When a court opinion is cited in more than one reporter, what are these citations called?

When a court opinion is cited in more than one reporter, these citations are referred to as parallel citations. This is a common practice in legal writing to ensure that readers can locate the case in different legal sources, especially when the same case is published in multiple official or unofficial reporters. By providing multiple citations, legal writers facilitate access to opinions across different jurisdictions or publishing formats.

Parallel citations are essential for legal practitioners as they give their audience options for finding the case, particularly if one reporter is more accessible or commonly used in a specific jurisdiction than another. This practice also enhances the reliability of the citation, as it confirms the existence of the case in various compilations of legal authority.

Understanding parallel citations is crucial for legal research and writing, as it represents a standard way of acknowledging the multiple sources where legal cases can be found. The other options, like dual citations, combined citations, and cross citations, are not commonly recognized terms in the same way and do not capture the established legal terminology that describes the situation of citing a case in multiple reporters.