Help / FAQ
What is MiCite?
MiCite is a citation-formatting tool for Michigan legal writing. It reviews legal citations you enter, identifies likely formatting issues, and suggests corrected citation forms where it can do so reliably.
MiCite is not an official court product. It is not a substitute for legal research, professional judgment, or final proofreading before filing.
What does MiCite check?
MiCite is limited to citation formatting. It focuses on reporter abbreviations, punctuation, spacing, constitutional citation formatting, court rule formatting, statutory citation formatting, and citation forms commonly used in Michigan legal writing.
MiCite is not a full cite-checking or legal research tool. When parallel citation formatting is on, MiCite uses citation-only CourtListener lookup to help supply missing parallel citations. The browser and same-origin lookup endpoint validate that lookup requests contain only citation fields, not free-form text or case names. Enabling this optional feature allows MiCite to compare a case name kept in the browser against public metadata returned by CourtListener and flag a likely mismatch. MiCite does not verify that quoted material or legal inferences are accurate or determine whether an authority has been overruled, superseded, abrogated, vacated, distinguished, or otherwise limited.
The Michigan Appellate Opinion Manual contains broader guidance about grammar, quotations, capitalization, numbers, opinion structure, and legal writing style. Most of that is outside the current scope of MiCite.
What does MiCite not check?
MiCite does not tell you whether a case, statute, rule, or other authority is still good law. It does not Shepardize® citations, use KeyCite®, update, validate, or rank authorities. The optional CourtListener lookup includes a beta reporter-citation check and a browser-local comparison against returned public case name or caption metadata for cases, but it does not confirm that a quotation is accurate or decide whether a citation supports the sentence where it appears.
MiCite also does not guarantee that every possible citation format will be detected. Legal citations vary, and some citations may be unusual, incomplete, ambiguous, or outside the current scope of the tool.
Does MiCite use AI?
No. MiCite's formatting engine does not use generative AI, large language models, or automated legal reasoning.
MiCite uses deterministic citation-formatting rules. That means it looks for citation patterns and applies programmed formatting rules. It does not "think," predict legal outcomes, generate legal arguments, or decide whether an authority is good law.
Future optional features may use AI in limited ways, and AI assistance was used in coding MiCite. MiCite will never transmit user text, uploaded files, citation reports, corrected output, formatted output, or other user data to generative AI without user notification and opt-in.
For more information about how MiCite handles user text, files, citation lookups, and other data, please review the Privacy & Security page.
Because MiCite is rule-based, it may still make mistakes. A citation may be missed, misread, or corrected in a way that does not fit the context. Users should review all suggested corrections before relying on them.
How should I use it?
Paste text containing citations into the review box and run the checker. MiCite will look for citations it recognizes and suggest formatting corrections where appropriate. Review each suggestion before using it.
Before filing anything, review the relevant court rules, any applicable local requirements, and the underlying authorities themselves.
What inputs does the beta support?
The current deployed beta supports pasted text and TXT/MD file uploads in the browser. DOCX, PDF, RTF, command-line input, MCP, and agent integrations are future possibilities, not current beta features.
Is MiCite based on an official source?
Yes. MiCite is based on citation-formatting guidance found in the Michigan Appellate Opinion Manual, published by the Michigan Supreme Court, Office of the Reporter of Decisions.
Current Michigan Appellate Opinion Manual
That does not mean every part of the Manual is covered by the app. MiCite is focused mainly on citation formatting.
What about other systems of citation?
MiCite is not a general Bluebook® checker. It may recognize and correct some citations that resemble Bluebook-style citations, especially when they are close to Michigan practice, but it is not designed to check every Bluebook rule, every federal citation rule, every law-review convention, or every citation format used in other states.
MiCite is also not intended to be a full checker for the former Michigan Uniform System of Citation. The Michigan Supreme Court rescinded that system in Administrative Order No. 2014-22, entered November 5, 2014. Older Michigan briefs, opinions, forms, and office templates may still contain citation forms influenced by that former system.
What are source-format extensions?
For selected works such as the Bible, Qur’an, Shakespeare, The Federalist Papers, Blackstone, Plato, Aristotle, Dante, and other classical, religious, philosophical, literary, or legal-historical works, MiCite may display a source-format note. If the Michigan Appellate Opinion Manual gives a specific form, MiCite points to the Manual form. If the Manual does not specify a form, MiCite labels the suggestion as an unofficial extension based on stable internal locators and recognized citation conventions.
