Training Module: Inserting quoted structures and quoted text

This module will help you understand how quoted structures are used to recreate inserted text in bills and amendments. There are some key learning points to understand which explain why quoted structures must be used in certain ways to achieve the amendments you wish to create.

📘 Introduction

Quoted structures

Quoted Text

📚 Exercises

🛠️ Getting Started

Before you can complete this exercise, you will need your own training project containing a half finished bill to continue drafting.
If you haven’t got one already, create a project containing a half finished bill: Drafting a bill.xml
The following steps will allow you to create the data required for this exercise.

How to create a new project

Download the XML document for the exercise by clicking on the link you’ve been provided with. By default, the downloaded file is usually placed in the “downloads” folder on your computer.
Log in to Lawmaker.
From the Dashboard, create a new project of the type you need for the exercise. Give it a title such as [Your Initials] Drafting a bill. (See Creating a new project.)
From the Project tab for that project, select Document Actions > Upload document, and select the XML file for the exercise which you have downloaded. It can be uploaded into the default folder that has been created in the project. (See Create a new document by uploading an XML file.)
On the newly uploaded document version, select Actions > Update Document Information and update the Title to match the title you originally gave the project.
Duplicate this document version using Actions > Duplicate version and call the new version the name of this module. We will create a new document version per module.
Open the duplicated version in the Editor

✏️ Exercise 1: Insert a basic quoted structure

This exercise introduces quoted structures.

If you haven’t already done so, duplicate the imported bill version and name it the description of this module so you can easily track work related to these exercises. Open this document in the Editor and when the Editor has finished loading, recreate the following simple quoted structure in section 3(2)—

Detailed steps to insert a quoted structure

Place your cursor in section 3(1) and click Enter to view the insert menu
Select Subsection (1) and type into the empty ‘Text’ element In section 20 (performance in meetings), after paragraph (b) insert—
Click Enter to view the insert menu and select Quoted structure
In the Update Quoted Structure dialog box, leave the default document type as Act of the Northern Ireland Assembly and select Paragraph (a) from the starting element dropdown menu. Leave the Indent Level, Start quote and End quote unchanged and add a full-stop to the Following text field
Place your cursor into the empty num element containing the parentheses and type ba. This num has a box around it with a dotted border indicating the num has been locked.
Type that the operation by the council of the proposed arrangements would be an improvement on the arrangements which the council has in place for the discharge of its functions at the time that the proposal is made to the Department; into the first paragraph
Insert another paragraph and type that the operation by the council of the proposed arrangements would be likely to ensure that the decisions of the council are taken in an efficient, transparent and accountable way; and
Insert another paragraph and type that the arrangements, if prescribed under this section, would be appropriate for all councils to consider.

✏️ Exercise 2: Insert an adjacent quoted structure

This exercise shows you how to insert an adjacent quoted structure. Adjacent quoted structures are used when provisions needs to be inserted back to back or when a provision of a higher-level than the starting provision is required.

Recreate the following quoted structure (continuing from Exercise 1)—

Step 1: insert an adjacent quoted structure

With your cursor inside the third paragraph, click Enter to view the insert menu. Subsection (1) is not listed in the list of valid elements that can be inserted. To insert a subsection next you will need to insert an adjacent quoted structure and select Subsection (1) as the starting element in this quoted structure

Detailed steps to insert an adjacent quoted structure

With your cursor inside the first quoted structure, right-click and select Insert Adjacent Quoted Structure
Leave the document type unchanged, select Subsection (1) as the starting element, leave the indent level unchanged but change Start quote to None and add a full-stop in the Following text field.
Type A council may propose to the Department that the Department make regulations prescribing arrangements specified in the proposal if the council considers that the conditions in subsection (6) are met. into the empty ‘Text’ element
Type 5A into the empty num element

Step 2: update the quoted structure properties of the first quoted structure

The start and end quotes and following text situation aren’t correct for the overall inserted text (which includes the adjacent quoted structure) so you will need to update the quoted structure properties of the first quoted structure

Detailed steps to update quoted structure properties

Place your cursor anywhere inside the first quoted structure and right-click, selecting Update Quoted Structure Properties
Change the End quote to None and remove the full-stop from the Following text field
Ignore the mandatory document check error warning about the lack of an end quote on the first quoted structure

You can generate a PDF of section 3 to reassure yourself that the adjacent quoted structure merges undetected with the original quoted structure when printed.
You can continue adding further quoted structures if you need to insert a higher-level provision again.

✏️ Exercise 3: Insert quoted text

This exercise will show you when to use quoted text in your document.

When drafting a textual amendment that only involves a word or a phrase (i.e. does not involve inserting or substituting a whole provision), you should use the Quoted Text element in Lawmaker to represent the text that is being left out, inserted or substituted, rather than simply surrounding the text with quote marks.

Recreate the following quoted text example—

Step 1: update the existing substitute text to use the Quoted Text elements

Delete the existing substitute text within quoted structure and insert a Quoted text element and retype the missing content.

Detailed steps to retrospecitvely insert Quoted text into a provision

In section 6, cut the text the Department of the Environment and delete the remaining quote marks
After “for” leave a space and then click Enter and select Quoted text from the insert menu
In the empty Quoted text element, use keyboard shortcut CTRL+V to paste the cut text
Repeat these steps for the text in substitute the Department for Communities

Step 2: Insert Quoted Text

Insert Quoted text element into your provision as you type.

