APA Referencing and Australian Legal Materials
An important note on citing Australian legal materials.
In the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (2010, 6th ed.), Appendix 7.1 References to Legal Materials advises:
"References to legal materials... which include court decisions, statutes, other legislative materials, and various secondary sources, are
more useful to the reader if they provide the information in the conventional format of legal citations" (p. 216).
The "conventional format" for citing Australian legal materials using APA Style, is to use the Australian Guide to Legal Citation (2018, 4th ed.) rules for citing these materials.
The PRINT source should be cited, unless an electronic source is designated the official version.
For all other jurisdictions (i.e. not Australia), please see the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (2010, 6th ed) or speak to a Librarian.
Below are examples of the key Australian legal materials students may need to reference during their studies, including a table outlining in-text and end-text examples, and further explanation for each material type. For more material types, please see the Australian Guide to Legal Citation (2018, 4th ed.).
Materials Covered in This Guide
The following types of Australian legal materials are outlined on this Guide:
Referencing Case Law
| Material Type | In-Text Reference | End-Text Reference |
| Case Law |
It was held in Markopoulous v Wedlock [2008] WASC 3 that... The court must exercise care in intervening with a grant of injunctive relief to address procedural irregularities (Markopoulous v Wedlock [2008] WASC 3, [67]). ______________ The case of Stubley v Western Australia (2011) 242 CLR 374 considered the question of whether evidence possessed "significant probative value". The court found that the evidence did not have significant probative value and should not have been admitted into evidence at trial (Stubley v Western Australia (2011) 242 CLR 374, 397). |
Markopoulous v Wedlock [2008] WASC 3 ______________ Stubley v Western Australia (2011) 242 CLR 374 |
Notes on referencing Case Law:
For complete details see the Australian Guide to Legal Citation
- The full case reference should be used for both in-text and end-text references.
- A pinpoint reference, is a reference to the page number of the case. Some cases do not have page numbers and instead number paragraphs. Where there are no page numbers make reference to a paragraph number and place it in [square brackets].
- A case reference takes the following format:
- In-Text: Party name v Party name (Year) case citation, pinpoint
- End-Text: Party name v Party name (Year) case citation
- Use [square brackets] or (parentheses) around the year as used on the original case in front of you
- A reported case citation is made up of the following elements:
- Volume (not always present)
- Law Report Series abbreviation
- Starting page of the case
Referencing Legislation
The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association refers to The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation for referencing legislation. However, this does not cover Australian materials.
For Australian legislation, the Australian Guide to Legal Citation (4th ed.) has been used. The examples are based on this format:
| Material Type | In-Text Reference | End-Text Reference |
| Legislation |
Section 6 of the Mental Health Act 2014 (WA) sets out.... ______________ A departmental officer is authorised to possess prohibited drugs (Misuse of Drugs Regulations 1982 (WA), reg 4A). ______________ A person may apply for a medicinal cannabis incense that authorises them to produce cannabis or cannabis resin for medicinal purposes (Narcotic Drugs Act 1967 (Cth), s 8E(1)(b)). ______________ Immigration (Education) Regulations 1992 (Cth) commenced on 1 January 1993 (reg 2). |
Mental Health Act 2014 (WA) ______________ Misuse of Drugs Regulations 1982 (WA) ______________ Narcotic Drugs Act 1967 (Cth) ______________ Immigration (Education) Regulations 1992 (Cth) |
| Constitutions |
Notes: The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Australia may be cited as the Australian Constitution, the Commonwealth Constitution, or simply the Constitution if there is no ambiguity as to which constitution is being cited. Where necessary, the Australian Constitution may also be referred to within its enacting legislation as: Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act 1900 (Imp) 63 & 64 Vict, c 12, s9. Constitutions of the Australian states should be cited as normal statues. |
See notes to left. |
Notes on referencing Legislation:
For complete details see the Australian Guide to Legal Citation
- There are two main kinds of legislation:
- Acts
- Delegated (or Subordinate) Legislation (WA) or Legislative Instruments (Cth) - these include regulations
- When referring to legislation in a manner such as "the Act", Act should be capitalized.
