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Doing legal research

Authored books

References for books will always follow the same formula (note the punctuation and font):

Author, Title of Book (series, edition number, publisher year) page number(s)

  • First edition book:

R Hardcastle, Law and the Human Body (Hart Publishing 2007)

  • Subsequent edition with references to page numbers:

A Ashworth, Principles of Criminal Law (6th edn, OUP 2009) 555-589

  • Book in series:

W Twinning, Rethinking Evidence: Exploratory Essays (Law in Context, 2nd edn, CUP 2005)

Chapters in books

If you are citing a chapter within a book you need to precede the normal reference for a book with the author of the particular chapter and the title of the chapter in 'apostrophes'.

e.g. P O Keefe, 'Dealers, Ethics and Theft' in N Palmer (ed), The Recovery of Stolen Art (Kluwer Law International 1998)

Edited books

If there is an editor instead of an author, the formula looks like this:

Editor (ed), Title of Book (series, edition number, publisher year) page number(s)

e.g Felia Allum and Stan Gilmour (eds), Routledge Handbook of Transnational Organized Crime (Routledge 2011)

Multiple authors/editors

If there are multiple authors or editors insert 'and' between the names, for up to three names. If there are more than three given the details of the first author/editor and add 'and others'.

  • D Chalmers and G Davies and G Monti, European Union Law: Text and Materials (2nd edn, CUP 2010)
  • D Chalmers and others, European Union Law: Text and Materials (CUP 2006)