alivirgo/major-ai-skills/cite-specific-section-numbers

Ask AI to Cite Section & Clause Numbers (AI Skill)

Overview

When analyzing a 60-page PDF, API specification, employee handbook, or vendor contract, generic AI summaries often make claims like "The policy allows 15 days of remote work." Without exact section citations, you have to spend 20 minutes manually searching the document to confirm whether the model understood the clause or confused it with vacation rollover.

The Section-Anchored Citation Protocol forces the AI to bind every fact, rule, and recommendation directly to an exact chapter, clause number, or header title.

The Section-Anchored Citation Architecture

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                 Section-Anchored Audit Flow                 │
│                                                             │
│  Unanchored Summary:                                        │
│  "Contract has a 30-day termination notice requirement."    │
│  ↳ Unverifiable $\rightarrow$ High liability risk           │
│                                                             │
│  Section-Anchored Summary:                                  │
│  "• [Section 8.4(b), Page 22]: Either party may terminate   │
│     with 30 days written notice, subject to early exit fee."│
│  ↳ 1-Second Instant Verification in Original Document       │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Master Section-Citation Prompt Templates

Pattern 1: The Strict Section-Anchored Policy Audit

Use this for compliance frameworks, legal contracts, manuals, and bylaws:

Analyze the attached document: [ATTACH DOCUMENT / PASTE TEXT].
 
Answer the following question: [INSERT QUESTION]
 
Strict Formatting Rules:
1.Every claim, rule, or restriction you mention MUST start with the exact bracketed section identifier: `[Section X.X / Header Title / Page Y]`.
2.Include a 1-sentence verbatim quotation directly from that section to substantiate the point.
3.If the document does not explicitly mention this topic, output: "NOT SPECIFIED IN DOCUMENT". Do not extrapolate.

Pattern 2: The Clause-to-Action Reference Table

Use for comparing vendor SLAs, enterprise agreements, or security policies:

Review the vendor contract and extract key operational obligations into a Markdown table:
 
| Obligation / Topic | Clause # / Section | Exact Rule Summary | Direct Quote |

Real-World Case Study

Scenario: Auditing a Cloud Vendor SLA (Service Level Agreement)

Unanchored Output (Low Trust)

"The vendor guarantees 99.9% uptime. If they fail, you get service credits. Scheduled maintenance is excluded."

❌ (Zero specifics: How are credits calculated? What is the maintenance window notice? Where in the contract does it say this?)

Section-Anchored Citation Output (High Trust)

Key Benefits

• 🔍 Instant Verification: Find the exact clause in 2 seconds via Ctrl + F.
• 🛡️ Zero Hallucination Shield: Forcing clause citations drastically reduces the AI's tendency to invent terms that don't exist.
• 💼 Executive & Legal Ready: Deliverables can be passed directly to legal or procurement without rewriting.