- The full legislation reference should be used for both in-text and end-text references.
- A legislation reference takes the following format:
- In-Text: Short Title Year (jurisdiction abbreviation), pinpoint
- End-Text: Short Title Year (jurisdiction abbreviation)
- The following abbreviations should be used for Australian jurisdictions:
- Commonwealth - Cth
- Australian Capital Territory - ACT
- New South Wales - NSW
- Northern Territory - NT
- Queensland - Qld
- South Australia - SA
- Tasmania - Tas
- Victoria - Vic
- Western Australia - WA
- Pinpoint references are to be made to specific sections or regulations in in-text references. Pinpoint references should use abbreviations, except where the pinpoint begins a sentence. Below are some common abbreviations, more are available in the Australian Guide to Legal Citation.
- Legislation:
- Section - s
- Sections - ss
- Clause - cl
- Clauses - cls
- Schedule - sch
- Schedules - schs
- Delegated Legislation:
- Regulation - reg
- Regulations - regs
- Order - O
- Orders - OO
- Legislation:
Referencing Bills
| Material Type | In-Text Reference | End-Text Reference |
| Bills |
The Police Amendment Bill 2006 (WA) was introduced into parliament by... ______________ Changes to social security law were introduced into parliament in 2016 and passed by both houses in 2017 (Social Services Legislation Amendment (Simplifying Student Payments) Bill 2017 (Cth)). |
Police Amendment Bill 2006 (WA) ______________ Social Services Legislation Amendment (Simplifying Student Payments) Bill 2017 (Cth) |
Notes on referencing Bills:
For complete details see the Australian Guide to Legal Citation
- A Bill should be cited in the same manner as and Act, except the title and year should not be italicised.
- A pinpoint reference within a Bill is to a clause.
Referencing Explanatory Memoranda
| Material Type | In-Text Reference | End-Text Reference |
| Explanatory Memoranda |
Clause 10 of the Bill was enacted with the purpose of ensuring that the powers conferred to a 'police officer' are also conferred to an Aboriginal police liaison officer (Explanatory Memoranda, Police Amendment Bill 2006 (WA), p. 2). The Explanatory Memoranda, Police Amendment Bill 2006 (WA) shows that the amendments were made following advise from the State Solicitor's Office. |
Explanatory Memoranda, Police Amendment Bill 2006 (WA) |
Notes on referencing Explanatory Memoranda:
For complete details see the Australian Guide to Legal Citation
- The format of a reference for an Explantory Memoranda is:
- Explanatory Memoranda, [reference of Bill]
- A pinpoint to a Explanatory Memoranda should be to a page and follow the APA conventions for page abbreviations.
Referencing Hansard (Parliamentary Debates)
| Material Type | In-Text Reference | End-Text Reference |
| Hansard (Parliamentary Debates) |
The new s 244 was introduced based on the position "that the citizens of Western Australia have a right to absolute safety within their homes from intruders" and that "people who legitimately protect themselves from intruders to their homes should not be penalised" (Western Australia, Parliamentary Debates, Legislative Assembly, 16 August 2000, 389 (Kevin Prince)). |
Western Australia, Parliamentary Debates, Legislative Assembly, 16 August 2000, 389 (Kevin Prince) |
Notes on referencing Hansard (Parliamentary Debates):
For complete details see the Australian Guide to Legal Citation
- The format of a reference for Hansard is:
- Jurisdiction, Parliamentary Debates, Chamber, Full date of debate, starting page (Name of Speaker)
- Page numbers to Hansard should be included where available
- The .pdf version available from the parliament websites contains accurate page numbers.
- If the speaker holds a position within a ministry or a shador ministry that is relevant, include details of this after their name, preceded by a comma:
- i.e. (Liza Harvey, Minister for Transport)
