Style Guides for Authors

Please note: The styles listed below are concerned with the style of entire publications, not only the citations, and not only law.

We have listed the styles used most commonly by legal authors writing for multidisciplinary publications. For other styles, check specific University of Melbourne library guides. Monash University Library has created a Citing and Referencing Guide which includes examples of referencing using common styles in all disciplines.

If you are submitting an article to a journal, check the journal's webpage for instructions to authors – individual journals from the same publisher often have their own style. If you are submitting a book manuscript, check the publisher's instructions to authors webpage – many publishers use a 'house' style. An individual publisher (Hart) and individual journal (Griffith Law Review) are given below as examples.

The University Library has created an interactive website, Re:Cite, that shows you how to use the following common referencing styles:

Australia

Griffith Law Review Style Guide (2001). Available freely online.

Style Manual for Authors, Editors and Printers (John Wiley & Sons, 6th ed, 2002). Available in print in the Law Library's High Use Collection – two hour loan KZ 808.027 STYL

United Kingdom

Ritter, R M, The Oxford Style Manual (Oxford University Press, 2016). Available in the Law Library in print at K 114 OXFO

Waddington, Anne, New Hart's Rules: the Oxford Style Guide (Oxford University Press, 2nd ed 2014). This is the latest version of the formerly entitled Hart's Rules for Compositors and Readers at the University Press, Oxford, which has been in publication since 1893. Available in print in the Law Library at K 114 NEW and as an e-book.

Butcher, Judith, Butcher's Copy-editing: The Cambridge Handbook for Editors, Copy-editors and Proofreaders (Cambridge University Press, 4th ed, 2012). Available as an e-book (UniMelb staff and students only).

Global

Harvard (Author / Date Style)

There is no source document for Harvard style, so Monash University has produced a very useful Harvard Referencing Guide, based on the Australian Style Manual for Authors, Editors and Printers(John Wiley & Sons, 6th ed, 2002).

Chicago

The Chicago Manual of Style Online (16th ed, 2010) (UniMelb staff & student access)

Turabian, Kate L, A manual for writers of research papers, theses, and dissertations : Chicago Style for students and researchers (Chicago University Press, 8th ed, 2013) ('Chicago Style Guide') Available in print

MLA

Gibaldi, J and WS Achtert (eds), MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (Modern Language Association of America, 7th ed, 2009), Available in print

APA

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed, 2010) Available in print only.

The APA website includes lots of useful free resources for using APA style, such as FAQs and online tutorials.

Other publications to help with APA style include:

  • Perrin, Robert, Pocket Guide to APA style (Cengage, 5th ed 2014) Available in print
  • Concise Rules of APA style (6th ed, 2010) Available in print
  • Beins, Bernard C, APA Style Simplified (John Wiley, 2012) Available as an e-book (University of Melbourne staff and students only)
  • APA Style Guide to Electronic References (6th ed, 2012) Available as an e-book (University of Melbourne staff and students only)