Detailed steps to insert Quoted text as you draft a new provision

Place your cursor at the start of the text in section 6 content
Use your right arrow to move the cursor into the section element using the breadcrumb to guide you (it should end up as Bill > body > Part > Section)
Click Enter and select Subsection (1).
Type In section 132(3), insert at the end into the empty ‘Text’ element
Leave a space after “end” and click Enter to insert a Quoted text element
Type or to a limited liability partnership within the quote marks, in the empty Quoted text placeholder

✏️ Exercise 4: Adjust a quoted structure’s indent

This exercise will show you when and how to update the indent level in a quoted structure.

In most cases you can leave the indent level to the default set which indents the whole quoted structure the equivalent of one indent to indicate that the provisions are inserted text. In some scenarios, you might need to increase the indent e.g. you are inserting paragraphs for a definition; or you are inserting a table which is large and would benefit from being the full width of the page; or you are amending inserted text within the enacted legislation.

Recreate the following quoted structure, using the indent level to adjust the indent of the paragraphs to match where they were inserted.

Step 1: Insert quoted text

After section 3(1) insert another new subsection and at the end insert Quoted text.

Detailed steps to insert new subsection with a quoted text element

Place your cursor in section 3(1) and click Enter to insert a new subsection
Type the following into the empty Text element In section 19, in the definition of “international meeting practice”, at end insert
Leave a space after ‘insert’ and click Enter to insert Quoted text
Type — into the empty Quoted text element

Step 2: Update the quoted text properties

Update the Quoted text properties to remove the end quote due to running straight into a quoted structure.

Detailed step to update the quoted text properties

With your cursor in the Quoted text element, right-click and select Update Quoted Text Properties
Set End quote to None

Step 3: Insert the quoted structure and update the indent level

Insert the quoted structure containing the definition’s paragraphs.

Detailed steps to insert a quoted structure with updated indent levels

Make sure your cursor is outside of the Quoted text element and the mod element (the breadcrumb should read Bill > body > Part > Cross heading > Section > Subsection > Content > Text) and click Enter to insert a Quoted Structure
In the Update Quoted Structure dialog box, leave the default document type as Act of the Northern Ireland Assembly and select Paragraph (a) from the starting element dropdown menu. Select 1 for the Indent Level, select None for the Start quote and leave End quote unchanged. Add a full-stop to the Following text field,.
Type a into the empty number and type the following into the empty Text element the protocols to the United Nations Framework Convention on Meetings, or
Click Enter and insert another paragraph
Type such other international agreements or arrangements as the Department may specify by regulations; into the empty Text element

✏️ Exercise 5: Lock nums and renumber

This exercise explains why num locks are used and how and when to insert and remove them. Num locks can be used anywhere in the document but are particularly relevant in the context of quoted structures when the starting provision often doesn’t start at the beginning of a series.

Whenever a numbered provision is inserted as the starting element in a quoted structure, the num is always locked as it is common for inserted text to start halfway through a numbered series. If you were to renumber your quoted structure without locked nums, the starting provision’s num would reset to the start of the series. This is why the start provision’s num is always locked.

Recreate the following quoted structure—

Step 1: Insert a quoted structure containing a cross heading as the starting element

Insert a quoted structure into a subsection inserted after section 3(1)

Detailed steps to insert a quoted structure with a cross heading

Place your cursor in section 3(1) and click Enter to insert a new subsection
Type the following into the empty Text element After section 2, insert—
Click Enter and select to insert a quoted structure
In the Update Quoted Structure dialog box, leave the default document type as Act of the Northern Ireland Assembly and select Cross heading from the starting element dropdown menu. Leave the Indent Level, Start quote and End quote unchanged. Add a full-stop to the Following text field.
Type Meetings abroad into the empty Heading element
Click Enter to insert a section which will not have a lock automatically applied to its num.
Replace the section num 1. with 2A and type the following into the empty subsection text element: Meeting abroad into the section heading and If it is a warm climate, bring sun protection.
Click Enter to insert another subsection and type If it is a cold climate, bring extra layers.

Notice how there is yellow underlining indicating a document check warning that the first number in the quoted structure should be locked.

Step 2: Renumber the quoted structure

Renumber the quoted structure when there are no locked nums to see how numbering is affected

Detailed steps to renumber a quoted structure

With your cursor inside the quoted structure, click on the Renumber Provisions button in the upper tool bar
Select Whole Quoted Structure and see how the section is renumbered to 1

Step 3: Assign a num lock to the section num

Assign a lock to the section num, update the numbers and renumber the quoted structure again to see how num locks prevent unintended consequences

Detailed steps to lock the first numbered provision in the quoted structure

Place your cursor in the section num (use the breadcrumb to check if you are in the …> Section > Num element)
Right-click and select Lock/Unlock Number and a dotted box appears around the number to indicate it has been locked and will not be updated by a renumber action.
Update the number to 2A.
With your cursor inside the quoted structure, click on the Renumber Provisions button in the upper tool bar
Select Whole Quoted Structure and see how the section remains as 2A

☑️ When complete…

Save your changes and close the Editor using the Close Editor button