recover-escaped-paragraphs-in-lists

Re-indent continuation paragraphs that escaped to column 0 between two list items

When an AI author writes a paragraph between two numbered list items at column 0, CommonMark breaks the list at that paragraph. This rule detects the shape and re-indents the paragraph to the preceding item’s continuation column so it nests inside the item.

This rule defaults to "off". The heuristic for “was this paragraph meant to be a continuation?” carries the highest false-positive risk of the five list-normalize rules, so it ships opt-in.

Modes

Value	Default	Behavior
`"off"`	✓	Never touch. Output is byte-identical for this rule.
`"heuristic"`		Structural preconditions (same list ordering, matching marker column, resumed numbering, paragraph dedented below the continuation indent) and the paragraph’s first inline token is a continuation signal: lowercase letter, inline code, or `,` `;` `:` `(` `—` `–` `-` `"` `'` `)`.
`"aggressive"`		Structural preconditions only — re-indent regardless of the first-token content.

Config

{
  "recover-escaped-paragraphs-in-lists": "heuristic"
}

Example — heuristic recovers

Before:

1. first item

also continues the first

2. second item

After ("heuristic"):

1. first item
   also continues the first

2. second item

The paragraph is re-indented by 3 spaces; the preceding item’s numbering flow is preserved.

Capital-initial new topic is left alone

Before:

1. first item

New unrelated topic that the author meant to stay at column 0.

2. second item

Output in "heuristic" mode is byte-identical — the capital start reads like a deliberate mid-list topic.

"aggressive" fires on structural signal alone and would re-indent the new topic. Only opt in if that matches your content’s conventions.

Notes

Non-resuming numbering (e.g. 1. … / 1. …) disqualifies the paragraph from recovery in every mode.
The rule is idempotent and runs before tighten-list-continuations in the formatter pipeline.
If you’re unsure whether this rule is safe for your content, use --dry-run to preview every change.