25 Using Case Citators
The main role of a case citator is to provide extra information about cases. In Australian legal databases, any judgment of a superior court will have a citator record that includes information about the:
- status of the case,
- publication and citation details,
- litigation history—whether the case has been appealed and been subsequently affirmed or reversed,
- subsequent judicial treatment—how later judges have treated the decision,
- consideration of earlier cases,
- secondary sources that cite the case,
- legislation considered by the case.
Check case citators to understand whether a decision is still good law.
Accessing the citator document
CaseBase (Lexis+)
If you search for Patrick Stevedores Operations No 2 Pty Ltd v Maritime Union of Australia (No 3) (1998) 195 CLR 1, on the Lexis+ platform you can access the citator via the CaseBase link in your search results.
Watch: Explore CaseBase Citator (YouTube, 2m40s).
Watch: How to find paragraph levels citations of a case (YouTube, 3m01s).
Westlaw Australia
If you search the same case on the Westlaw Australia platform you will be able to access the citator information with the record (KeyCite).
Watch: Finding cases citing another on a point of law in Westlaw Australia (Thompson Reuters, 2m1s).
Watch: Westlaw Australia KeyCite (Thompson Reuters, 2m58s).
