Citation of authorities

CITATION OF AUTHORITIES. The production or reference to the text of acts of legislatures and of treatises, and decided cases, in order to support what is advanced.
2. Works are sometimes surcharged with useless and misplaced citations; when they are judiciously made, they assist the reader in his researches. Citations ought not to be made to prove what is not doubted; but when a controverted point is mooted, it is highly proper to cite the laws and cases, or other authorities in support of the controverted proposition.
3. The mode of citing statutes varies in the United States; the laws of the United States are generally cited by their date, as the act of Sept. 24, 1789, s. 35; or act of 1819, eh. 170, 3 Story's U. S. Laws, 1722. In Pennsylvania, acts of assembly are cited as follows: act of 14th of April, 1834; in Massachusetts, stat. of 1808, c. 92. Treatises and books of reports, are generally cited by the volume and page, as, 2 Powell on Morts. 600; 3 Binn. R. 60. Judge Story and some others, following the examples of the civilians, have written their works and numbered the paragraphs; these are cited as follows: Story's Bailm. Sec. 494; Gould on Pl. c. 5, Sec. 30. For other citations the reader is referred to the article Abbreviations.
4. It is usual among the civilians on the continent of Europe, in imitation of those in the darker ages, in their references to the Institutes, the Code and the Pandects or Digest, to mention the number, not of the book, but of the law, and the first word of the title to which it belongs; and as there are more than a thousand of these, it is no easy task for one not thoroughly acquainted with those collections, to find the place to which reference is made. The American writers generally follow the natural mode of reference, by putting down the name of the collection, and then the number of the book, title, law, and section. For example, Inst. 4, 15, 2, signifies Institutes, book four, title fifteen, and section two; Dig. 41, 9, 1, 3, means Digest, book 41, title 9, law 1, section 3; Dig. pro dote, or ff pro dote, that is, section 3, law 1, of the book and title of the Digest or Pandects, entitled pro dote. It is proper to remark, that Dig. and ff are equivalent; the former signifies Digest, and the latter, which is a careless mode of writing the Greek letter it, the first letter of the word pavdectai, Pandects, and the Digest and Pandects are different names for one and the same thing. The Code is cited in the same way. The Novels are cited by their number, with that of the chapter and paragraph; for example, Nov. 185, 2, 4; for Novella Justiniani 185, capite 2, paragrapho 4. Novels are also quoted by the Collation, the title, chapter, and paragraph as follows: in Authentics, Collatione 1 titulo 1, cap. 281. The Authentics are quoted by their first words, after which is set down the title of the Code under which they are placed for example, Authentica cum testator, Codice ad legem fascidiam Sele Mackel. Man. Intro. Sec. 66. Modus Legendi Abbreviaturas passim in jure tam civili quam pontificii occurrentes, 1577.