McGill Law Journal Canadian Guide to Uniform Legal Citations 10th Edition

This reference tool has been prepared based on the information contained in the
McGill Law Journal Canadian Guide to Uniform Legal Citations, 10th ed (Toronto:
Thomson Reuters, 2023) (McGill Guide). Sections have been cross-referenced to the
applicable pages in the guide. Many of the examples used are taken directly from the
guide.

Contents
Part 1 – Statutes, Regulations, By-Laws, Rules of Court, Rules of Professional Conduct ........... 2
a – Statutes ......................................................................................................................................... 2
b – Bills ................................................................................................................................................ 3
c – Regulations .................................................................................................................................... 3
d – Municipal By-Laws ......................................................................................................................... 4
e – Rules of Court and Tribunals ......................................................................................................... 4
Part 2 – Jurisprudence .......................................................................................................................... 4
a – Sources ......................................................................................................................................... 4
b – General Form ................................................................................................................................ 4
c – Tribunals ........................................................................................................................................ 7
d – Online Primary Sources................................................................................................................. 7
Part 3 - General Rules………………………………………………………………………………………….7

a – Memoranda and Facta .................................................................................................................. 7

b – Footnotes ....................................................................................................................................... 8
c – Prior and Subsequent References ................................................................................................ 9
d – Quotations ................................................................................................................................... 10
Part 4 – Secondary Sources ............................................................................................................... 11
a – Legal Journals ............................................................................................................................. 11
b – Books ...................................................................................................................................... ….11
c – Websites ...................................................................................................................................... 11
d – Encyclopedic Digests .................................................................................................................. 12
Part 5 – Other Material ........................................................................................................................ 13
a – Law Society of Ontario By-Laws, Rules and Guidelines ............................................................. 13
b – Bibliographies .............................................................................................................................. 13

rev’d June 2023

 Part 1 – Statutes, Regulations, By-Laws
a – Statutes (McGill Guide pg. E-21)

TITLE, STATUTE YEAR, CHAPTER, PINPOINT.

VOLUME/
JURISDICTION
Federal revised Criminal Code, RSC 1985, c C-46, s 745.
statute

Federal annual Immigration and Refugee SC 2001, c 27.

statute Protection Act,
Ontario revised Retail Sales Tax Act, RSO 1990, c R.31.
statute
Ontario annual Residential Tenancies Act, SO 2006, c 17, s 5(a).
statute 2006
Ontario annual Cannabis Control Act, SO 2017, c 26, Sched. 1.
statute 2017

Title:
full title of statute in italics followed by comma (this is the only part of the citation that is in italic type)

Statute Volume/Jurisdiction:
statute series in which statute appears and legislative jurisdiction; NO periods between letters, NO
comma after reference

Year:
year of statute followed by comma

Chapter:
official chapter number assigned – there is NO period after the lower case “c” (which stands for
“chapter”);

REVISED federal legislation includes first letter of statute name followed by dash (-) followed by
number; REVISED provincial legislation includes first letter of statute name followed by period (.)
followed by number (there is no space between the period and the number);

ANNUAL legislation includes chapter number only; if including a pinpoint reference in citation add
comma, if no pinpoint reference add period.

NOTES:

i. some statutes include the year in the title (see Cannabis Control Act, 2017 example above); if
year is included in title, it must be included in the full citation and italicized

ii. some statutes are created as part of an omnibus bill which is a bill that deals with several
different topics; there may be a reference to a schedule in the citation (see Cannabis Control
Act, 2017 example above); it must be included in the full citation

iii. Pay particular attention to punctuation, capitalization, spacing and font type.

iv. Cite the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms as follows:

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, s 7, Part 1 of the Constitution Act, 1982, being
Schedule B to the Canada Act 1982 (UK), 1982, c 11.

2
b – Bills (McGill Guide pg. E-29)

PATTERN:
Number, title, session, legislature, jurisdiction, year, pinpoint (additional
information).

EXAMPLES:

FEDERAL:
Bill C-26, An Act to establish the Canada Border Services Agency, 1st Sess, 38th Parl, 2005, cl
5(1)(e) (as passed by the House of Commons 13 June 2005).

