Case law: neutral citation

Since 2001, forms of neutral citation have been used for cases heard in the High Court, the Court of Appeal and the House of Lords. These citations are unrelated to any published series of reports. If the case is subsequently reported in a series of law reports, the neutral citation should precede the report citation.

Examples of neutral citation:

• Bath & Wells Board of Finance v Jenkinson [2002] EWHC 218 (Ch). This is judgment number 218, delivered in the High Court Chancery Division in 2002.
• R (Williams) v Home Secretary [2002] EWCA Civ 498. This is judgment number 498, delivered in the Court of Appeal Civil Division in 2002.
• Barber v Somerset County Council [2004] UKHL 13. Judgment 13, delivered in the House of Lords in 2004.

For more information about neutral citation, look at the following page provided by the Bodleian Law Library at Oxford University: Bodleian law library citation guide