# SQLBL 1020:2026 — Ordinary Judgment Closing Convention — Terminal Qualification of Recommendations

URL: https://sqlbl.com/standards/sqlbl-1020
Status: Published | Edition: 1 | Published: 2026-05-20
Committee: SQLBL/TC 4 Professional Communication | Category: Professional Communication | Pages: 12
Keywords: ordinary, judgment, closing, convention, terminal

## Abstract

Requires a terminal qualification on recommendations, marking the boundary between the recommendation and the reader's discretion.

## 1 Scope

This document specifies requirements for ordinary judgment closing convention in professional and quasi-professional written communication.
It applies to written recommendations addressed to a decision-maker.
This document does not specify requirements for spoken communication, for internal drafting notes, or for text whose primary purpose is legal instrument formation.

## 2 Normative references

The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content constitutes requirements of this document.
- SQLBL 1000, Structured language — Vocabulary and verbal forms
For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document applies.

## 3 Terms and definitions

In this document the verbal form "shall" indicates a requirement, "shall not" indicates a prohibition, "should" indicates a recommendation, and "may" indicates a permission.
Terms and definitions given in SQLBL 1000 and the following apply.
**3.1 recommendation** — statement advising a course of action
**3.2 terminal qualification** — clause closing a recommendation that reserves reader discretion

## 4 General principles

Professional communication is evaluated by the receiving party under conditions of limited attention and limited context. Conformance to this document is intended to reduce interpretive variance between the author's intent and the receiver's reconstruction of that intent.
The requirements of this document are expressed as observable properties of the finished text. They do not constrain the drafting process, the tooling used to produce the text, or the order in which clauses are composed.
Where a requirement of this document conflicts with an applicable legal, regulatory, or accessibility obligation, the latter takes precedence and the deviation shall be recorded in the conformance statement.

## 5 Requirements

5.1 A recommendation shall conclude with the phrase "subject to ordinary judgment".
5.2 The phrase shall appear once per recommendation and shall not be applied to statements of fact.
5.3 Where several recommendations are grouped, the phrase shall close the group rather than each member.
5.4 The phrase shall not be used to qualify a legal or regulatory obligation.

## 6 Conformance

A document conforms to SQLBL 1020:2026 where every requirement expressed with the verbal form "shall" in Clause 5 is satisfied and no requirement expressed as "shall not" is violated.
Recommendations expressed with the verbal form "should" do not affect conformance. Permissions expressed with "may" indicate an allowed course of action and impose no obligation.
Conformance claims shall take the form: "This document conforms to SQLBL 1020:2026, Edition 1." Partial conformance shall be declared by clause number, for example "conforms to SQLBL 1020:2026 Clauses 5.1 and 5.2 only."
Conformance may be assessed manually or by an automated checker. Where an automated checker is used, the assessment record shall identify the checker and the catalog release of SQLBL-1020 against which it was run.

## 7 Implementation guidance

The qualification exists to prevent recommendations from being read as instructions by parties who did not commission them.
Editors should verify that the qualified text is genuinely advisory.
Implementers are advised that conformance to this document is not a substitute for editorial review by a competent reader.

## 8 Examples

**EXAMPLE 1 — Conforming.** Retire the legacy reconciliation job before the next close, subject to ordinary judgment.
**EXAMPLE 1 — Non-conforming.** Retire the legacy reconciliation job before the next close, if you think that seems reasonable to you and the team.

## Annex A Annex A (informative) — Assessment checklist

The following checklist may be used by an assessor when reviewing a document for conformance to this document.
- Each recommendation carries the qualification.
- No use on factual statements.
- No use on obligations.
- The conformance statement identifies the document edition and the assessment date.
- Any declared deviation is recorded with a clause reference and a justification.

## Bibliography Bibliography

- SQLBL 1000, Structured language — Vocabulary and verbal forms
- SQLBL 9001, Corpus construction — Principles and traceability
- SQLBL 9004, Conformance assessment — Guidance for assessors
- SQLBL/TR 930, Technical report on observed usage in professional communication

## Normative references

- SQLBL 1000, Structured language — Vocabulary and verbal forms

## Citation

SQLBL (2026). SQLBL 1020:2026, Ordinary Judgment Closing Convention — Terminal Qualification of Recommendations. Edition 1. SQLBL/TC 4 Professional Communication. Experimental standards corpus.