A legal act in a bibliography should let readers find the specific document and identify the version you used. A footnote to a court decision primarily needs the type of decision, court, date and case number. “Civil Code” alone, or a link to a search results page, does not give readers enough information to retrace your use of the source.
Below I explain how to cite a Polish statute, code and court decision in a bachelor's or master's thesis, where to find the details, and how to distinguish legislation, case law and scholarly literature. This is an editorial guide: the examples identify documents rather than assess a particular legal problem. Agree the final footnote format with your department's current requirements.
Legislation, court decisions and commentaries: three different sources
First establish what you are actually citing. A statute lays down provisions, a court decision records a judicial determination, and a commentary is an author's or authors' scholarly treatment. Do not describe all three as though they were books. A website's footer does not supply the author of a statute, and a judge's name is not treated like the author of a monograph when citing a decision.
If you use an explanation of a provision in a commentary, identify that publication and the relevant passage. If you analyse the wording of the provision itself, identify the act and its structural unit. One paragraph may need both references because they perform different functions. A careful footnote should not attribute a commentator's opinion to a court, or statutory wording to a commentator.
The general choice of citation style, book references, DOIs and consistency between citations and the reference list are covered in a separate guide. Here the focus is legal documents, their versions and identifiers. You can therefore correct this particular source category without rebuilding the citation system throughout an otherwise finished thesis.
Guide to references and footnotes throughout your thesis
Which details of a legal act should you collect before writing a footnote?
Start with the document record in the official ELI or ISAP system. Searching by title helps locate material, but comparing the record is what distinguishes documents with similar names. Record the full title, the act's date, its publication reference and the version used. Separately note the particular provision and a link to the correct document.
- Type and title: a statute, regulation or another document you actually used.
- The act’s date: do not automatically equate it with publication or commencement.
- Publication reference: journal, year and item number, plus the journal issue where it belongs to that reference.
- Version and locator: the document used and its article, paragraph, subparagraph, point or letter.
A useful working note combines the details with one sentence: “I use this document for the paragraph on…”. This connection makes it easier to check that the reference supports the precise statement beside it. Collecting a dozen statutes in a folder does not in itself mean that every one belongs in the final list.
How to cite a statute and a code: two verified examples
The Constitution: identifying the document in full
Konstytucja Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej z dnia 2 kwietnia 1997 r., Dz. U. z 1997 r. Nr 78, poz. 483.
This identifies the original publication, as confirmed by the ELI record. The details serve different purposes: 2 April is the act's date, 1997 the publication year, 78 the journal issue, and 483 the item. Do not replace these with the year you downloaded the document. In an English or Ukrainian thesis you can explain the title in the discussion while retaining an unambiguous original citation of the Polish source.
Check the Constitution’s ELI record
The Civil Code: its name does not replace the statute’s details
Ustawa z dnia 23 kwietnia 1964 r. - Kodeks cywilny, Dz. U. z 1964 r. Nr 16, poz. 93.
This identifies the Code's original promulgation; it does not certify that the law described is up to date. For a thesis about a later period, establish the version used and its corresponding publication reference. You may introduce the abbreviation “k.c.” under the adopted rules, but it should not prevent readers from identifying the act.
Check the Civil Code’s original document record
Consolidated texts, updated compilations and amendments: what differs?
A later date on a website does not necessarily mean the statute was adopted then. For example, ELI contains a Marshal of the Sejm's announcement of 25 July 2025 concerning a consolidated text of the Civil Code, published as item 1071 of the 2025 journal. The Code remains the Act of 23 April 1964. Here, 2025 identifies a different publication event.
One citation using that publication reference is: “Ustawa z dnia 23 kwietnia 1964 r. - Kodeks cywilny, tekst jedn. Dz. U. z 2025 r. poz. 1071”. This is an identifiable historical formatting example, not a statement that this is the latest text whenever you read the guide. For your own thesis, return to the record and check the version relevant to the period examined. ELI records this announcement as having expired on 16 June 2026. That status concerns the document promulgating the consolidated text; it does not mean that the entire Civil Code ceased to apply on that date.
