Legal encyclopedia or annotation
Original research draft · October 2026
Working pattern
[Author if identified], [Entry/annotation title], [publication] § [section] ([version]).
Capture from the source
Entry; author; publication; update; section; underlying authorities
Check before you use it
Read cited primary authorities when the proposition concerns their holdings.
Common error: A secondary summary cannot replace inspection of a central judicial source.
Completed example
Author, encyclopedia, entry, decisions, and update are fictional. The uninspected-primary-source gap is part of the exercise; no real holding or current treatment is asserted.
Nolan Reed, Register Authentication, TRAIN Encyclopedia of Record Practice § 16 (updated May 2025).
Read the supplied source facts
Fictional packet TRAIN-S72 supplies an entry titled Register Authentication by Nolan Reed in the TRAIN Encyclopedia of Record Practice, section 16, updated May 2025. The entry summarizes three fictional decisions and places a qualification in its final paragraph. The writer has read the entry but has not yet opened the central decision discussed in paragraph 2. A draft says that the decision conclusively resolves the client's situation, omitting the entry's qualification. The assignment asks for an accurate citation to the secondary discussion and a clear research step before relying on the underlying decision.
Why this works
The author, entry title, publication, section, and update identify the commentary actually consulted. Attribute its synthesis to the entry and preserve the qualification. A claim about the central decision's holding requires inspection of that decision, including its facts, posture, reasoning, and relevant treatment, rather than reliance on this secondary summary alone. The source card can link the entry to the authorities it identifies while marking which have been read. This makes the research gap visible without pretending that citation formatting completes substantive verification. A section-specific update date is more useful than a general website copyright year when the entry supplies one.
When the facts change
After opening the primary decision, cite its supporting passage for the holding and use the encyclopedia for its broader synthesis if that remains useful. If the entry quotes a dissent or a procedural order, correct the source-role description before adopting its summary. If an annotation is maintained in numbered releases, identify the actual release used rather than assuming the page displays today's complete legal position.
Apply the receiving court or publication’s requirements. These working forms do not establish citation permission, precedential weight, or support for a legal proposition.