A House Style for Entry Descriptions: Wording Every Line of an AI-Drafted List the Same Way

A Reviewer opens an AI-drafted entry list and reads down the description column. One line says "Doe Holdings." The next says "Payment, see folder." A third names a payee, the item, the document and the page. Each line might describe the right entry, but the Reviewer has to work out what each one means before checking it against its source.

In this method, the Firm writes a one-page style sheet for entry descriptions: Who, What and Source, in that order, followed by a Preparer note when there's something to add. The Firm puts it in the AI pass instructions it writes, and a Preparer uses the same sheet when hand-editing or keying a line. The plugin drafts; the Firm's preparer prepares; the Reviewer signs off. The style sheet only shapes how each line is worded.

This piece gives a paste-ready style sheet, pairs of weak and good descriptions, a style check the Preparer can run ahead of review, and a short Doe example. All of it lives in whatever systems the Firm already uses.

Why descriptions need a house style

Descriptions reach the list from more than one hand. The Firm includes the sheet in the instructions it writes for its AI pass. A Preparer edits some lines and keys others in from the page. A written house style gives the Preparer a shared wording pattern to check.

The cost lands on the Reviewer. A line that names no source sends them through the folder looking for it. A line that names a payee but not the item leaves them guessing what the entry is. A mixed list can still be read, but every line asks a fresh question before the real check starts.

An entry ID tells everyone which entry a note is about, as in an entry ID scheme for AI-drafted files. The description tells the Reviewer what that entry is and where to look for it.

The style sheet

The Firm can paste this table into its procedures and change any row to fit. In this method, the Firm uses Who, What and Source, separated by semicolons, followed by a Preparer note when there's something to add.

A few house rules sit under the table. Write one item per line. Use plain words and no shorthand beyond the Firm's own list of abbreviations. Keep amounts in their own column, never in the description. If the document names no payer or payee, the Who part reads "none named" rather than being left blank. Guesses and judgment words ("looks like", "probably") never go in the What part; if the Preparer has a view, it goes in a signed Preparer note.

The Source part is the same habit as asking AI to cite the page behind each figure, carried over to the words on the line.

Where the style sheet goes

In this method, the Firm puts the style sheet in two places. The first is the AI pass instructions the Firm writes: the four parts, the order, the house rules and a couple of good examples, pasted in as written. The second is the Firm's procedures for hand edits, so a Preparer who rewrites or keys a line works from the same sheet.

Writing the sheet into the instructions doesn't settle anything on its own. The Preparer still reads every drafted description against the sheet, and the Reviewer still reads every entry against its source.

The Firm keeps one copy of the sheet with a version number. When the sheet changes, the new version goes into the instructions and the hand-edit procedures together, so both quote the same text. For a list drafted under an earlier version, the Preparer checks against the version named in the instructions used for that list.

Weak and good descriptions

Each pair below describes the same made-up item. The weak line isn't wrong; it just leaves the Reviewer a question to answer first.

The good lines are longer. With them, a Reviewer can open the named page without asking anyone where it is.

The pre-review style check

In this method, the Firm has the Preparer run this check once the drafted descriptions are on the list, ahead of handing the file to the Reviewer. Each line gets a yes or a no for the whole list.

• Every description has Who, What and Source in the Firm's chosen order, with "none named" where the document names no payer or payee, followed by any Preparer note.
• Every name matches the name printed on the source document, spelled in full.
• Every What part describes the item in plain words, with no amount in it.
• Every Source part names a document that's in the client folder and a page that exists in that file.
• No Who, What or Source part carries a guess or a judgment word; any view sits in a Preparer note with initials.
• Every line the Preparer rewrote to fit the sheet carries a hand-edit mark, with the drafted wording kept beside it.
• Lines the Preparer keyed by hand follow the same sheet.

In this method, a no sends the line back to the Preparer to resolve the wording or source question, make any needed hand edit and mark it, as in marking hand edits on an AI-drafted entry list. The drafted wording stays beside the new one, so the Reviewer can see both.

The style check is about wording. It doesn't settle whether an entry is right; that judgment stays with the Reviewer.

What the Reviewer gets

The Reviewer reads a list where every line follows the same pattern: who, then what, then where to look. The Reviewer opens the named page, compares it with the line and moves on, without first working out how each description was written.

The style sheet doesn't change what the Reviewer checks or how sign-off works. The Reviewer reads every entry against its source and signs off on the whole file. No file is done without the Reviewer's sign-off.

If the Firm already keeps one vocabulary for AI-drafted work, the Preparer note can use those same status words. That keeps the note column as plain as the description column.

A Doe example

The names and file below are made up for illustration.

Alex Doe, the Preparer, works the synthetic Doe Holdings file. The Firm's AI pass instructions carry its style sheet, and the drafted list has a description on every line. In the Firm's chosen method, Alex runs the style check before handing the file to the Reviewer.

Alex compares the descriptions with the sheet. Alex finds wording that doesn't fit. A line reads "Payment to Sam." The invoice in the folder names the payee as Sam Doe and the item as logo design work, so Alex rewrites the line by hand with the payee, the item, the invoice name and its page, and marks it as a hand edit with the drafted wording beside it.

Another line names the hosting invoice but leaves out the page. Alex opens the file, finds the page, adds it by hand and marks the change as a hand edit, with the drafted wording kept beside it. Another says a card charge "looks like office supplies." Alex rewrites the What part in plain words from the statement, puts the view in a Preparer note with initials and marks the change as a hand edit, with the drafted wording kept beside it.

When every check line reads yes, Alex hands the file to Pat Doe, the Reviewer. Pat compares each entry with its named page and sends back a note: a cited page is the covering letter, and the invoice is on the following page. Alex corrects the source page by hand and marks the change as a hand edit, with the drafted wording kept beside it. Pat reads the corrected line against the invoice and signs off on the whole file.

Where TracePrep fits

We've built a TracePrep plugin that drafts these steps in your Firm's workflow, while your preparer decides and your Reviewer signs off. Join the waitlist and we'll tell you when plugin access opens.

Get on the list for plugin access

This is general information, not tax or legal advice. In TracePrep's workflow, the plugin drafts, the Firm's preparer prepares, and the Firm's Reviewer signs off. Access to the plugin is by waitlist. Keep client data inside the systems your Firm has approved.