If you are a law student, you would know that legal studies demand high levels of organisation and clarity. Especially when it comes to citing sources, legal studies and their assignments need accurate referencing of sources. Learning and mastering the Oxford University Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities (OSCOLA) is one of the steps in legal studies that you would need to know as a law student. Learning and implementing OSCOLA while writing your sources is essential, and in this guide, we will first discuss its importance. You will also find out what OSCOLA is and find a step-by-step guide on how to use it.
Importance of OSCOLA
Before you learn what OSCOLA is, you must be thinking, why do you need to master it as a law student? Understanding the importance of proper referencing is important, and the OSCOLA citations provide the readers with all the details needed to locate referenced materials. It also prevents individuals from plagiarising, as not citing sources can lead to plagiarism, a serious academic offence that must be avoided. The credibility of your work is also highlighted in your work when you are using it. Overall, OSCOLA helps ensure consistency across all professional and academic legal writing.
What is OSCOLA?
As the name might suggest OSCOLA – Oxford University Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities is a legal citation system used in academic and professional legal writing which was developed by the University of Oxford’s Faculty of Law. It is widely used by law students in UK universities for clarity and uniformity when referencing legal references. The primary purpose of OSCOLA is to provide readers with consistent and clear resources so that they track back the sources easily. This legal citation system is critical in law, as the accuracy of legal references can highly influence outcomes and arguments. It is developed to reference the unique requirements of legal texts, such as cases and statutes. Sometimes, it is also used to reference secondary sources like journals and books.
A Step-By-Step Guide on How to Use OSCOLA
Citing Cases
When citing cases, the name of the case is italicized in the footnotes, but it is not italicized in the bibliography. Only the neutral citation should be included, and only if applicable should the law report citation be included.
Example:
Footnote: Han Lee v Caroline Channing [1942] AC 562 HL
Bibliography: Han Lee v Caroline Channing [1942] AC 562 HL
Citing Statutes
While citing statutes, their short title, the year and the chapter number are mentioned in plain text.
Example:
Footnote: Freedom of Speech Act 1996
Bibliography: Freedom of Speech Act1996
Citing Online Sources
To cite online sources or websites, you need to mention the author, title, Uniform Resource Locator (URL), and the date of access.
Example:
Footnote: Oleg Golichevshky, ‘The Present Judicial Systems’ (UK Constitutional Law Association, 12 March 2020 https://presentjudicialsystems.org accessed 13 January 2025
Bibliography: Oleg Golichevshky, ‘The Present Judicial Systems’ (UK Constitutional Law Association, 12 March 2020 https://presentjudicialsystems.org accessed 13 January 2025
Citing Journal Articles
For citing journal articles, you need to include the author’s name, the title of the article in a single quotation mark and the journal name in italics, along with the volume, issue, and page number.
Footnote: Jack Shephard, ‘Restitution in Public Law’ (2016) 132 Law Quarterly Review 412.
Bibliography: Shepherd Jack, ‘Restitution in Public Law’ (2016) 132 Law Quarterly Review 412.
More Tips For OSCOLA
- To incorporate OSCOLA into your academic legal writing as a law student, you need to practice daily while forming your legal texts and routine assignments to develop proficiency.
- For official and detailed instructions, you must always refer to the OSCOLA guide in this blog. You can also ask your instructors at the university or get some assistance from Digi Assignment Help for accurate citations.
- Another helpful trick would be to go to your peers and tutors who can help you improve your referencing style and, over time, master OSCOLA with daily inputs and feedback.
- If you are writing your academic legal text digitally, you can always get your reference from legal databases and tools like reference managers. However, be sure to check with your peers and professors to understand if you are doing it accurately and ensure that you check with the OSCOLA citation system before submitting it.
Conclusion
With the help of the above-mentioned guide, you can understand and learn to apply OSCOLA’s principles in your legal writing for accurate, professional and clear references. The effort which you will put into learning and practising OSCOLA today can reap your career benefits in the future after you have successfully graduated from law school.
Remember that while it can be overwhelming at first, with practice, it can become second nature for you, thereby preparing you for your career in law. If you need any additional help in preparing your academic legal documents, you can get assistance from Digi Assignment Help, our team here can help you develop accurate and well-researched assignments to score well in your exams. Check out our website to learn more.
