Multiple statutory provisions
Original research draft · October 2026
Working pattern
[Title] [Code] §§ [first section], [other section] ([version]).
Capture from the source
Every cited section; intended range or nonconsecutive list; version
Check before you use it
Verify each provision and use a range only when the intervening provisions are intended.
Common error: A dash can imply provisions the writer did not mean to include.
Completed example
Official 2024 edition identifiers, headings, and named subdivisions inspected October 8, 2026. Subsequent amendments and application to any actual copying, sale, license, or transaction were not resolved.
17 U.S.C. §§ 106, 109 (2024).
Read the supplied source facts
The official 2024 edition of title 17 contains section 106, headed Exclusive rights in copyrighted works, and section 109, headed Limitations on exclusive rights: Effect of transfer of particular copy or phonorecord. The exercise asks for a combined citation identifying those two sections as separate research subjects. Sections 107 and 108 fall numerically between them, but the assigned citation is not intended to identify every section in that interval. Both cited sections were inspected in the same edition. The assignment is about listing sources, not about resolving a copyright dispute.
Why this works
The doubled section symbol and comma-separated numbers communicate that more than one section is cited and that the selection is nonconsecutive. A range of 106–109 would also sweep in the intervening sections, changing the stated scope of the citation. The common title and edition can be stated once because they apply to both selected sources. If the sentence advances distinct propositions, separate citations placed beside the respective propositions may be clearer than a combined citation at the end. A compact list should not make the reader guess which source supports which claim.
When the facts change
For a passage comparing only section 106's distribution provision with section 109's opening subsection, the more precise form is 17 U.S.C. §§ 106(3), 109(a) (2024). Use that version only after reading the identified subdivisions and their qualifications. If two sections are consulted in different editions, separate their citations and state each edition so the combined typography does not imply matching versions.
Official source material
Apply the receiving court or publication’s requirements. These working forms do not establish citation permission, precedential weight, or support for a legal proposition.