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How do I manually continue a numbered list?

Anonymous
2019-12-18T19:30:32+00:00

I have to compose legal documents with complicated formatting requirements.  The paragraphs must be numbered, but individual paragraphs must also switch back and forth between multiple line-spacing formats, margins, and other paragraph-level properties.

This inevitably breaks the paragraph numbering so that I cannot continue the numbered list following a paragraph.  Once this has happened the only fix I have found is to go back to the first part of the paragraph where any style parameter changed, CUT all the subsequent text, hit ENTER to establish a new numbered paragraph below, then paste the cut text into a text editor, convert it to plain text, paste all of the text back in small chunks, manually re-do all the spacing and margin formatting, and the regular old text formatting, and so forth  (If I don't convert it to plain text, Word is comprehensively unable to understand what I am trying to do and keeps creating new nested sub-lists or otherwise ruins the formatting in spectacular fashion)

This is all incredibly time consuming.  Isn't there a way I can just indicate a point in the document and tell Word to continue the last numbered list at that specific point?

Microsoft 365 and Office | Word | For home | Windows

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  1. John Korchok 231.4K Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
    2019-12-18T20:36:50+00:00

    The best practice is to create outline numbered styles, which can then be applied reliably. Here's an article about creating such styles in Word for Mac. This article is focused on numbered heading styles: Outline Numbering in Word for OS X - Best Practices

    But your text sounds like you're applying numbering to text instead of headings. In that scenario, this article explains how to apply outline numbering to any styles: Outline Numbering Variations - Best Practices

    After creating these styles, apply them to text that needs to be numbered. After a break in numbering, reapply the style where numbering has to resume. In most cases, that's all you have to do: Word picks up the previous number for that style and increments it.

    If Word doesn't get it right the first time, right-click on the incorrect number and set it to Restart Numbering or Continue Numbering.

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  1. Anonymous
    2019-12-18T20:51:10+00:00

    Thank you!  I will not have time to try this today, but it is a very credible-sounding response so I will mark it as Answered.

    :)

    Cheers!

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