Does Michigan require parallel citations?
Michigan citation practice has changed over time, and the answer can depend on the type of authority and the context. The “Format with parallel citations” switch tells MiCite to keep supplied parallels and, in the hosted app, try to supply missing parallels from CourtListener. Users should confirm the current rule, order, manual provision, or local practice before relying on any citation format in a filing.
Does MiCite offer a public API?
No. MiCite does not offer a public API in the current beta. The parallel-citation endpoint used by the hosted app is an internal same-origin feature, not a supported third-party API.
Why did MiCite miss a citation?
A citation may be missed because it is incomplete, unusually formatted, contains a typo, uses a reporter or source not yet supported, or appears in a form that the app does not currently recognize. Expanding coverage and improving detection are ongoing goals.
Why did MiCite suggest a correction I disagree with?
MiCite uses deterministic formatting rules. Sometimes a citation may be ambiguous, the app may apply a rule too broadly, or the citation may be valid in a context the app does not understand. Use your own judgment and verify the final form before relying on a suggested correction.
Can I use MiCite with confidential or privileged material?
Review the Privacy & Security before using MiCite with confidential, privileged, or sensitive material. As a general practice, avoid pasting more confidential information than necessary. In many cases, you can test a citation by pasting only the citation itself or a short excerpt. If optional parallel lookup is on, MiCite is designed to send only extracted reporter citation fields for lookup: volume, reporter, and page.
Does MiCite comply with State Bar of Michigan guidance about privileged and confidential information?
MiCite is designed to reduce confidentiality risk by focusing only on citation formatting and by avoiding generative AI.
The State Bar of Michigan has cautioned lawyers to understand the technology they use, to protect client confidences and secrets, and to be careful about entering privileged or confidential information into AI tools or other technology platforms. MiCite's formatting engine is not a generative AI tool, but lawyers should still use care with any legal technology.
As a general practice, do not paste more confidential, privileged, or client-identifying information than necessary. In many cases, you can check a citation by pasting only the citation itself or a short excerpt instead of an entire brief, motion, email, memorandum, or client file.
MiCite is a tool to assist with citation formatting. It does not make a lawyer compliant with the Michigan Rules of Professional Conduct, and it does not replace the lawyer's own duties of competence, confidentiality, supervision, and professional judgment.
For more detail, please review the Privacy & Security page and the Terms of Use.
What are the terms for using MiCite?
The Terms of Use explain the conditions for using MiCite, including important limitations. This Help page is only a practical summary and does not replace the Terms.
Is MiCite legal advice?
No. MiCite is a citation-formatting tool. It does not provide legal advice, legal research, litigation strategy, or an opinion about the merits of any case, filing, argument, or authority.
How do I report an error, bug, or missing citation format?
Feedback is appreciated. When reporting a problem, please include the citation or short text sample that caused the issue, what MiCite did, what you expected MiCite to do, and your browser and device if the problem appears to be technical.
Please avoid sending confidential, privileged, or client-identifying information in a bug report unless it is truly necessary and you are comfortable doing so. In most cases, a shortened or anonymized citation example is enough.
Send feedback to info@cognisint.com.
Can I suggest new citation types or features?
Yes. Useful suggestions include examples of citation forms MiCite missed, citation formats used in Michigan practice, confusing output, accessibility problems, browser issues, or workflow improvements that would make the app easier to use.
How do I share MiCite?
Use the Share MiCite button in the header. On supported devices, it opens the system share sheet. If system sharing is unavailable, MiCite copies the public link or shows the link so you can copy it manually.
Is MiCite finished?
No. MiCite is under active development. The goal is to make it useful, predictable, privacy-conscious, and easy to verify.
Trademark and copyright notes
Shepardize® and Shepard’s® are trademarks of RELX Inc. or its affiliates. KeyCite® is a trademark of Thomson Reuters or its affiliates. MiCite is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by LexisNexis, RELX, Thomson Reuters, or Westlaw.
The Bluebook® and The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation® are registered trademarks. The Bluebook is copyrighted by its respective copyright holders. MiCite is not affiliated with, endorsed by, sponsored by, or authorized by the editors or publishers of The Bluebook.