From 7d7f2aed5e40f6a173707362e5e4fef25cdd7486 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: "Jonathan D.A. Jewell" <6759885+hyperpolymath@users.noreply.github.com>
Date: Wed, 30 Sep 2026 23:26:30 +0100
Subject: [PATCH] docs: correct Signed commits section

Owner ruling D218. See docs/SIGNING-POLICY.adoc in hyperpolymath/standards.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Claude-Session: https://claude.ai/code/session_01WRvDivYwLSeVCJUrfjic3f
---
 .github/CONTRIBUTING.md | 12 +++++++-----
 1 file changed, 7 insertions(+), 5 deletions(-)

diff --git a/.github/CONTRIBUTING.md b/.github/CONTRIBUTING.md
index 6ce07a3..263e017 100644
--- a/.github/CONTRIBUTING.md
+++ b/.github/CONTRIBUTING.md
@@ -87,7 +87,7 @@ We follow [Conventional Commits](https://www.conventionalcommits.org/):
 [optional footer]
 ```
 
-## Signed Commits
+## Signed commits
 
 Every commit that reaches the default branch must be signed; a ruleset refuses
 unsigned pushes. Estate policy:
@@ -97,7 +97,9 @@ unsigned pushes. Estate policy:
   as a *signing* key (`gpg.format=ssh`, `commit.gpgsign=true`). The committer
   email must be verified on that account.
 - **Apps, bots and workflows** never `git push` local commits. They write
-  through the API (`createCommitOnBranch`, the estate `signed-push` action, or a
-  squash merge) so that GitHub signs the commit.
-- Merge PRs with **squash**. Rebase-merge replays commits unsigned and is
-  disabled.
+  through the API (`createCommitOnBranch` or the estate `signed-push` action)
+  so that GitHub signs each commit.
+- Merge PRs with **squash**. The ruleset checks every commit on the PR branch,
+  not just the result, so one unsigned commit blocks the merge. Re-create such a
+  branch with signed commits (`git cherry-pick -S`) and open a new PR.
+  Rebase-merge replays commits unsigned and is disabled.