PROVINCIAL:
Bill 239, An Act to amend the Employment Standards Act, 2000 with respect to paid leave, 1st Sess.
42nd Leg. Ontario, 2020 (first reading 8 December 2020).

c – Regulations (McGill Guide pg. E-29)

Federal and Ontario regulations follow a some-what different format depending on whether it is a
consolidated/revised regulation or an annual/unrevised regulation.

i. Federal consolidated/revised regulation:

PATTERN:
Title, CRC, chapter, pinpoint (year).

EXAMPLE: Migratory Birds Regulations, CRC, c 1035, s 4 (1978).

ii. Federal annual/unrevised:

PATTERN:
SOR/ year- number, pinpoint.

EXAMPLE: SOR/2000-111, s 4.

CRC = Consolidated Regulations of Canada (last consolidation > 1978)

SOR = Statutory Orders and Regulations (NOTE: indicate all 4 digits of year)

iii. Ontario consolidated/revised regulation:

PATTERN:
RRO year, Reg number, pinpoint.

EXAMPLE: RRO 1990, Reg 1015, s 3.

iv. Ontario annual/unrevised regulation:

PATTERN:
O Reg number/ year, pinpoint.

EXAMPLE: O Reg 426/00, s 2.

RRO = Revised Regulations of Ontario (last consolidation > 1990)

O Reg = Ontario Regulation (NOTE: indicate last 2 digits of year only)
3
 NOTE: as always, pay close attention to punctuation, capitalization, spacing and font type.

d – Municipal By-Laws (McGill Guide pg. E-33)

PATTERN:
Municipality, by-law number, title (date), pinpoint.

EXAMPLE: City of Brampton, by-law 261-93, Animal Control (22 November 1993), s 6.

e – Rules of Court and Tribunals (McGill Guide pg. E-34)

Rules of court are procedural regulations governing judicial and administrative bodies. The Rules of
the Small Claims Court are a contained in a regulation under the Courts of Justice Act, RSO 1990, c
C.34 and are cited as:

Rules of the Small Claims Court, O Reg 258/98.

Rules of other administrative bodies such as the Landlord and Tenant Board or the Licence Appeal
Tribunal are cited as follows -

PATTERN:
Jurisdiction, issuing body, title, indexing number, additional indexing pinpoint.
information,

EXAMPLES: Ontario Landlord and Tenant Board, Rules of Procedure, amended December 2020,
Rule 5.1.

Ontario Licence Appeal Tribunal, Rules of Practice, October 2, 2017.

Part 2 – Jurisprudence
a – Sources

The hierarchy of sources is: 1 – neutral citation

2 – official reporter
3 – other sources

A neutral citation identifies the case only, not where the case may be found in a publication (whether
print or online). It indicates the name of the case, the year of the decision, the jurisdiction (federal,
provincial) and the level of court.

Where possible, provide the neutral citation which allows for greater access when searching the case.
If a neutral citation is not available or if providing another citation in addition to a neutral citation,
indicate the neutral citation first. This is referred to as a parallel citation which indicates another source
(print or online) where the same case may be found.

b – General Form (McGill Guide pg. E-38)

Type of Citation Style of cause, main citation pinpoint parallel citation court
Neutral Citation Fisher v Fisher, 2008 ONCA 11 at paras 52-59.
Official Reporter Gordon et al v [1996] 2 SCR 27 at para 13, 134 DLR (4th) 321.
Goetrz,
Other Source R v Askov (1990), 79 CR (3d) 273 (SCC).

4
 i. Style of Cause: (McGill Guide pg. E-38)

The style of cause (aka title of proceeding) sets out the names of the parties. It is always identified in
italics. The names of the parties are separated by v (there is no period after the v) which stands for
versus. In civil proceeds it is read as “and”, in criminal and quasi-criminal proceedings it is read as
“against”. Indicate surnames only, not first names.

When names of other parties are left out, the style of cause will indicate et al after the named party
(see Gordon example above).

As always, pay particular attention to punctuation, capitalization, spacing and font type.

ii. Main Citation: (McGill Guide pg. E-38)

Other than neutral citations, the main citation is broken down further into the following components:

(year of [year of reporter] volume reporter (series) page

decision) (used ONLY IF reporter is organized if any
by year, not by volume number)
(1990), 59 CCC (3d) 449
[1990] 2 SCR 1199
(1989), [1990] 1 SCR 503
(1969), [1970] SCR 477
(1991), 79 DLR (4th) 385
(1991), 75 OR (2d) 673

Year of Decision: (McGill Guide pg. E-43)

When a decision has a neutral citation, CanLII citation or when the year of the decision is the same as
the year in the main citation, do not write the year after the style of cause. Include the year of the
decision in the style of cause in round brackets ONLY if the year is not otherwise apparent in the rest
of the citation. There is no comma between the style of cause and the year. Include a comma after the
closing round bracket.

