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The number after the citation, pointing at one paragraph.
Also known as: Paragraph reference, Number in square brackets after a case
A citation identifies a judgment; a pinpoint identifies the sentence you actually mean. Its absence is the commonest weakness in a legal argument, because a citation to a whole case supports nothing in particular.
A reference to the specific paragraph or page relied on within a cited authority, written as a bracketed paragraph number in modern practice or a page number in older reports.
A record about how a reference is written, not about what the law says. Nothing here is legal advice.
Paragraph numbering was introduced with neutral citation so that a passage could be located in any edition, printed or electronic. Older authorities have page numbers instead, and both appear in a modern citation.
England and Wales · paragraph numbering from 2001
A citation without one asserts that a case supports a proposition without saying where, which is why style guides and courts alike treat the omission as a defect rather than a shorthand.
A numeral in square brackets, or a bare numeral after a comma, placed at the end of a citation.