Record of the example announcement from 2025
A “tekst jednolity” is an officially promulgated consolidated text. A “tekst ujednolicony” helps readers follow incorporated amendments; ELI's system description states that it has no legal force. An amending act changes specified provisions. Do not use these three labels interchangeably simply because each document can be opened as a PDF.
If your subject is the change itself, you may need to identify the amending act. If you discuss the provision after the change, identify the relevant version of the underlying act. Adding “ze zm.” (“as amended”) does not itself demonstrate that currency has been checked. Keep the verification date in your notes and state the period addressed by the chapter.
ELI’s explanation of document types and identifiers
How to identify an article, paragraph, section and point
A footnote should lead not just to an act but also to the passage relevant to the sentence. Articles may contain sections, paragraphs, points and letters, but the structure depends on the document. Read the labels in the text you used. Do not add a subsection that does not exist or replace the paragraph symbol with “ust.”.
Art. 87 ust. 1 Konstytucji Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej z dnia 2 kwietnia 1997 r., Dz. U. z 1997 r. Nr 78, poz. 483.
In this example, “art. 87 ust. 1” locates a passage within the document, while “poz. 483” identifies the act's publication item in the journal. These are different numbers. Where a provision includes a superscript numeral, also check the exported PDF: losing the superscript can make the reference point to a different article.
For a direct quotation, compare the wording, punctuation and labels with the document. A paraphrase still needs a source. If one sentence draws on several provisions, make their relationship to each claim clear. A long list of numbers without explanation does not replace an argument and makes subsequent editing harder.
How to cite a judgment and a resolution in a footnote
For case law, collect the decision type, the court's full name, date and case number. Add the publication reference or database link as required. When quoting a specific part of the reasons, use an available paragraph number, numbered passage or document page. Do not invent numbering that the source does not contain.
Wyrok Naczelnego Sądu Administracyjnego z dnia 12 lipca 2016 r., II OSK 2732/14, CBOSA.
The example's details appear in its CBOSA record. The ending “/14” belongs to the case number; it does not mean the judgment was delivered in 2014. The decision date is 12 July 2016. The record also links to other cases: do not accidentally cite their numbers as the identifier of the decision you are reading.
Open the verified judgment in CBOSA
The NSA's instructions explain searching by case number and reading decision records. The database serves informational and educational purposes and is not an official law report series. Distinguish its name from a citation to a report series. A LEX or Legalis identifier is not the court's case number; do not add one without checking the actual record.
Instructions for searching NSA and WSA decisions
Uchwała Sądu Najwyższego w składzie siedmiu sędziów z dnia 7 maja 2021 r., III CZP 6/21.
This example illustrates another trap: the Supreme Court's announcement was published on 12 May 2021, but the resolution was adopted on 7 May. A news page's date does not replace the decision date. If you analyse the reasons, find and read the decision itself; an announcement helps establish the details but does not replace the full source for detailed analysis.
Supreme Court announcement confirming the resolution’s type, date and case number
ECLI and the case number: using a decision identifier
ECLI is the European Case Law Identifier. It is neither an article number nor a provision number. Copy it from a reliable record rather than constructing it from a date and case number. Courts use their own assigned identifiers, and an identifier missing from the source does not give you licence to guess it.
Wyrok Trybunału Sprawiedliwości z dnia 12 lipca 2005 r., Schempp, C-403/03, ECLI:EU:C:2005:446.
The official CURIA page on citing case law confirms this example. “C-403/03” is the case number, while “ECLI:EU:C:2005:446” identifies the decision. Do not delete one simply because the other appears more technical. Adapt the final citation to your thesis requirements and the information readers need to reconstruct.
CURIA’s official explanation of ECLI and case-law citation
Legislation and case law in the bibliography: which order?
There is no single arrangement to transfer unchecked into every Polish thesis. The published requirements of the law and administration faculty in Radom distinguish legislation, case law, literature and other sources, and specify hierarchical and chronological ordering for legislation and decisions. This illustrates a local requirement, not a nationwide instruction.
