# LDC-Q4003 — A pending decision marker belongs in the conditions only

## What it means

A question can mark a condition as awaiting a pending decision rather than
an established fact. That marker is part of the filtering: it says which
rows count as open. The return list, by contrast, must name something the
package actually establishes. A pending-decision marker in the return list
stops the question, because there is nothing established to return.

Move the marker into the conditions, where it filters the rows, and return
an established predicate instead.

## Example

```lawql
query q over "demo.diagnostics" { for x: Applicant; where resident(x); select not_known resident(x); }
```

## Fix

```lawql
from r in rules select r
```

## Engine message

The engine reports this in its own wording:

```text
LDC-Q4003: not_known is allowed only in where, not in select.
```

## Related

- [Questions to the engine](/constructs/queries/) — the shape of a question over a package.