Citations Should Do More Than Look Reassuring

A footnote can make a paragraph look serious. So can a very confident tone. Neither tells a researcher what the source actually supports. The useful question is whether an employment-law professional can follow the claim back to the material and decide what weight it deserves.

A tribunal decision and a piece of workplace guidance are not interchangeable just because both have a link. One might help with a factual comparison; the other might provide process context. Without that distinction, the reader is left to do all the sorting.

Tribuno is moving beyond finding decisions. We're working on showing why a source belongs in the research and which question it helps answer.

In an illustrative note about a disciplinary process, there is a tribunal decision for a factual comparison, guidance for process context and another decision with a different chronology. Drop all three after one sweeping sentence and the reader has to work out which source supports which point.

Give each link a job. Say what it helps with, point to the passage where possible and keep important differences in view. The professional still decides what the material means. A citation should take the reader to the material they need to make that judgement.

Tribuno keeps the role of a source visible. If a reference is general, call it general; do not make the reader expect a precise passage. The aim is enough context for a real check, without adding a screenful of clutter.

When you read a cited summary, ask: which statement does this support, where is the support, and what is still unresolved? If the link helps you answer, it is doing more than decorating the page. A useful citation lets you check the argument, including the parts you disagree with.