# Citations and AI Citator
Paxton's AI Citator helps you quickly evaluate the cases cited in Paxton's responses so you can rely on them with confidence. There are two ways to surface citator information:
* Inline citation previews — hover or click a citation marker (e.g., `[1]`, `[3]`) directly inside any Paxton answer to see the case name, court, year, docket number, and the case's current treatment status at a glance.
* Full case analysis — open the Paxton AI Citator from a citation to read a complete treatment summary, including the reasoning behind the status.
### Inline Citation Previews and Case Treatment
Every citation that appears in a Paxton answer is now linked to the AI Citator. When you click a citation marker inside the response, a preview card appears with:
* The full case name and reporter citation
* The court and year of decision
* The docket number
* A case treatment indicator that tells you, at a glance, how the case has been treated by subsequent authority
### The Three Treatment States
Paxton's citator surfaces one of three treatment states on every citation preview. Each state maps to one or more specific treatment outcomes, listed below.
**1. No Treatment Indicator Shown**
When the preview card displays no colored treatment badge, Paxton has identified only neutral or positive treatment for the case — or no relevant subsequent authority. The case appears to be undisturbed by later authority, but you should still verify before relying on it for a dispositive issue.
Outcomes that fall into this state: **Affirmed**, **Praised**, **Followed**, and **Neutrally Cited**.
**2. Use Caution (yellow badge)**
A yellow **USE CAUTION** badge means Paxton has identified subsequent authority that may limit, distinguish, or question the cited case. The case has not been overruled, vacated, or otherwise undone, but later decisions warrant a closer look before you cite it. Click into the full Citator analysis to understand what triggered the caution flag.
Outcomes that fall into this state: **Refined**, **Distinguished**, and **Questioning**.
**3. Negative Treatment (red badge)**
A red **NEGATIVE TREATMENT** badge means Paxton has identified subsequent authority that negatively impacts the case — for example, the case has been overturned (in whole or in part), vacated, or recognized as overturned by another court. Treat these cases with care: open the full Citator analysis to see exactly how the case has been undermined before deciding whether and how to use it.
Outcomes that fall into this state: **Overturning in part**, **Recognizing as overturned**, **Vacating**, and **Overturning**.
### Treatment Outcomes Reference
The table below lists every treatment outcome Paxton's citator surfaces, the visual indicator it maps to, and the definition of what each outcome means.
| Treatment Outcome | Visual Treatment | User-facing definition |
| ------------------------- | ---------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Refined | 🟡 Refining | This court narrowed the application of the cited case's holding without overturning it. |
| Distinguished | 🟡 Distinguishing | This court declined to apply the cited case's holding, finding the facts of this case materially different. |
| Questioning | 🟡 Questioning | This court is questioning the cited case's reasoning or continued validity. |
| Overturning in part | 🔴 Overturning in part | This court is overturning some, but not all, of the cited case's holdings. |
| Recognizing as overturned | 🔴 Recognizing as overturned | This court is acknowledging that this case has been overturned, without itself being the overturning authority. |
| Vacating | 🔴 Vacating | This court is setting aside the judgment in the cited case. |
| Overturning | 🔴 Overturning | This court is overturning the holding in the cited case. |
> Tip: The inline preview is designed for quick triage. For any case you intend to rely on, open the full Citator analysis to read Paxton's reasoning.
### Tips for Success
* **Triage with the inline indicators.** Use the colored badges to quickly scan which cases in a Paxton answer warrant a deeper look before you spend time reading them in full.
* **Pay attention to the specific outcome.** Two cases with a yellow badge can mean very different things — a *Distinguished* case may still be good law on its own facts, while a *Questioning* case has been challenged on its reasoning. Open the full analysis to see which outcome applies.
* **Open Paxton in multiple tabs.** You can open Paxton in several browser tabs and run different Citator analyses in parallel. Each tab operates independently.
* **Critically evaluate AI-generated results.** Although Paxton delivers comprehensive citator information, the treatment indicator and the underlying analysis are starting points for your professional judgment, not substitutes for it. Always confirm a case's status before relying on it.
* **No badge ≠ verified good law.** A missing treatment badge means Paxton did not flag the case, not that the case has been affirmatively validated. When the stakes are high, run the full analysis.
### Frequently Asked Questions
**What does it mean when a citation has no treatment badge at all?** It means Paxton's citator did not identify any cautionary or negative treatment in subsequent authority. Outcomes such as *Affirmed*, *Praised*, *Followed*, and *Neutrally Cited* all display with no badge. The case still warrants verification before you rely on it.
**Why does a case show "Use Caution" instead of "Negative Treatment"?** "Use Caution" is reserved for outcomes where the case has not been overturned but has been *Refined*, *Distinguished*, or *Questioned* by a later court. "Negative Treatment" is reserved for stronger signals — *Overturning*, *Overturning in part*, *Vacating*, or *Recognizing as overturned*.
**What's the difference between *****Overturning***** and *****Recognizing as overturned*****?** *Overturning* means the citing court itself is overturning the holding of the cited case. *Recognizing as overturned* means the citing court is acknowledging that the cited case has already been overturned by another, prior decision — the citing court is not itself the overturning authority.
**What's the difference between *****Refined***** and *****Distinguished*****?** *Refined* means the later court narrowed the application of the cited case's holding without overturning it. *Distinguished* means the later court declined to apply the cited case's holding because it found the facts of the new case materially different.
**Can the treatment indicator change?** Yes. As new decisions are published and Paxton's citator updates, the indicator on a given case can change. Re-running the analysis surfaces the most current treatment.
**Does the indicator apply only to the case I clicked?** Yes. Each citation in a Paxton answer is evaluated independently, and the badge reflects the treatment of that specific case.\
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