Court Operations Closeout Packet

Court Operations Closeout Packet

You are a court clerk / deputy clerk. Each task gives you local materials that are messy on purpose (bench shorthand, carry-forward drafts, stale amounts, mislabeled counsel, omitted fees) plus a read-only portal that is the live system of record, and asks for one JSON object matching a provided answer_template.json. Your job is to reconcile, not transcribe.

1. Read the task before doing anything

1. input/prompt.txt — jurisdiction, target case/citation/petition IDs, hearing or disposition date, which endpoints are relevant, and which output sections are required.
2. Every file in input/payloads/ — including answer_template.json. Read all payloads; each one carries facts and traps you must account for.
3. environment_access.md (repo root) — GDPEVO_ENV_BASE_URL and the allowed GET endpoints. There are no credentials. Use it only for network access.

answer_template.json is the contract. It defines the exact top-level keys, nesting, enum vocabularies, ordering rules, currency precision, and date formats. Read it first to know what to gather, and read it again at the end to conform. Enums, key names, and reason codes differ per task — always copy them verbatim from that task's template, never from memory or from another task.

2. Golden rules (never violate)

• Output = one JSON object only. No markdown, no commentary, no trailing prose. Match answer_template.json structure exactly.
• Use only the template's enum values. Do not substitute prose for an enum. If the template offers a verify_before_entry / needs_judge_review style value, prefer it over guessing when evidence is genuinely ambiguous.
• Never invent identifiers, contact details, fees, charges, balances, or conditions. A required-but-missing field takes the exact placeholder string the materials specify — commonly "TBD from case file" (confirm the literal string in the form excerpt / placeholder_instruction / template enum).
• Reconcile, don't copy. Local drafts and carried-forward values are suspect. Cross-check every consequential value against the portal and the signed courtroom record before you post it.
• No signed final order ⇒ hold. If the portal status is deferred / pending / continued, or the notes say the order was not signed, enter no disposition and no financials; route the matter to the hold/exclusion section and keep it out of the disposed register and batch totals.
• Follow the template's formatting: money as numbers to two decimals; dates YYYY-MM-DD; datetimes YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS; times HH:MM; use null only where the template explicitly allows it.
• Obey the template's ordering rules (usually sort lists by case/citation/ petition/charge id ascending; sort field/item name lists alphabetically).

3. Authority hierarchy — who wins a conflict

Different fields are governed by different sources. Apply this split; it is the core of the task and the basis of the audit findings.

When the portal and a corroborating memo agree against the local queue, the resolution favors the authoritative source (CMS / hearing notes / fee schedule) — pick the template's matching resolution_source / recommended_resolution enum (use_cms, use_hearing_notes, use_corrob_memo, use_fee_schedule, hold_unsigned_order, verify_before_entry, etc.).

4. Portal workflow

Base URL from environment_access.md. All endpoints are GET and support filtering by query params (e.g. ?case_number=..., ?jurisdiction_code=...); /api/search?q=<identifier> returns mixed result_type rows (cases, charges, docket_entries…) and is the fastest way to locate a record. Responses are {"count", "results":[...]}.

For each target matter, pull and reconcile:

• /api/jurisdictions — jurisdiction_code, court_name, policy_ref, timezone.
• /api/cases — identity, counsel_type, attorney_name, status, disposition_date, attorney_label_raw (the raw/abbreviated label to distrust).
• /api/charges — counts, plea, disposition, fine, jail imposed/suspended, probation months, departure_type/departure_reason, assessment_code, severity. Treat departure and disposition here as claims to verify against the signed record, not as final truth.
• /api/docket-entries — official entry text/dates; note the disposition entry's recorded status. Clerk-note text may be redacted.
• /api/citations (traffic) — plea, disposition, speed/zone, violation_code, plan_approved, monthly_payment, first_due_date.
• /api/fee-schedules, /api/payment-policies, /api/forms, /api/financial-petitions — reference data (see §5–§9).

See references/portal_reference.md for the field-level schema of each endpoint.

5. Fee-schedule selection (do this live every time)

Never post a fee amount carried in a local queue/worksheet. Select the authoritative amount:

1. Filter /api/fee-schedules to the matter's jurisdiction_code.
2. Match the needed fee_type (and violation_code for traffic fines).
3. Keep only rows effective on the disposition date: effective_date <= disposition_date AND (end_date is null OR end_date >= disposition_date).
4. Discard ended/stale rows, rows for other jurisdictions, and NOISE rows (e.g. "Copy or certification fee", "Archived local fee"). Use the surviving current amount.

Fee applicability rules:

• court_cost (circuit filing cost): mandatory on a disposed criminal case.
• fine: the amount pronounced in the signed sentence.
• Drug/crime-lab assessment: only when the conviction charge triggers it (controlled-substance / lab-relevant conviction with assessment_code set and the judge ordered it) — and at the current schedule amount, not an archived one.
• public_defender_user_fee: only when counsel_type == public_defender and the court did not waive it. Never for retained or appointed_private counsel.
• Post no fee on a held/deferred/pending/continued matter.

