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AGLC4: Australian Guide to Legal Citation 4th edition:  Legislation

UON library guide to AGLC4: Australian Guide to Legal Citation 4th edition

Legislation - General Rules 

 

  • Legislation includes Acts, Bills, Regulations, Rules and other forms of legislation. Acts are the most commonly cited form of legislation.
  • The pinpoint section number is optional. If you are referring to the Act as a whole, omit the section number. If you are referring to or quoting particular sections, include the section number(s), e.g., s 8.1 - point 1 within section 8.
  • If you have already cited an Act, the next time you refer to that Act you can omit the year and jurisdiction.
  • Bills should be cited the same way as Acts, except the title and year should not be italicised. 'Clause' and sub-clause' are usually the appropriate pinpoint designations. 
  • Cite Commonwealth legislation first, then state and territory legislation in alphabetical order by jurisdiction if citing equivalent legislation across multiple Australian jurisdictions
  • See more details at AGLC4: 3.1 Statutes (Acts of Parliament)

 

Acts (Statutes)

 

The following is the general format of a reference to an Australian Act.

  • Include the year following the title, whether or not it is included in the short title
  • Pinpoint using short titles for portions of legislation, rather than to the legislation as a whole 
  • Cite a numbered definition as a normal section of an Act; cite a unnumbered definition as s Section Number (definition of 'Defined Term')
  • Cite Commonwealth Acts first, then state and territory Acts in alphabetical order by jurisdiction if citing equivalent Acts across multiple Australian jurisdictions 

See AGLC4: 3.1 and the general rules for legislation for more details. 

 

Footnote: Format and Example

Note Number Short Title of Act Year of Act (Jurisdiction) pinpoint.

1 Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) ss 5-6.

2 Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) ss 47.

3 Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) s 9 (definition of 'administrator' para (a)(i)).

4 Habeas Corpus Act 2001 (NZ) s 3.

5 Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (Cth) s 20-110(1)(a).

6 Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) sch 2 ('Australian Consumer Law').

 

Shortened / Subsequent Footnote

Note Number Short Title of Act pinpoint.

7 Evidence Act  s 3.

 

Bibliography: Format and Example

Short Title of Act Year of Act (Jurisdiction)

Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth)

Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)

Evidence Act 1995 (NSW)

Family Law Act 1975 (Cth)

Habeas Corpus Act 2001 (NZ)

Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (Cth)

Delegated Legislation - Regulations, Orders, Rules

 

Delegated Legislation such as Regulations, Orders, and Rules are cited in the same way as for Acts. 

See AGLC4: 3.4 and the general rules for legislation for more details. 

 

Footnote: Format and example

Note Number Title of Delegated Legislation Year of Delegated Legislation (Jurisdiction) pinpoint.

1 Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 (NSW) r 6.2(1), (3A)(a)—(b).

2 Migration Regulations 1994 (Cth) regs 2.01—2.02.

 

Bibliography

Title of Delegated Legislation Year of Delegated Legislation (Jurisdiction)

  Migration Regulations 1994 (Cth)

  Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 (NSW)

  Public Health (COVID-19 Mandatory Face Coverings) Order (No 3) 2021 (NSW)

Bills and Explanatory Memoranda

 

Bills should be cited the same way as Acts, except the title and year should not be italicised. 'Clause' and sub-clause' are usually the appropriate pinpoint designations. 

Explanatory Memoranda (or Explanatory Statements or Explanatory Notes) should be cited as 'Explanatory Memorandum,' followed by the Bill Citation.  
 

See AGLC4: 3.2 Bills, 3.7 Explanatory Memoranda, and the general rules for legislation for more details. 

 

Footnote: Format and Example

Note Number Title of Bill Year of Bill (Jurisdiction) pinpoint.

1 Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme Bill 2009 (Cth) cl 83.

2 Migration Amendment (Immigration Detention Reform) Bill 2009 (Cth) sch 1 item 9.

3 Explanatory Memorandum, Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Bill 2006 (Vic).

4 Explanatory Notes, Adoption Bill 2009 (Qld) 5—6, 29. 

5 Explanatory Statement, Human Rights Bill 2003 (ACT) 3.

 

Bibliography: Format and Example

Title of Bill Year of Bill (Jurisdiction)

  Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme Bill 2009 (Cth)  

  Explanatory Memorandum, Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Bill 2006 (Vic)

  Explanatory Notes, Adoption Bill 2009 (Qld)

  Explanatory Statement, Human Rights Bill 2003 (ACT)

  Migration Amendment (Immigration Detention Reform) Bill 2009 (Cth)

Gazette and Gazette Notice

 

  • Where multiple notices appear in the same gazette or on the same page, add the Notice Author and Title (if available) and an 'in' before the Gazette citation

See AGLC4: 3.9.1 and the general rules for legislation for more details. 

 

Footnote: Gazette

Note Number Jurisdiction, Gazette Title, No Gazette Number, Full Date, pinpoint.

1 Commonwealth, Gazette: Special, No S 489, 1 December 2004.

Bibliography: Gazette

Jurisdiction, Gazette Title, No Gazette Number, Full Date

Commonwealth, Gazette: Special, No S 489, 1 December 2004 


Footnote: Gazette Notice

Note Number AA Author, 'Notice Title' in Jurisdiction, Gazette Title, No Gazette Number, Full Date, pinpoint.

2 Minister for Lands (WA), 'Land Acquisition and Public Works Act 1902 — Native Title Act 1993 (Commonwealth) — Notice of Intention to Take Land for Public Work' in Western Australia, Western Australian Government Gazette, No 27, 18 February 1997, 1142, 1143.

Bibliography: Gazette Notice

Author, AA, 'Notice Title' in Jurisdiction, Gazette Title, No Gazette Number, Full Date

Minister for Lands (WA), 'Land Acquisition and Public Works Act 1902 — Native Title Act 1993 (Commonwealth) — Notice of Intention to Take Land for Public Work' in Western Australia, Western Australian Government Gazette, No 27, 18 February 1997

YouTube videos on citing Acts and Bills created by UTS Library

  • Australian Guide to Legal Citation: Legislation - Acts
  • Australian Guide to Legal Citation: Legislation - Bills
Australian Guide to Legal Citation: Legislation - Acts Australian Guide to Legal Citation: Legislation - Bills