EDCO 280 History of American Education

Citations to court cases are based on sets of "reporters" that gather and publish court opinions as they are decided.  Even though you will probably access the court opinions online, the citation used is still based on the print system.  Most online search tools will allow you to search by the two parties involved, but having the citation is helpful to insure that you have the final decision.

 The opinion for Brown v. Board of Ed. of Topeka can be cited in three different way depending on which reporter is used as your source.   Legal citations are very brief. 

The first number is the volume number
The letters are an abbreviation for the reporter title
The final number is the page number.

 347 U.S. 483 - volume 347 of United States Reporter (the official Supreme Court reporter) page 483.  This is the most widely available and probably the citation you are most likely to find online.  You'll know if you see U.S. between the two numbers that you have a U.S. Supreme Court opinion.

74 S. Ct. 686 -  volume 74 of Supreme Court Reporter, (published by West) page 686.  Only available in law libraries.

98 L. Ed. 873 - volume 98 of Lawyer's Edition (published by Lexis), page, 873. Only available in law libraries.