6. Never-post / exclusion list

Do not add these unless a current portal record, current policy, or a signed order directly supports them; otherwise list them in the template's exclusion section with the template's reason_code:

account-management / maintenance fee, collection / referral fee, late-payment fee, DMV / reinstatement / notice fee, returned-check fee, traffic-school / program fee, restitution (unless a restitution order exists), court-appointed- attorney fee, court-reporter fee, copy / certification fee, stale-schedule amounts, and statutory-maximum substitutions. Typical reason codes: stale_schedule, not_current_policy, no_triggering_event, unsupported_post_disposition, not_in_hearing_order, no_order_or_policy_support, not_part_of_balance, continued_pending_no_final_order. A sticky-note/"should we add…?" fee with no hearing-minute triggering event is always excluded.

7. Payment / installment math

Let B = starting balance made of supported line items only (see §5–§6). If a down payment is approved (from the order or policy.down_payment_required), subtract it first and schedule the remainder. With approved regular installment M (see §8 for choosing/validating M):

• full = floor(B / M) ; remainder = round(B - full*M, 2).
• If remainder == 0: total_installments = full; every installment is M; final_payment_amount = M.
• If remainder > 0: there is one smaller final payment; full_payment_count = full, total_installments = full + 1, final_payment_amount = remainder.
• If B <= M: a single installment equal to B.
• first_due_date: use the court-approved date if the notes/petition state one; otherwise derive from policy (first_due_days after submission/disposition, or the jurisdiction's stated convention such as "the 15th of the next month after disposition"). Honor a candidate date supplied in the payload when consistent.
• final_due_date = first_due_date advanced by (total_installments - 1) intervals (months for a monthly plan).
• return_to_court_date = the approved/candidate date if given, else disposition/first-due date + policy.return_to_court_offset_days.
• For a deferred single-due plan, interval = the template's deferred value and there is one payment of the full balance on the single due date.

8. Budget & support classification (financial petitions / VA packets)

• disposable = monthly_income - monthly_obligations.
• Policy band = [policy.min_monthly, policy.max_monthly].
• Choose/validate the monthly amount M against the requested amount, the band, and disposable income, then set the support classification using that template's enum:
  • below the band ⇒ below_policy_minimum;
  • above the band ⇒ above_policy_maximum;
  • above disposable income ⇒ unsupported_by_budget (or needs_judge_review);
  • within band and affordable ⇒ supportable / supported_by_budget.
• Account fee: include only if policy.account_fee > 0 and policy notes permit (e.g. non-indigent). A worksheet/counter fee row where the policy fee is 0 (or the petitioner is on public assistance/indigent) ⇒ excluded_by_policy.
• Payment application order: if policy.restitution_priority puts restitution first and restitution_balance > 0 (or the petitioner requests it and policy allows) ⇒ restitution_before_fines_costs; if restitution is 0 or priority is "Not applicable" ⇒ fines_costs_only.
• total_due = supported fines_costs_balance + restitution_balance + (account_fee only if included). Exclude everything in §6.
• Petition classification: first/current petition ⇒ initial_installment; second / default-review ⇒ subsequent_review; deferred single payment ⇒ deferred_payment; exempt/no-ability ⇒ exempt_no_payment. Derive from petition_sequence / intake sequence label / default_status.

9. Forms, probation & license orders

• Form id/label: from /api/forms for the jurisdiction; required_fields and placeholder_instruction come from that record. required_labels_used (traffic plan) come from the labeled sections of the local form excerpt.
• Account reference (traffic): if no separate circuit case/account number exists, use the citation number as the account reference (per form rule).
• Probation referral (CC-1375-style): prepare_referral only if supervised probation was ordered and a referral is required/signed; take report_datetime and term from the intake. If no supervised probation or no signed referral ⇒ not_ordered and report_datetime = null.
• License order (CC-1379-style): license_start_basis defaults to conviction_date — a release-from-confinement date is memo context and does not replace the conviction date for the suspension consequence unless the sentence/law ties it to release/petition date. suspension_end_date = start + suspension_months. driver_license_number = placeholder unless present in the materials.

10. Totals, registers & exclusions

• Sum only posted amounts across included (disposed) matters for fine/cost/assessment/user-fee subtotals and the grand/batch total.
• Count disposed (entered) vs held/excluded matters as the template's total fields require.
• Held/deferred/pending/continued matters stay out of the disposed register and totals; list them in the template's exclusion/hold section with the matching reason code, a financial_posting_allowed = false flag if present, and a next-status-check date if required.

11. Self-check before returning

• Output parses as JSON and contains exactly the template's required top-level keys — nothing extra, nothing missing.
• Every enum value is drawn from the template's allowed list, spelled exactly.
• All money has two decimals; all dates/datetimes/times match the required formats; null appears only where allowed.
• Lists obey the template's ordering rules.
• No invented identifiers/fees/charges; placeholders use the exact required string.
• Every held/deferred matter is excluded from disposed totals and appears in the hold/exclusion section.
• Every posted fee traces to a current fee-schedule row effective on the disposition date; every excluded item has a valid reason code.
• Totals recompute correctly from the per-matter posted amounts.

See references/reconciliation_playbook.md for a compact, per-task-type walkthrough of these rules.