Use "section" in prose

Warning²Federal courts, Illinois courts21st and 22nd editions

In the text of a piece the § and ¶ symbols are spelled out as “section” and “paragraph”; the symbols stay only in citations and in references to the federal code or federal regulations.¹

1. 1R. 6.2(c) Section (§) and paragraph (¶) symbols. Tables: R. 12.10(c) “Section.”; R. 14.2(a) Final rules and regulations.
2. 2A warning: the form is usually wrong under the rule in note 1, and context can justify it.