EXAMPLES:
R v Brown, 2022 SCC 18.

R v Askov (1990), 59 CCC (3d) 449 (SCC).

Year of Reporter:
Reporters are published either in volumes organized by year of publication, such as the Supreme
Court Reports (SCR) or the first Ontario Reports, or in volumes numbered in series, such as the
Ontario Reports (OR) 2nd and 3rd series or Dominion Law Reports (DLR). If the reporter volumes are
numbered by year of publication, include the year in square brackets [ ].

When providing a citation from the SCR (or similar publication), only include the year of the decision in
round brackets as part of the citation IF the year the case was decided is different than the volume in
which the decision is published.

EXAMPLES: R v Askov, [1990] 2 SCR 1199.

Child v Vancouver General Hospital et al. (1969), [1970] SCR 477.

In R v Askov, the year of the decision is not indicated in round brackets as the year of the decision
was the same as the year in which the decision was published in the SCR report, namely 1990.

5
In Child v Vancouver General Hospital et al., the year of the decision is included in round brackets as
part of the style of cause as the decision was released in 1969 by the Supreme Court but not
published until 1970 in the SCR. In 1970, there was only 1 volume of the SCR so there is no volume
number indicated.

iii. Pinpoint: (McGill Guide pg. E-44)

If referring to a particular paragraph of the decision, indicate it after the page number as “at para #”.

EXAMPLES: R v Askov, [1990] 2 SCR 1199, at para 34.

R v Askov, [1990] 2 SCR 1199, at paras 49-52.

NOTE: paragraph is abbreviated as para with no period following.

If the decision does not include paragraph numbering and the pinpoint reference is to a page, indicate
the page number as “at #”.

EXAMPLE: Tremblay v Daigle, [1989] 2 SCR 530 at 545.

iv. Parallel Citation: (McGill Guide pg. E-38)

If there are other sources of the decision you wish to direct the reader, indicate them after the main
(preferably neutral) citation separated by commas.

EXAMPLE: R v Askov, [1990] 2 SCR 1199, 75 OR (2d) 673, 74 DLR (4th) 355, 59 CCC (3d) 449.

There are four citations in this example!

v. Court: (McGill Guide pg. E-48, Appendix A pg. A-6, Appendix B pg. A-19)

Always identify the jurisdiction unless otherwise apparent from the citation. Always identify
the court unless otherwise apparent from the citation. The reader needs to know the significance
of the decision (is it binding or persuasive?). Use the following abbreviations:

Court Abbreviation
Supreme Court of Canada SCC
Ontario Court of Appeal ONCA (CA if the citation indicates it is an Ontario decision)
Ontario Superior Court of Justice ON Sup Ct
Ontario Court of Justice ON Ct J
Ontario Divisional Court ON Div Ct
Ontario Provincial Offences Court ON Prov Ct
Ontario Small Claims Court ON Sm Cl Ct

EXAMPLES: R v Askov (1990), 59 CCC (3d) 449 (SCC).

Russo v Kerr (2010), 326 DLR (4th) 341 (ON Sup Ct).

Sokoloff v Tru-Path Occupational Therapy Services Ltd. (2020), 153 OR (3d) 20 (CA).

R v Anderson (2012), 40 CCC (4th) 29 (ONCA).

NOTES:
• Pay particular attention to capitalization and the placement of brackets, commas and periods.

6
 • There is no punctuation between the page number and the open bracket indicating the
jurisdiction and court.

• There is a period after the closed bracket.

c – Tribunals (McGill Guide pg. E-53)

Citations of tribunal decision follow the same pattern as court decisions.

EXAMPLES: Lozier v Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation, 2009 HRTO 306 (CanLII).

Clarke Institute of Psychiatry v Ontario Nurses’ Assn (Adusei Grievance) (2001), 95

LAC (94th) 154 (ONLRB).

