Capitalize Names of Acts, Amendments, and Treaties
Capitalization
Rulebase Summary
Capitalize all specific and proper names of acts, amendments, codes, and treaties — the Social Security Act, the Nineteenth Amendment, the Treaty of Versailles. Do not capitalize the generic use of words that also appear in official titles — social security card, social security benefits.
Examples
A. The claim was filed under the social security act.
A. The claim was filed under the Social Security Act.
The specific name of a federal act is always capitalized.
A. She applied for Social Security benefits last year.
A. She applied for social security benefits last year.
When used generically rather than as the name of the act, do not capitalize.
Transcript Notes
Capitalize the full, complete name of bills and acts (Taft-Hartley Act, Civil Rights Act of 1964). When 'bill' or 'act' is used alone, it is not capitalized.
Capitalize 'Constitution' when referring to the U.S. Constitution. Capitalize names of sections of the Constitution (Preamble, Bill of Rights, Article III — use Roman numerals for articles). For the first ten amendments, write out the number and capitalize both the number and 'Amendment' (First Amendment, Second Amendment, the Fifth). Amendments after ten can use the same format or figures.
On the state level, capitalize 'constitution' only when part of the full title (the Constitution of the State of California).
Style Guide References (6)
Morson's
BGGP
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