D.2: Maintaining Paragraph Structure in Block Quotes

A block quote should replicate the paragraph structure of the original source.

If the first word of the block quote comes from the beginning of a paragraph from the cited source, the block quote must be indented.
If the block quote has omitted an entire paragraph from the cited source within the quoted text, this should be indicated by a four-period ellipsis on a separate line.
When the block quote cites text from multiple paragraphs, each new paragraph should begin on a separate line.
A second paragraph within a block quote should either be indented identically to the first quoted paragraph (if the second paragraph appears subsequent to the first in the original text) or prefaced by a three-period ellipsis (if, in the original text, additional text exists between the first paragraph and the second).
- Use a three-period ellipsis if the quoted language does not include the first word of the cited source paragraph.
For examples, see Bluebook Rule 5.1.

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