CEL-01531-09 (Re), 2010 CanLII 11940 (ON LTB).

d – Online Database Services (McGill Guide pg. E-44)

DO NOT refer to a URL when citing an online database. For pinpoint references, do no refer to page
numbers when the document is open in a browser. Download the document and, if paragraph
numbers are noted, refer to the paragraph for pinpoint references. If paragraph numbers are not
available, refer to the page number. If neither paragraph number nor page number is available, find
another source for the document that allows you to indicate a pinpoint reference if needed.

Online databases use the following identifiers:

LexisAdvance Quicklaw Smith v Jones, [2016] OJ No 461 (CA)

WestlawNext Canada Smith v Jones, 2016 CarswellOnt 88 (CA)
CanLII Smith v Jones, 2016 CanLII 96404 (ONCA)

Part 3 – General Rules

a – Memoranda and Facta (McGill Guide pg. E-3, E-5)

In legal writing such as journal articles, theses or dissertations, the standard rule is to use footnotes
(discussed below); however, for memoranda (plural of memorandum) and facta (plural for factum)
citations should be included in the main text.

The first time a primary source is referenced, follow the rules for citations as indicated above for
statutes, regulations or jurisprudence. If a reference is repeated later in the text, include a short form
after the first citation in italic type. NOTE: in the example below, Hill, Robitaille and Whiten are
indicated in square brackets after the full citation because the full citation is already in parentheses.

EXAMPLE:

In addition to the requirement of an “actionable wrong” independent of the breach sued upon, punitive
damages will only be awarded “where the defendant’s misconduct is so malicious, oppressive, and high-
handed that it offends the court’s sense of decency” (Hill v Church of Scientology of Toronto, [1995] 2
SCR 1130 at para 196 [Hill]). Such behaviour has included defamation (ibid), failure to provide medical
care (Robitaille v Vancouver Hockey Club Ltd., 124 DLR (3d) 228 (BCCA) [Robitaille]), and exceptionally
abusive behaviour by an insurance company (Whiten v Pilot Insurance Co., 2002 SCC 18 [Whiten]).

Since the primary vehicle of punishment is the criminal law, punitive damages should be scarcely used
(ibid at para 69). It is also important to underline that there cannot be joint and several responsibility for
7
punitive damages because they arise from the misconduct of the particular defendant against whom
they are awarded (Hill at para 195).

b – Footnotes (McGill Guide pg. E-6)

In legal writing other than memoranda and facta there are two forms of footnotes:

1. citation footnotes – used to indicate the source from which an argument or quotation has
been taken.

2. textual footnotes – used to add information that is of interest but would take away from the
main message. 1

i. When to Include Footnotes

Footnotes are required under the following circumstances:

1. at the first reference to the source

2. at every subsequent reference quoting from the source
3. at every subsequent reference or allusion to a particular passage in the source

The full citation is required only in the first footnote. Create a short form after the first full citation for
further references (see “Short Forms” below).

ii. How to Indicate Footnotes in the Text

Footnotes are indicated by numbers and are placed immediately after the content you wish to
reference. In Word, click References > Insert Footnote. A number immediately appears where you
have placed your cursor and you will be immediately taken to the bottom of the page to add the
footnote details. If you are referencing a statute, regulation or case, insert the footnote immediately
after the name. If you are quoting from a source, place the footnote after the closing quotation mark
and period.

EXAMPLE:

In R v Jordan 2 the Supreme Court of Canada provided direction on the issue of unreasonable delay
under section 11(b). 3

Look at the footnotes at the bottom of this page.

• Word will automatically add a horizontal line immediately before the first footnote to separate it
from the body of the text. Word will automatically indicate the footnote number corresponding
to the number in the body of the text.

• The footnotes are indicated in smaller font size than the rest of the memo.

• For the reference to R v Jordan, I have included only the legal citation as I referred to the style
of cause in the body of the memo. As I did not refer to the Charter in the body of the text, I
included the full title of the statute in the footnote.

• Put a period at the end of the footnote.

