Write This Way - Resources for Writing & Research in the Middle of Law School

Two key MS Word features for academic writing projects are (1) placing footnotes, and (2) creating a dynamic table of contents.

To Place Footnotes:

Placing footnotes is essential for attributing an author using academic legal standards. You should add a footnote with a citation any time you quote, paraphrase, or reference the works of another author or have another reason to cite to a case, statute, or really any source from which you derive your written information. To place a footnote, follow the below steps:

1. Click "References" across the top pane of your Word document. 
2. Click "Insert Footnote" -- it's usually the second rectangle from the left, after "Table of Contents"
3. Once you place your footnote, you can type in your citation.
   1. If you need to edit it later, double click on the footer (bottom portion) of the page on which the footnote appears.
   2. You may also wish to write a shorthand citation or drop a hyperlink here and revise it later in the drafting process. This can help you continue to write while leaving a simple reminder to yourself of where that assertion came from which can be formally cited after you've completed your thoughts

To create a dynamic table of contents, you will need to use and modify the "styles" available in Microsoft Word and then place a table of contents. 

To use and modify "styles":

1. Your document will have headings of some kind. It's important to think of these as "nested" within one another. A title is first, follow by Heading 1, Heading 2, and so on. You need to label these headings in your word document, then you can change the font, color and size to suit your needs. 
   1. Labeling Headings:
      1. Click "Home"
      2. Highlight the title of your paper and select "Title" from the Styles pane (middle)
      3. Highlight your top-level heading and select "Heading 1" and do the same for each top-level heading throughout your paper.
      4. Do the same for any sub-headings, labeling them "heading 2"
   2. Modifying Headings:
      1. Right-click the type of style (title, heading 1, etc.) that you want to modify and click "modify"
      2. Adjust the font, color and size to suit the requirements of your paper. 
      3. Check off "Automatically Update" and then "ok."
      4. Do this for each style you use in your paper. 

To insert a table of contents:

1. After you've identified your headings, click on the top of the first page of your document.
2. Click on references, then Table of Contents (left most pane across the top)
3. Click on Automatic Table 2
4. Congrats-- you now have a table of contents that will change with your paper as you write it!