Paragraph numbering

Documents with numbered paragraphs take on a legal air and thus look much less inviting for most readers than those without numbers. There are only two reasons to number paragraphs: if people are going to need to refer to specific paragraphs often (and need an easier reference than headings and page numbers can provide) or if the most important readership of a document will be upset if you don’t. If neither of these things is true, do not number your paragraphs.

If a client is used to numbering paragraphs, ask them if they really need to. If the document is for public consumption, you should put up a strong argument against numbering.