1
This is an example of a textual footnote. As you can see, it contains further information rather than a citation.
2
2016 SCC 27 (CanLII).
3
Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Part I of the Constitution Act, 1982, being Schedule B to the Canada Act 1982
(UK), 1982, c 11, s 11(b).
8
c. Prior and Subsequent References (McGill Guide pg. E-9)

i. Short Forms

Once you have provided a reference, subsequent footnotes do not need to include the full name. You
can create a short form. For example, if your first footnote is:

1
Kadlak v Nunavut (Minister of Sustainable Development), 2001 NUCJ 1 [Kadlak].

Kadlak is added at the end of the footnote (in square brackets [ ]) to tell the reader that the next time it
is referenced in the document or in a footnote, it will simply be referred to as:

Kadlak, supra note 1 at para #.

When referring back to civil cases, the practice is to refer to the first party named (generally the
plaintiff). When referring back to criminal or quasi-criminal cases, refer to the accused/defendant
instead, as the first party will be R. or Attorney General.

When referring back to legislation, use the official title if it’s short, otherwise create a short title and
indicate it in square brackets [ ] at the end of the first official citation (as indicated with the Kadlak
example above). Be sure to continue using italic type for the name of the statute or a case.

EXAMPLES:

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Part I of the Constitution Act, 1982, being Schedule B to
the Canada Act 1982 (UK), 1982, c 11 [Charter].

R v Jordan, 2016 SCC 27 (CanLII) [Jordan].

MacLean v Askew, 2021 ONSC 63 (CanLII) [MacLean].

Do not create a short form for a secondary source in a footnote. In subsequent references, indicate
the last name of the author.

EXAMPLE:

1
John Humphrey, No Distant Millennium: The International Law of Human Rights (Paris: UNESCO,
1989).

6
Humphrey, supra note 1.

Note that a short form is not included at the end of the full citation of a secondary source.

ii. Ibid (McGill Guide pg E-11)

Ibid is Latin for “in the same place”. Use ibid to direct the reader to the reference immediately before it.
Do not provide the number of the footnote being referred to. If the ibid refers to the same page or
paragraph as the full citation immediately before it, you do not have to repeat it. If it refers to a
different page or paragraph, indicate it.

EXAMPLE:

1 R v Jordan, 2016 SCC 27 (CanLII).

2 Ibid at para 19.
3 Ibid.

9
 iii. Supra (McGill Guide pg E-12)

Supra is Latin for “above”. It is used when directing the reader to an earlier reference but not the one
immediately above it. Do not use supra to refer to a footnote that is another supra or an ibid.

For example, if I wanted to refer to R v Jordan which is footnote #1 in the previous example, I would
indicate:

8
Jordan, supra note 1.

NOTE: Always, always, always type the full reference in footnotes during the drafting process. You may
move things around when proof-reading and editing and your reference to “supra note 4” may no longer
be correct. Once your document is completely finished, go back and shorten the footnotes.

d – Quotations (McGill Guide pg. E-16)

Quotations of four lines or less are included directly into the body of the text and are identified using
quotation marks. Use the exact wording, spelling, capitalization and punctuation of the text you are
quoting even if there is an error. Changes, such as changing a lower-case letter to upper case, must
be indicated in square brackets [ ]. Use an ellipsis (…) to indicate where text has been omitted. An
ellipsis is not needed at the beginning or end of a quotation unless the sentence is grammatically
incorrect. Legislative provisions may be indented even if they are less than four lines in length. Place
the footnote number immediately after the closed quotation mark and period, if any.

EXAMPLE OF IN TEXT QUOTATION:

This principle, which has existed since 1929, is based on a dynamic conception of the constitution as
“a living tree capable of growth and expansion.”1

EXAMPLE OF CHANGES TO CONTENT OF QUOTATION:

It was clear from this moment that “[t]he centre … of American jurisprudence had changed.”

“[A] mixed question of fact and law” must be appealable.

Quotations of more than four lines are indented one inch on both the left and right side, are single
spaced in block/justified format and are in reduced font size. Quotation marks are not used.

EXAMPLE OF INDENTED QUOTATION:

Justice LeBel, writing for the Court, invoked the scenario that Justice Dickson (as he then was) used
in Perka to explain the concept:

By way of illustration in Perka, Dickson J. evoked the situation of a lost alpinist who, on the point of
freezing to death, breaks into a remote mountain cabin. The alpinist confronts a painful dilemma: freeze
to death or commit a criminal offence. Yet as Dickson J. pointed out at p 249, the alpinist’s choice to
break the law “is no true choice at all; it is remorselessly compelled by normal human instincts”, here of
self-preservation.2

To set the block style in Word so you can easily create the lengthy quotation in the proper format, in
Word click the down arrow next to “Styles”, then scroll down and click the down arrow next to “Quote”.
Click “Modify” and change the settings for spacing and block justify. Make sure italic type isn’t selected
then click “New documents based on this template.” In future when you need to include a lengthy
quotation in your memo, simply click Quote in Styles and word will format it for you. Alternatively, after
clicking “Quote”, simply adjust the font and formatting as needed.

