# Research Handoff Packet

Transfer findings, source context, evidence limits, unresolved questions, restricted material, and verification priorities from researcher to writer.

## Usage note

Complete this packet when responsibility moves from research to drafting, or when another team must continue the work. Link rather than duplicate restricted source material, and preserve access controls. The packet should make limits and open questions as prominent as headline findings; it is not an invitation for a writer to convert tentative notes into publishable facts.

## How to use this template

1. Restate the audience, assignment, research question, scope, definitions, and delivery constraints.
2. Summarize each major finding with confidence, source IDs, and mandatory qualifications.
3. Link approved notes, evidence, calculations, quotations, assets, and permission records.
4. Assign open questions, contradictions, pending responses, and prohibited claims clear treatments.
5. Conduct the handoff, confirm understanding, and name the ongoing question and update channel.

## Blank template

### Assignment orientation

- **Project and deliverable:** [Name and format]
- **Primary reader:** [Role, need, and knowledge]
- **Research question:** [Final bounded question]
- **Scope and exclusions:** [Population, period, geography, and omitted areas]
- **Definitions:** [Terms the writer must use consistently]
- **Research cutoff:** [YYYY-MM-DD]
- **Expected publication date:** [YYYY-MM-DD]
- **Suggested structure:** [Evidence-led outline, if helpful]

### Findings and files

- **Finding 1:** [Bounded conclusion] — **Source IDs:** [IDs] — **Confidence:** [Reason]
- **Required qualification:** [Limit that must remain]
- **Finding 2:** [Bounded conclusion] — **Source IDs:** [IDs] — **Confidence:** [Reason]
- **Contradictory evidence:** [Sources and treatment]
- **Approved quotation log:** [Link and attribution rules]
- **Calculations or data:** [Versioned location]
- **Approved assets:** [Files and permission]
- **Restricted materials:** [Access path and prohibited use]

### Open work and acceptance checks

- [ ] High-consequence and volatile claims are marked.
- [ ] Every finding links to source context.
- [ ] Interpretation is distinguished from source language.
- [ ] Open questions have owners, dates, and fallback wording.
- [ ] Pending source responses are not treated as confirmation.
- [ ] Restricted information is not duplicated into unsafe locations.
- [ ] Claims that evidence cannot support are listed explicitly.
- [ ] Writer, researcher, and editor agree on the continuing update channel.