diff --git a/docs/research/2026-08-10-settings-track-handoff.md b/docs/research/2026-08-10-settings-track-handoff.md
index 9332d52c..389fd21a 100644
--- a/docs/research/2026-08-10-settings-track-handoff.md
+++ b/docs/research/2026-08-10-settings-track-handoff.md
@@ -182,6 +182,12 @@ plausibly video/audio/mouse).
   collide on bin locks). Read-only research/review agents may overlap a
   builder EXCEPT at their end-of-run targeted test step — in practice,
   run reviews and implementers serially; overlap only pure-read research.
+- ESCALATION ON REPEATED REVIEW FAILURE (user-directed 2026-08-10): if a
+  slice fails review TWICE (two REJECT rounds, or a rework that fails its
+  re-review), the main loop (Fable) takes over and fixes it directly —
+  no third Sonnet dispatch. Two failures mean the contract or the
+  mechanism is being misunderstood at the implementer tier; the fix needs
+  the coordinator'''s full context.
 - STALLED/YIELDED AGENTS: a watchdog-killed or early-yielding agent is
   resumed with SendMessage to its id — the transcript survives and it
   continues where it stopped (used twice in Campaign CH). Never redo its