10
 Part 4 – Secondary Sources
a – Legal Journals (McGill Guide pg. E-85)

PATTERN:

Author, “title of (year) volume: issue abbreviation page pinpoint (electronic

article” of journal service)

i. Single Author:

Lisa Trabucco, “Lawyers’ Monopoly: Think Again: The Reality of Non-Lawyer Legal Service Provision
in Canada” (2018) 96 Can B Rev 460 at 463 (HeinOnline).

Charles Reasons et al, “Race and Criminal Justice in Canada” (2016) 11:2 Intl J Crim Justice Sci 75 at
79 (ProQuest).

ii. Up To Three Authors:

If there are three authors, list them all with a comma between the first and second author.

Michael Purcell & Mathew Zaia, “Prediction, Prevention and Proof: Artificial Intelligence and Peace
Bonds in Canada” (2020) 98:3 Can B Rev, online (pdf):
https://cbr.cba.org/index.php/cbr/article/view/4630.

iii. More Than Three Authors:

If there are more than three authors, include only the first author’s name and et al.

Rafael La Porta et al, “Law and Finance” (1998) 106:6 Journal of Political Economy 1113 at 1152.

b – Books (McGill Guide pg. E-89)

PATTERN:

Author title, edition other (place of publisher, year) pinpoint

elements publication:

EXAMPLES:

Curt T Griffiths, Canadian Criminal Justice: A Primer (Toronto: Nelson Education, 2011) at 11.

Arlene Blatt & JoAnn Kurtz, Legal Research: Step by Step, 5th ed (Toronto: Emond Montgomery
Publications Limited, 2020) at page 25.

c – Websites (McGill Guide pg. E-106)

PATTERN:
Author, “Title of the Page” (Day Month Year), online: Title of the <URL>.
Website

11
EXAMPLES:

Health Canada, “Drug Products” (26 February 2018), online: Health Canada
www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/drugs-health-products/drug-products.html.

Polly Donda-Kaplan & Natasha Bakht, The Application of Religious Law in Family Law Arbitration
Across Canada (April 2006), online: Women's Legal Education and Action Fund
http://www.leaf.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/2006-04-Submission-The-Application-Of-Religious-
Law-In-Family-Law-Arbitration-Across-Canada.pdf.

d – Encyclopedic Digests (McGill Guide pg. E-96)

i – Canadian Encyclopedic Digest (CED):

PATTERN – Print version:

CED (series edition), volume, title section.

EXAMPLE: CED (Ont 4th), vol 1, title 2 at § 10.

PATTERN – Online version:

CED edition (online) Subject (series), [if “detailed subject (CED section.
, matter applicable] heading & sub- subheading
headings” code)

EXAMPLE: CED 4th (online), Actions (Ont), “Forms and Classes of Action: Penal Actions:
General” (II.5.(a)) at § 3.

ii – Halsbury’s Laws of Canada:

PATTERN – Print version:

Halsbury’s Laws of volume, subject matter section (update).
Canada,

EXAMPLE: Halsbury’s Laws of Canada, vol 2, Business Corporations at HBC-298 “Focus on

Interests” (Cum Supp Release 4).

PATTERN – Online version:

Halsbury’s Laws of subject matter, “detailed subject (subheading code) section update.
Canada (online), heading &
subheadings”

EXAMPLE: Halsbury’s Laws of Canada (online), Business Corporations, “Shareholder Remedies:

The Oppression Remedy: Meaning of Oppression” (XIII.2.(2)) at HMC-298 “Focus on
Interests” (Cum Supp Release 4).

12
 Part 5 – Other Material
a – Law Society of Ontario By-Laws, Rules, Guidelines (McGill Guide pg. E-14, E-98)

The Law Society of Ontario (LSO) under the authority of the Law Society Act, RSO 1990 c L.8 (LSA)
has established by-laws, rules of conduct and professional conduct guidelines. The documents are
available online and are treated as online resources for citation purposes. As online resources
change, include an archived URL in addition to the original URL, if available. Be sure the include the
date of the document so the reader knows how current the material is.

