date is part of the title.

Note: Even though you are using the Harvard Author/Date referencing system, ACAP Criminology/Policing students are likely to see books and articles which use two different referencing styles - the Harvard and the Australian Guide to Legal Citation, 3rd ed., (AGLC3). There is a difference between the styles when referencing Commonwealth Legislation
Harvard = Cwlth. Example: Crimes Act 1914 (Cwlth) 
AGLC4 =  Cth. Example: Crimes Act 1914 (Cth)

According to the Navitas College of Public Safety Referencing Guide (p.20):

Do not use in-text citations for case law or legislation. Rather, mention the case or legislation in the written text. The references should have separate sections for cases and legislation where you list cases or Acts referred to in the body of the essay.