Malcolm Rivera
The Chicago Manual of Style dictates that the US Constitution does not need to be included in the bibliography and should only be cited in footnotes or within the text of your paper. When citing the US Constitution in Chicago style, the basic form is to cite the federal constitution by U.S. or the abbreviated name of the state, followed by the article number in Roman numerals and the section number. If citing an amendment, use the amendment number in Roman numerals followed by the section number. For example, U.S. Const. amend. XIV, § 2 or U.S. Const. art. I, § 9, cl. 2.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Footnote or Endnote | U.S. Constitution, art. 2, sec. 1, cl. 3 |
| Parenthetical Note | (US Constitution, art. 1, sec. 9) |
| Bibliography | Usually not cited in bibliography |
| Reference List | Usually not cited in reference list |
| Abbreviation | U.S. Const. art. I,§9,cl.2 |
| Indentation | First line indented by 0.5 inches |
| Font | Same font size and style as the rest of the paper |
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What You'll Learn
Citing the US Constitution in a footnote
When citing the US Constitution in a footnote in Chicago style, there are a few conventions to follow. Firstly, the US Constitution does not need to be included in the bibliography and should only be cited in footnotes.
The first footnote or endnote citation of the US Constitution should follow this format:
> US Constitution, art. 2, sec. 1, cl. 3.
Alternatively, if you are citing an amendment to the US Constitution, the format would be as follows:
> US Constitution, amend. XIV, sec. 2.
Here, "amend." is short for "amendment", "XIV" is the number of the amendment in Roman numerals, and "sec. 2" indicates the section number.
In Chicago style, all citations should use a first-line indent, with the first line indented by 0.5 inches, and subsequent lines not indented. The font size and style of the footnotes should match the rest of the paper. If there is a known author, cite their name; otherwise, start with the name of the national government, followed by the relevant agency.
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Citing an amendment to the US Constitution
When citing an amendment to the US Constitution in Chicago style, there are a few formatting guidelines to follow. Firstly, the federal constitution should be cited using either "U.S." or the abbreviated name of the state. The basic format for citing an amendment is as follows:
> Abbreviated name of Constitution amend. Amendment number in Roman numerals, § Section number
For example, to cite the fourteenth amendment, section 2, it would appear as follows:
> U.S. Const. amend. XIV, § 2
Alternatively, you can also include the article number and clause number for more specificity, like so:
> U.S. Constitution, amend. XIV, sec. 2
It is important to note that when using Chicago style, the US Constitution is usually not included in the bibliography. Instead, it is typically cited in footnotes or endnotes, as demonstrated in the examples above.
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Citing a US Constitution article
When citing a US Constitution article in Chicago style, there are a few conventions to follow. Firstly, legal documents, including the US Constitution, are typically only cited in footnotes or within the text of your paper, and not in the bibliography.
The basic format for citing a US Constitution article is as follows:
> U.S. Const. art. [Article number in Roman numerals], § [Section number]
For example, if you were citing Article 2, Section 1, Clause 3, your citation would look like this:
> U.S. Const. art. II, § 1, cl. 3
Alternatively, you can also use the following format, especially when citing an amendment:
> U.S. Constitution, amend. [Amendment number in Roman numerals], sec. [Section number]
For example:
> U.S. Constitution, amend. XIV, sec. 2
Note that in Chicago style, all citations should use a first-line indent of 0.5 inches for the first line of the footnote, with subsequent lines not indented. The font size and style of the footnotes should match the rest of your paper.
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Citing a US government document
Citing the US Constitution
When citing the US Constitution in Chicago style, use "US" followed by the article, section, and clause numbers. Here is an example:
> US Constitution, art. 2, sec. 1, cl. 3
If you are using the author-date style, your citation will look like this:
> (US Constitution, art. 1, sec. 9)
Note that the US Constitution is usually not included in the bibliography.
Citing Amendments to the US Constitution
When citing amendments to the US Constitution, use "U.S. Constitution" followed by "amend." and the amendment number in Roman numerals, followed by the section number. Here is an example:
> U.S. Constitution, amend. XIV, sec. 2
Citing Congressional Documents
When citing congressional documents, include the Congress number and session details, as well as the report number. US government documents are often published by the Government Printing Office. Here is an example:
> U.S. Congress, House, Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act, 112th Cong., 2d sess., H. Rep. 112-445, https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CHRG-111hhrg50208/html/CHRG-111hhrg50208.htm
Citing Government Publications
When citing government publications, start with the name of the government department, agency, or committee. Then, include the title of the publication, the date, and the URL, if accessed online. Here is an example:
> Name of Government Department, Agency, or Committee, Title of Government Publication, Date, Page Number [if available], URL
If the publication is not the first edition, include the edition number after the title. Here is an example:
> Name of Government Department, Agency, or Committee, Title of Government Publication, Edition, Publication Date, Page Number
Citing Legal Documents
Legal documents, statutes, bills, and resolutions are typically cited in footnotes or within the text of your paper and are not included in the bibliography unless they are part of a secondary publication, such as a book. Here is an example of citing a legal document:
> Thomas C. Fletcher, Report of the Special Commission Appointed to Investigate the Affairs of the Red Cloud Indian Agency, July 1875: Together with the Testimony and Accompanying Documents (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1875): 25
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Citing a US statute
When citing a US statute in Chicago style, there are a few key guidelines to follow. Firstly, legal documents, including statutes, are typically only cited in footnotes or within the text of your paper and not in the bibliography. However, if the statute is included in a secondary publication, such as a book, you would then cite the book in the bibliography.
The Chicago Manual of Style defers to The Bluebook for legal citations. Statutes are initially published in the United States Statutes at Large (Stat.) and later incorporated into the United States Code (U.S.C.). Here is an example of how to cite a statute:
- Name of the Bill, volume number Reporter Name series number (year), URL.
- For example: Homeland Security Act of 2002, Pub. L. No. 107-296, 116 Stat. 2135 (2012).
- Alternatively, once it is incorporated into the U.S.C.: Homeland Security Act of 2002, 6 U.S.C. §101 (2012).
In general, when citing legal documents in Chicago style, there are a few formatting guidelines to keep in mind. Footnotes should have a first-line indent of 0.5 inches, with subsequent lines not indented. The font size and style of the footnotes should match the rest of your paper. If there is a known author, cite the author's name. Otherwise, start with the name of the national government, followed by the agency or any relevant subdivisions.
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Frequently asked questions
The US Constitution does not need to be included in the bibliography, and should be cited only in notes.
The first time you cite the US Constitution in your footnotes, use the following format: "US Constitution, art. #, sec. #, cl. #". For example, "US Constitution, art. 2, sec. 1, cl. 3". Subsequent footnotes can be shortened to "US Constitution, art. #".
To cite an Amendment to the US Constitution in Chicago Style, use the following format: "US Constitution, amend. #, sec. #". For example, "US Constitution, amend. XIV, sec. 2".
