Crossword Genius

Each prison chaotic yet obsessed by rules (10)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

pernickety

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'obsessed by rules' is the definition.
The answer and definition are different parts of speech. However, adjectives and past participle verbs occasionally define each other.

'each prison chaotic yet' is the wordplay.
'each' becomes 'per' ('per' can mean for each).
'prison' becomes 'nick' (slang term for prison).
'chaotic' is an anagram indicator.
'yet' anagrammed gives 'ety'.
'per'+'nick'+'ety'='PERNICKETY'

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(Other definitions for pernickety that I've seen before include "Particular" , "Nice" , "Over-particular" , "Fussily pedantic" , "Paying too much attention to trivial details" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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