PATTERN:
Issuing title of (publication pinpoint <URL> [archived URL]
body, document, information) reference (if available).

EXAMPLES:

LSO By-Laws Law Society of Ontario, By-Law 4 (1 May 2007; amendments current to 27
February 2020) s 6(1), online:
<https://lawsocietyontario.azureedge.net/media/lso/media/legacy/pdf/b/by/by-
law-4.pdf>.
LSO Paralegal Law Society of Ontario, Paralegal Rules of Conduct (1 October 2014;
Rules of amendments current to 27 February 2020) Rule 3.01(1), online:
Conduct <https://www.lso.ca/about-lso/legislation-rules/paralegal-rules-of-conduct>.
LSO Paralegal Law Society of Ontario, Paralegal Professional Conduct Guidelines (1 October
Professional 2014; amendments current to 27 February 2020) Guideline 1, para 1, online:
Conduct <https://www.lso.ca/about-lso/legislation-rules/paralegal-professional-conduct-
Guidelines guidelines>.

b – Bibliographies (McGill Guide pg. E-4)

Divide bibliographies into three sections:

Legislation
Jurisprudence
Secondary Materials

Within each section, list the entries in alphabetical order. For secondary material, list the author’s
surname before their first name (different than in footnotes where author’s first name appears first).
Use hanging indents for each citation. A bibliography is prepared on a separate page and is placed at
the end of your document. See next page for an example of a bibliography.

13
EXAMPLE:

LEGISLATION

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, s 7, Part 1 of the Constitution Act, 1982, being
Schedule B to the Canada Act 1982 (UK), 1982, c 11.
Criminal Code, RSC 1985, c C-46.
Highway Traffic Act, RSO 1990, c H.8 (CanLII).
Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, SC 2001, c 27.
Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, SOR/2002-227.
O Reg 9/02.

JURISPRUDENCE

1196303 Ontario Inc v Glen Grove Suites Inc, 2012 ONSC 758.
Lozier v Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation, 2009 HRTO 306.
R v Law, 2002 SCC 10, [2002] 1 SCR 227.
Re Victoria City Police Board and Policemen’s Union (1980), 30 LAC (2d) 79 (BCLRB).

SECONDARY MATERIAL

“Afghanistan” (21 March 2006), online: CBC News Online <www.cbc.ca/news>.

“Exonerations” (2019), online: Innocence Canada <innocencecanada.com/exonerations>.
CED 4th (online), Actions (Ont), “Forms and Classes of Action: Penal Actions: General”
(II.5.(a)).
Cuming, Ronald CC & Roderick J Wood, British Columbia Personal Property Security
Handbook, 4th ed (Toronto: Carswell, 1998).
Duhaime’s Law Dictionary, sub verbo “estoppel”, online <http://www.duhaime.org/
LegalDictionary/E/Estoppel.aspx>.
Greenspan, Edward L, Marc Rosenberg & Marie Henein, Martin’s Annual Criminal Code 2019
(Toronto: Canada Law Book, 2018).
Macdonald, Roderick A, “The Fridge-Door Statute” (2001) 47 McGill LJ 11 (QL).
Segal, Murray D, The 2018 Annotated Ontario Highway Traffic Act (Toronto: Carswell, 2018).
Wiltshire, Elaine, “Committed to Climate Change”, The Lawyer’s Weekly 29:30 (11 December
2009) (QL).

________________________________________________________________________________

References:

This reference tool has been prepared based on the McGill Law Journal Canadian Guide to Uniform Legal
Citations, 10th ed (Toronto: Thomson Reuters, 2023) and sections have been cross-referenced to the applicable
pages in the guide. Many of the examples used are taken directly from the guide.

Queen’s University Law Library: https://guides.library.queensu.ca/legalcitation-mcgill-9th (includes a

tutorial)

Bora Laskin Law Library: https://library.law.utoronto.ca/legal-citation.

Durham College School of Justice and Emergency Services, The McGill Guide, 9th edition (2018): Your Quick
Guide to Citing Legal Sources based on Canadian Guide to Uniform Legal Citation (December 2019),
online: <https://guides.library.durhamcollege.ca/ld.php?content_id=34898311>.

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