Citation Signal - Signal Formatting

Signal Formatting

• Capitalizing Signals

The first letter of a signal should be capitalized when it begins a citation sentence. However, if the signal is within a citation clause or appears within a citation sentence, it should not be capitalized.

• Signal Placement and Typeface

One space should separate an introductory signal from the rest of the citation, with no punctuation in between.

Example: See American Trucking Associations v. United States EPA, 195 F.3d 4 (D.C. Cir. 1999).

Do not italicize a signal if it is being used as a verb.

Example: For a discussion of the Environmental Protection Agency's failure to interpret a statute to provide intelligible principles, see American Trucking Associations v. United States EPA, 195 F.3d 4 (D.C. Cir. 1999).