How to cite a Tribal Nation law

Bluebook (22d ed.) citation format · B22 / R22 · Foreign, international, tribal & archival

Example

Const. of the Comanche Nation art. II, § 1.

More examples

Each of these is checked against the rules on every change to the tool.

• Const. and Bylaws of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians of North Dakota art. XIV, § 3 (amended 1992).
• Pueblo de San Ildefonso Code § 4.1.1.010 (2023).
• Section 1, SNI Constitution of 1848 (amended 1993), [Const. of the Seneca Nation of Indians of 1848 § 1 (amended 1993)].

What the citation needs

Required

• Tribal Nation — The Tribal Nation’s name. R21.4.2: a Tribal Nation’s name is not abbreviated.

When they apply

• Nation's own citation format — R22.1: where the Nation prescribes a format, use it as written.
• Kind — Which form of this source you are citing. The fields that matter change with it.
• Article — The article cited.
• Chapter — The chapter number.
• Part — The part cited.
• Title — The title as it appears on the source. R8(a): capitalize every word except articles, conjunctions and prepositions of four or fewer letters, unless they begin the title or follow a colon.
• Section — The section cited (R3.3).
• Year adopted — The year the constitution was adopted.
• Year amended — The year the provision was amended.
• Year — The year that goes in the date parenthetical at the end of the citation.
• URL — The web address, where you cite the source online (R18.2).

In a brief and in a law review

The Bluebook sets citations two ways: the Bluepages for court documents and legal memoranda, the Whitepages for law review footnotes. Here is the first example above as each one prints it, in its typeface.

Court documents (Bluepages)

Const. of the Comanche Nation art. II, § 1.

Law review footnotes (Whitepages)

Const. of the Comanche Nation art. II, § 1.

The words are the same in both; only the typeface changes.

Common mistakes

Each of these is a citation the checker refuses, with what it says is wrong and the corrected form.

Governing rules

B22 / R22

• T16 — document subdivisions.
• 22 — Tribal Nations.
• 22.2.1 — Tribal Nation constitutions.

Build this citation with the generator, check one you have already written, or paste a whole list of footnotes to check them in order.

Related source types

Foreign, international, tribal & archival:

• Foreign case
• World Court case (I.C.J. / P.C.I.J.)
• Other international tribunal or arbitration
• European Union document
• Other international organization document
• International yearbook or digest
• Foreign statute or constitution
• Treaty
• U.N. document
• Tribal order, ordinance or resolution
• Archival material