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citation definition - legal

n

  1. A writ issued by a court ordering a person to appear at a specific time and place and, at that time and place, do a specific act or to show the court sufficient cause why he or she cannot do so or should not be required to do so. See show cause order.
  2. An order issued by a law enforcement officer to appear in court at a specific time to defend oneself against the criminal allegations contained in the order. See also summons.
  3. A reference to a legal authority, such as a statute, court decision, or treatise, that supports or contradicts a legal argument or position. See also the Bluebook.
parallel citation
An additional reference to a court decision that has been published in more than one reporter. For example, the citation for the United States Supreme CourtÂ’s famous Miranda case is Miranda v. Arizona (1966), with the main citation to the United States Reports and with parallel citations to the Supreme Court Reporter and to the LawyerÂ’s Edition.
pinpoint citation
The reference to a specific page where a particular quote or passage is found in a judicial decision. For example, in Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 444–445 (1966), the numbers 444 and 445 are the pinpoint citation to the pages where the rule is enunciated.

Webster's New World Law Dictionary Copyright © 2006 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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