Define what “checked” means
“Reviewed by a human” can describe anything from reading the prose to checking every material source. Identify the actual checks the task requires. For a source-based work product, distinguish factual support, citation location, completeness, reasoning, and final presentation.
This lesson proposes a review method. It does not certify a system or displace the review required by professional obligations, the task, or your firm's procedures.
Use two directions
Draft to source: take each material statement back to its support. Does the passage say what the draft says, at the same level of certainty? Source to draft: take the material conditions, exceptions, and contrary facts in the reviewed record forward into the draft. Did they survive?
The first direction catches unsupported additions. The second catches material omissions. A draft can contain only accurate sentences and still present a misleading account through selection.
Build a verification ledger
| Draft reference | Proposed statement | Support checked | Qualification or conflict | Decision |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paragraph 8 | Notice received 12 March | A04 courier entry | Identity of enclosure unresolved | Revise |
| Paragraph 9 | Date was unconditional | A02 paragraph 3 | Expressly subject to inspection | Reject |
| Paragraph 10 | No approval located in A01–A05 | Search ledger and sources | Scope is limited to these documents | Retain scope |
A useful decision records what changed and why. Avoid a single “verified” checkbox when several distinct checks remain outstanding.
Verify calculations and quotations separately
For a total, inspect the inputs, units, currency, duplicate entries, date range, and method. Recalculate independently with an appropriate deterministic tool. For a quotation, check the original wording, punctuation where material, omissions, and surrounding qualification. Confirm that the pinpoint refers to the intended page or paragraph rather than merely a PDF viewer's position.
If you use a second model to help, ask it to identify discrepancies with the sources. Its conclusion remains a candidate review result until supported. Agreement with the drafter is not an external check.
Try it: all sentences are accurate
A summary accurately recounts five emails supporting early notice. It omits a sixth email identifying that the notice concerned a different schedule. Does sentence-level accuracy make the summary reliable?
Check your understanding
No. The omitted material may change the inference from the selected emails. Review completeness by issue and qualification, then revise the synthesis. The problem is not solved by attaching more citations to the five retained sentences.
Finish with the actual output
Check the exported document or table, including references, broken links, attachments, headings, and version identity. A correct working table can be corrupted or stripped of context during export. The work product that will be sent, filed, or used is the object of the final review.