Another available document, for administration studies in Łomża, places subject literature first, followed by legislation, case law and other sources. This difference alone disproves the advice to “always start a bibliography with statutes”. Before arranging your list, establish which document applies to your programme, cohort and thesis type. Another university's archived PDF is an example, not your own instructions.
Example of local requirements: Radom, bibliography section
Example of a different order: administration guidelines from Łomża
Also distinguish the role of a footnote from that of the final list. A footnote may locate a specific provision or passage of reasoning, while the bibliography identifies the document more broadly. Do not create a dozen entries for one statute merely because you cite a dozen articles. If you compare different historical versions, identify them so readers can tell them apart.
Is a link to a legislation website or judgment summary enough?
An article on a legal website may help you discover a topic, but does not automatically replace legislation or the decision itself. If you use the article author's interpretation, cite that author and publication. If you present the primary document, locate it and compare the relevant passage. The reference should accurately reflect what you actually read.
Do not describe an entire decision using only a headline, an editorial headnote or a search snippet. A publisher's headnote may not be a verbatim statement by the court. If the full text is unavailable, do not conceal that limitation behind a footnote implying direct reading. Where secondary citation is necessary, follow the rules adopted for your thesis.
An official link makes verification easier but does not replace a footnote's identifying details. Save the stable document record, not a session URL or results list. Add an access date where the requirements call for one. Do not use this guide's publication date as the date you personally checked a source. Those are different facts.
How to correct references to legal acts step by step
1. Establish what is missing
Imagine a draft note reading “Civil Code, internet, 2025” and another reading “NSA judgment 2732/14”. Do not merely make them look tidier. The first fails to identify the Code's version; the second omits part of the case number and the date. Start with the sentence in your chapter: what should the footnote support, and which period does your analysis concern?
2. Locate the document and check the match
In ELI, compare the title, date, text type and publication reference. In CBOSA, enter the full case number and then check the court and date in the record. Open the text and locate the passage corresponding to your note. If you cannot do that, flag the entry for clarification instead of supplying missing details from memory.
3. Apply one agreed citation format
Only after identifying the source should you choose punctuation, abbreviations and element order. Establish whether the first reference gives the full title, later references use an abbreviation, and the publication reference belongs in parentheses. Check comparable citations throughout the thesis. Do not mix formats simply because the notes came from different places.
4. Check the revised text and PDF export
After moving paragraphs, recheck shortened notes, especially “ibid.”. Combining chapters may change what they refer to. In the PDF, inspect § symbols, superscripts, spacing between labels and numbers, and URL line breaks. A footnote should remain readable, and its link should lead to the document rather than the database home page.
Checklist for reviewing the whole thesis before submission
Five mistakes to catch during editing
Download year instead of publication year
Working references often accidentally use the year a file was saved to the computer. Downloading a document in 2026 does not mean the statute was published in that year's journal. Check the record and document heading. Keep the access date in a separate field. Renaming the file or moving it to a new folder will then leave the source description intact.
A home-page link instead of the document
A reference reading “ELI, available online” does not identify a statute. Similarly, “NSA database” does not identify a judgment. Replace the general label with precise details and a stable record link. Test the link in a fresh tab without first running a search. If it opens an empty form, depends on a previous session or displays a different document, the saved address is not doing its job.
One statute appearing as several different sources
A chapter may use a code's full title, the abbreviation “k.c.” and the short name “Civil Code”. Do not automatically turn these into three bibliography entries. Compare the documents and versions. If all references concern one act in the same version, organise them consistently as one group. If the versions differ, retain that distinction rather than mechanically merging records.
A footnote copied from another publication
Someone else's footnote may identify a different version of a provision, a different passage of a decision or a publication you cannot access. Treat it as a search lead. Once you find the document, independently check its relationship to your argument. Do not add a page number from an unopened book or a paid-database reference merely because it looks professional. Traceability matters more than an impressively long citation.
