Correct citation
Laws and other legal norms are cited with their official title upon first mention in the text, e.g., “Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch (BGB)”. If the same law is mentioned again later in the text, a distinction is made:
If it stands alone, without a paragraph or article, the name continues to be written out in full, e.g.: “Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch”.
If, on the other hand, a paragraph or article of this law is cited, the law is referred to only in its short form after the first full mention, e.g.: “§ 1626 BGB”.
Example: The definition of a “youth” according to the Sozialgesetzbuch (SGB) is very narrow, set between 14 and 18 years of age (§7 SGB VIII para. 1 no. 2). After that, until the age of 27, the term “young adult” applies (§7 SGB VIII para. 1 no. 3).
If a different version is cited, the official date of publication must be given (“dated” = “d.d.” or “in the version dated” = “in the ver. d.d.”), or the date of entry into force (“entered into force on”).
Example 1: Art. 10 “Grundgesetz” for the Federal Republic of Germany (GG) in the revised version published in the Federal Law Gazette Part III, structure number 100-1, last amended by the law d.d. 29 July 2009 (BGBl. I p. 2248).
Example 2: §§ 27–35 Eighth Book of the “Sozialgesetzbuch” – Child and Youth Services – (Article 1 of the Law d.d. 26 June 1990, BGBl. I p. 1163) in the ver. of the promulgation of 14 December 2006 (BGBl. I p. 3134), last amended by Article 12 of the Law d.d. 6 July 2009 (BGBl. I p. 1696).
Legal commentaries
Legal commentaries are explanations of legal norms such as laws and regulations, usually written by people working in the field (e.g., judges) or by academics (e.g., professors). Depending on the case, they reflect the state of legal development as well as the perspective of the authors.
They are cited as follows:
Example: DI FABIO, Udo: Commentary on art. 2 para. 1 GG, in: Maunz, Theodor / Dürig, Günter (found. [footnote 1]): Grundgesetz, 55th ed., Munich 2009.
Sources of legal texts
This is a free reading version, i.e., you cannot print or otherwise edit this version. There is also a website where you can more easily find all federal laws.
Although this is not an official version, the website is run by the Federal Ministry of Justice, so you can assume the information provided is accurate.
The publication details which are important to you in the BGBl., amendments, supplements etc. are found at the beginning of each law. For this, visit the Bavarian State Law website.
Frequently asked questions
How do I correctly cite a law?
All laws and regulations have an official publication that must be cited.
Does a mentioned law go into the bibliography?
In most citation styles, laws are not included in the bibliography. You cite the law either as an in-text reference or in a footnote, depending on the citation style.
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This article was published in August 2025 and last updated in November 2024.