1. In the State of New Jersey, it is a misdemeanor for any person, firm or corporation to conduct business for the preparing, selling, distributing, or advertising of term papers, dissertations, or other writings for submission by a person other than the author to any academic institution as a requirement for the completion of a course or the awarding of a degree.
2. Direct quotes must be placed in quotation marks and footnoted. No alteration of a direct quote is permissible unless the alteration is clearly indicated. An idea taken from a known source, even if rewritten in the student's own words, must be footnoted. If the idea is found in the entire paragraph, footnote the entire paragraph. The same applies to a long incorporation of a borrowed idea.
3. A distinctive arrangement of facts, including diagrams, tables and outlines should also be footnoted.
4. Statements of opinion and criticisms should either be precisely quoted or paraphrased with any characteristic phrasing or wording in quotation marks. In either case, a footnote must be used.
5. Some points to remember are:
a. a bibliography is not a substitute for footnotes.
b. follow the instructions of the professor as to the precise form of each paper and the footnotes preferred.
c. take careful notes, preparatory to writing a source theme and indicate sources, direct quotes and page numbers. This greatly reduces the chance of accidental plagiarism.
d. When in doubt, footnote!