Formatting corrections presented as full verification
Correcting commas, italics and abbreviations improves consistency but does not establish substantive accuracy. Separate an editorial review from checking sources and matching references to claims. In working notes, label entries “details confirmed”, “passage checked” or “access needed”. Remove these labels from the final version while retaining them in a private copy. They help assess honestly what has been checked and prevent missing information from being overlooked before submission.
How to store the details in a reference manager
When importing an act or a decision, check whether the tool recognised the correct document type. An item stored as an ordinary web page may lose the act's date, case number and publication reference. Keep the complete details in the appropriate fields for your program and retain the document you used. If the chosen style does not match local requirements, do not change accurate data to fit the generator's incorrect result. Correct the record first, then its presentation.
On a working copy, generate first and subsequent references to one statute, two different decisions and the final list. This small set reveals confused abbreviations, missing publication references and unclear shortened titles. Recheck the document after updating the bibliography: a manual change made only in generated text may be overwritten on refresh. Do not unlink active citations in your only thesis copy just to quickly change the appearance of one entry.
Checklist: legal references before submission
- Every act has the correct title, date and publication reference, and abbreviations can be resolved unambiguously.
- The version used corresponds to the period examined in the chapter.
- The journal item number has not been confused with an article or page number.
- Each decision has a verified type, court, date and complete case number.
- ECLI and database identifiers come from actual records and have not been guessed.
- Your analysis, a scholarly author’s position and the court’s reasoning are clearly distinguished.
- Notes lead to the relevant passages, and bibliography sections follow the thesis’s current requirements.
- Abbreviations, links, superscripts and symbols have also been checked in the final PDF.
Frequently asked questions
Which statute details belong in a bibliography and footnote?
Record the act's type and full title, its date and publication reference, identifying the version used. A footnote to a specific provision should also include the relevant article, paragraph, section, point or letter. Check the details in the official ELI or ISAP record. Adapt element order and abbreviations to your thesis requirements. A website address alone does not identify the document sufficiently.
Are a Polish official consolidated text and an updated unified text the same?
No. A tekst jednolity is an officially promulgated consolidated text. A tekst ujednolicony helps readers follow the wording with amendments incorporated; ELI states that this type of text has no legal force. When citing, establish the document type, its publication reference and the period your analysis concerns. Do not assume that the most recently downloaded PDF automatically fits every historical situation.
Which judgment details should a case-law footnote include?
Verify the decision type, court, date and complete case number. Add a report citation or the relevant database link as required. If you refer to a specific passage in the reasons, identify an available paragraph number or page. Copy ECLI and database identifiers from the actual record. The publication date of a court announcement is not necessarily the decision date.
Must legislation always be the first section of a thesis bibliography?
There is no single arrangement for every thesis. Local requirements may call for separate lists of legislation, case law and scholarly literature and specify their order. Use the current requirements for your programme and thesis type. Do not automatically copy another university's arrangement or a thesis found online.
What should I send for correcting footnotes to court rulings and legal commentaries?
Attach the text with footnotes, the list of sources, and the supervisor's or university's guidelines. For court rulings, I need details that allow me to locate them, such as the court, date, case number, and publication source. For legal commentaries, useful details include the author of the relevant commentary passage, the editor, the edition, and the article, page, or numbered point, depending on the publication. If anything is missing, send a link or a copy of the passage used, together with the source details.
Need help organising references to legislation and case law?
Send the editable document, requirements and sources you used. At StudentSupport I help check whether references identify their sources, make footnotes consistent and connect citations with the bibliography. The scope can cover just one part of the thesis. If the argument also needs clearer expression, we will agree an editing scope separately rather than treating it as formatting alone.
Reference list and citation corrections for your thesis Bachelor’s and master’s thesis proofreading and editingDiscuss corrections to footnotes and the bibliography
Sources and verification scope
The examples were checked on 22 October 2026 against ELI, CBOSA, a Supreme Court announcement and CURIA's explanation. The linked Radom and Łomża requirements are used solely to demonstrate different local bibliography arrangements; they do not establish your university's rules. The University of Pomerania in Słupsk's published footnote guidelines provide another example of describing legislation and decisions.
University of Pomerania in Słupsk: example footnote guidelines
