Citation Guides · Illinois
How to Cite Illinois Statutes
Illinois statutes are cited in a fixed format that identifies the code and section. The pattern below is the standard Bluebook form used in briefs, memos, and academic writing; always check the local court rules for jurisdiction-specific variations.
The format
xxx Ill. Comp. Stat. x/x-xxx (year)
735 Ill. Comp. Stat. 5/13-202
The pieces, in order
- Code name. Illinois's compiled statutes are cited as shown in the pattern above. The abbreviation is fixed; do not improvise (735 Ill. Comp. Stat. 5/13-202 is the accepted form).
- Section number. The § symbol plus the section as Illinois numbers it. Copy the punctuation exactly: hyphens, periods, and colons are part of the number.
- Parenthetical. Academic Bluebook style adds the code edition year in parentheses. Practitioner filings commonly omit it, and courts accept the bare cite.
Illinois conventions to know
Illinois uses a three-part chapter/act/section form: in 735 Ill. Comp. Stat. 5/13-202, 735 is the chapter, 5 is the act, and 13-202 is the section. The same provision is often abbreviated 735 ILCS 5/13-202 in practice documents.
Common mistakes
- Improvising the code abbreviation. Style manuals fix the form shown above; variants like "Illinois Code Ann." spelled differently are flagged by citation checkers and editors.
- Dropping or altering the internal punctuation of the section number. The hyphens, colons, and periods encode the code's structure.
- Citing a repealed or renumbered section. Codes are recompiled continuously; verify the section is current before filing.
Citing Illinois court cases
Illinois appellate decisions appear in the North Eastern Reporter (currently N.E.3d), the regional reporter covering Illinois. Because the regional reporter spans multiple states, the court parenthetical must identify the court: a decision of the state's highest court is cited (Ill. [year]). Some Illinois courts also have official or public-domain citation formats; check the court's rules for whether a parallel citation is required.
Check your citations against real law
CiteLaw's AI Navigator verifies Illinois citations against a corpus of real cases, statutes, rules, and regulations: it confirms the authority exists, the format is right, and the law is still good. General chatbots can invent citations; CiteLaw checks them.
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Formats follow standard Bluebook conventions. Individual courts may impose their own citation rules; always check the local rules of the court you are filing in. CiteLaw provides legal information, not legal advice.