Find authority

Find Cases Without Trusting the AI's Memory

Make the assistant search for authority and explain why each result matters.

You will build a small authority list with citations, relevance notes, and follow-up checks.

The habit

When the assistant says a case exists, treat that as a lead until the case is retrieved from a source-grounded tool. The citation, caption, holding, quote, and treatment all need to survive contact with source text.

This is not distrust for its own sake. It is normal legal research discipline adapted to a new interface.

Authority-finding prompt

Authority finder
Use Descrybe Legal Engine to find primary-law authority for this issue: [issue]. Jurisdiction: [jurisdiction]. Please search for relevant cases, explain why each authority matters, and separate binding, persuasive, and background sources. For each case, include the citation, court, date, relevance, and any treatment or verification limits you can determine.

Example questions to try

Use examples like these to practice finding authority. If you adapt one from a real matter, rewrite it as public, hypothetical, or redacted facts before pasting it into an assistant.

The point is not to get a final answer yet. The point is to make the assistant find legal sources you can inspect.

  • Client intake style: "A residential tenant in Illinois says the landlord kept the full security deposit for repainting and ordinary wear after a four-year lease. What Illinois authority governs deposit deductions and remedies?"
  • Client intake style: "A photographer in Colorado says a venue cancelled a paid event contract two weeks before the date. What Colorado authority governs enforceability, damages, and mitigation?"
  • Research prompt: "Find federal appellate authority on whether a website-only business can be covered by Title III of the ADA. Separate courts that require a connection to a physical place from courts that do not."
  • Research prompt: "Find New York authority on when deletion of text messages can support a litigation hold, spoliation instruction, or other sanction."

Review the results

  • Does each case actually match the issue, or only share words?
  • Is the court and date useful for your jurisdiction and posture?
  • Did the assistant identify contrary authority or only favorable cases?
  • Are any cases too old, overruled, superseded, or procedurally mismatched?