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Canadian Guide to Uniform Legal Citation: Legislation

Also known as the "McGill Guide"

LEGISLATION

*Important note: The 2020 Revised Edition of Acts came into force on 31 December 2021.

Refer to this AGC website for changes to citation format for legislation: https://www.agc.gov.sg/our-roles/drafter-of-laws/legislation-and-revisions.

"When the 2020 Revised Edition comes into force, it will generally be sufficient to cite the short title of a revised Act without its chapter number. Citing the chapter number (together with the year of the Revised Edition) will only be necessary when citing a repealed Act or a specific historical version of an Act." -- Guide to the 2020 Revised Edition of Acts, xii.

Example 1. Penal Code 1871 (refer to Infographic)

Example 2. "If the reference is not to the current Act in force but to a superseded or repealed Act, cite the citation in full as it was e.g. Criminal Procedure Code (Cap. 68, 1985 Revised Edition)” (refer to No.3p on the List of Standard Revision Changes)

Citations to statutes as recommended in the McGill Guide below will need to take into account these recent changes.

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References for this section are taken from E-220 to E-222 of the McGill Guide (8th ed)

A) Revised Editions

  • Revised Editions are abbreviated to Rev Ed, where there is indication that the legislative documents are from Singapore, e.g. constitutional documents
  • Otherwise, abbreviate to Rev Ed Sing.

B) Constitutional Documents

  • Constitution of the Republic of Singapore (1999 Rev Ed), art 12(1).

  • Independence of Singapore Agreement 1965 (1985 Rev Ed).

  • Republic of Singapore Independence Act (1985 Rev Ed), No 9 of 1965, s 2.

C) Statutes*

i. Statutes from the Revised Edition of the Statutes of the Republic of Singapore:

  • Currency Act (Cap 69, 2002 Rev Ed Sing).

  • Protection from Harassment Act (Cap 256A, 2015 Rev Ed Sing), s 4.

ii. Statutes not yet assigned a Revised Edition chapter number:

  • Deep Seabed Mining Act 2015 (No 6 of 2015, Sing), s 3.

  • COVID-19 (Temporary Measures) Act 2020 (No 14 of 2020, Sing), s 3.

D) Subsidiary Legislation

For legislation type, use Reg for regulation, R for rule, N for notification or O for order, followed by the number. 

Pinpoint using reg for regulation, r for rule, n for notification or o for order. Note that the type of pinpoint may differ from the type of instrument (e.g. a rule may contain orders).

Revised
  • Employment (Part-Time Employees) Regulations (Cap 91, Reg 8, 1997 Rev Ed Sing), reg 10.
  • Land Titles Rules (Cap 157, R 1, 1999 Rev Ed Sing), r 5.
  • Census Notification (Cap 35, N 1, 2002 Rev Ed Sing), n 2.
  • Customs (Duties) Order (Cap 70, O 4, 2009 Rev Ed Sing).
Unrevised
  • Public Transport Council (Composition of Offences) Regulations 2016 (S 83/2016 Sing), reg 2(b).
  • Variable Capital Companies (Winding Up) Rules 2020 (S 533/2020 Sing), o 13.
  • Street Works (Creation of Rights) Notification 2020 (S 103/2020 Sing), n 3.
  • COVID-19 (Temporary Measures) (Prescribed Period) Order 2020 (S 302/2020 Sing), o 2.

E) Parliamentary Debates

i. Where the Parliamentary Debate has been published in the Official Reports

Parliamentary Debates Singapore: Official Report, vol 73 at col 2436 (15 October 2001) (Professor S Jayakumar).

ii. Where only the online version of the debate is available, you may refer to the citation styles in:

  • Singapore Parliament website
    Singapore Parl Debates; Vol XX, Issue or Sitting No XX; Col or Page XX (if available); [Sitting Date]
    Example: Singapore Parl Debates; Vol 88, Sitting No 12; [18 Jan 2012].
     
  • SAL Style Guide 2021
    Example: Singapore Parliamentary Debates, Official Report (12 November 2012) vol 89 (Teo Chee Hean, Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security and Minister for Home Affairs)

F) SAL Style Guide (2021)

Where the McGill Guide does not provide guidance, it may be helpful to refer to the Style Guide for the Singapore Law Reports (2021 ed.) published by Academy Publishing.

References for this section are taken from E-120 to E-122 of the McGill Guide (10th ed).

At the start of Section 7.3, the Guide states - "For general rules, see Oxford Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities (OSCOLA)"

Note: Only the more common examples for legislation that apply to the UK as a whole are presented.

A) Statutes (ref. 7.3.1.1)

The main website for UK legislation is Legislation.gov.uk.

Before 1963 Statute of Westminster 1931 (UK), 22 & 23 Geo V, c 4, s 2.
1 Jan 1963 and after Design Copyright Act 1968 (UK), s 5.


B) Bills (ref. 7.3.1.2)

The latest Parliamentary Bills are available via the UK Parliament website.

Example: Animal Welfare (Sentience) Bill [HL] (UK), 2021-2022 sess, Bill 255, s 3.


C) Statutory Instruments (ref. 7.3.1.3)

UK secondary legislation is available via Legislation.gov.uk.

Before 1948 The Gas Cylinders (Conveyance) Regulations 1947 (UK), SR & O 1947/1594.
1948 and after The Air Navigation (Restriction of Flying) (Wembley Stadium) Regulations 2021 (UK), SI 2021/580.


D) Parliamentary Debates/Hansard (ref. para 7.3.2.1)

Hansards are available via the UK Parliament website.

Examples:
UK, HL Deb (21 December 1983), vol 446, col 803 (Lord John-Mackie).
UK, HC Deb (29 January 2024), vol 744, col 654 (Kemi Badenoch). 

Note: Indicate the speaker, if provided.


E) OSCOLA  (4th ed.)

Where the McGill Guide does not provide guidance on a specific area, you may wish to refer to pages 23 to 28 of the OSCOLA Guide. See also Quick Reference Guide.