Footnotes
Use Footnotes, Not Bracketed Citations
AGLC normally places source details in footnotes. Do not write legal authorities in Harvard, APA, or author-date style unless your lecturer has specifically asked for that format. The body of the assignment should develop the legal argument, while the footnote gives the authority that supports the sentence.
This is important in law assignments because footnotes allow the reader to check cases, legislation, journal articles, books, treaties, reports, and websites without interrupting the flow of the analysis. A clear footnote also makes your work look more professional and easier to mark.
Pinpoints
Use Exact Pinpoints
A pinpoint should direct the reader to the exact page, paragraph, section, subsection, article, clause, regulation, schedule, or treaty provision that supports the sentence. In legal writing, a whole case or statute is usually too broad because one authority may contain many different legal points.
Use pinpoints especially when explaining ratio, obiter comments, statutory tests, definitions, remedies, exceptions, judicial reasoning, or academic criticism. Accurate pinpoints help show that you are not only naming an authority but using it carefully.
Formatting
Check Italics and Punctuation Carefully
Case names and legislation titles are usually italicised, but report series, court identifiers, jurisdiction abbreviations, article titles, punctuation, and brackets must be handled according to the AGLC rule for that source type. Small formatting errors can make a citation look copied from another referencing style.
Before submitting, scan the whole assignment for inconsistent italics, missing commas, wrong brackets, incorrect jurisdiction abbreviations, missing pinpoints, and mixed citation styles. These are common problems in rushed law essays and problem questions.
Source order
Separate Primary and Secondary Sources
Cases and legislation are primary legal materials. Books, journal articles, law reform reports, legal commentary, websites, and policy documents are secondary materials. AGLC bibliographies and tables often separate these categories, so do not place every source into one ordinary alphabetical list without checking the assignment brief.
This separation is useful because it helps the reader understand the foundation of your legal argument. Primary sources show the law itself, while secondary sources explain, criticise, compare, or contextualise the law.
Source type
Identify the Correct Source Type
A source found online is not automatically a webpage. It may be a judgment, authorised report, unreported decision, statute, regulation, journal article, consultation paper, law reform report, treaty, book chapter, or government document. The actual source type controls the citation format.
Before using the AGLC generator, check the PDF title page, database record, court page, journal details, publisher information, and official source description. This prevents website-style references being used for legal materials that need a more specific AGLC format.
Repeated sources
Use Short Titles Carefully
Short titles can make repeated references easier, but they must be clear. If your assignment contains many similar authorities, vague short titles can confuse the reader. Use the official title or a defined short title consistently, and make sure the first full citation appears before the shortened form.
Repeated references should still include the correct pinpoint where needed. Do not repeat a short title without checking whether the later sentence relies on a different page, paragraph, section, or article.
Bibliography
Check Bibliography and Tables
Many law assignments require a bibliography, table of cases, table of legislation, or treaty table. The required layout depends on the university guide, assessment type, and module instructions. Do not assume that a footnote list alone is enough.
When preparing the final bibliography, check source categories, alphabetical order, title formatting, publisher details, URLs, and whether each authority used in the assignment is represented correctly. A well-organised bibliography makes the legal research look more reliable.
Final proofread
Match Every Citation to the Argument
Every footnote should support the exact sentence or paragraph beside it. If a citation is attached to a broad claim, check whether a more precise authority is needed. If a citation appears after a quotation, the pinpoint should lead to the exact quoted passage.
Before submission, read the assignment once only for references. Check whether the legal point, authority, pinpoint, footnote and bibliography entry all match. This final check is often where the biggest quality improvement happens.
