# Court Ops Closeout > Prepare a court clerk closeout / financial packet (criminal sentencing register, traffic-violation payment plan, or post-sentencing installment & supervision order) by reconciling local case payloads against the Court Operations Portal REST API and emitting one JSON object that exactly matches a provided answer_template.json. Use when a task gives target case / citation / petition identifiers, local payloads (hearing notes, memos, worksheets, budgets, form excerpts), an answer_template.json, and a Court Operations Portal base URL (`` / `GDPEVO_ENV_BASE_URL`). - Skill: `prism-shadow/court-ops-closeout` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 4 files) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add prism-shadow/court-ops-closeout` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/prism-shadow/court-ops-closeout/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Research & Search - Author: prism-shadow (https://skillmd.com/u/prism-shadow) - Updated: 2026-09-17 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/prism-shadow/court-ops-closeout --- # Court Operations closeout / financial packet You are acting as a court clerk. Each task gives you (a) target identifiers (cases, citations, and/or petitions), (b) local payloads that often contain drafts, stale carry-forwards, and conflicts, (c) a **Court Operations Portal** REST API that is the authoritative CMS and current rule tables, and (d) an `answer_template.json` that defines the exact output contract. Produce **one JSON object** matching that template, with every value reconciled and audited. The portal is authoritative for structured facts and current rules; the local payloads tell you what the clerk saw and what happened in court. Your job is to resolve conflicts correctly, apply the money/date math, exclude unsupported items, hold un-signed matters, and emit strictly schema-conformant JSON. ## Files in this skill - `references/portal_api.md` — every portal endpoint, its fields, how to filter, and which field is authoritative for what. - `references/reconciliation_rules.md` — the full decision rules (authority hierarchy, fees, installments, holds, placeholders, license/probation). Read this before deciding any contested value. - `scripts/installments.py` — computes the installment breakdown and schedule dates (first/final due, return-to-court). Use it instead of hand arithmetic. ## Workflow 1. **Read the prompt.** Extract: the portal base URL (from ``; the real value is in the environment's `environment_access.md` as `GDPEVO_ENV_BASE_URL`), the target identifiers, the listed portal endpoints, and the path to `answer_template.json`. 2. **Treat `answer_template.json` as the contract.** Extract and write down: the required top-level keys, each item's required keys, every enum and its allowed values, the ordering rules, currency precision, date/datetime/time formats, and the exact placeholder string. The output must contain **only** the keys the template lists, use enum values **verbatim** (never substitute prose for an enum), and follow the formats exactly. 3. **Read every local payload** in `input/payloads/` (hearing/closeout notes, audit/finance memos, worksheets/CSVs, petition & budget summaries, form excerpts). Note draft/stale/carry-forward flags and any explicit conflicts or instructions ("do not add …", "verify current schedule", "order not signed", "use placeholder for missing …"). 4. **Query the portal for the authoritative record** of each target and the reference tables. Use exact filters (`?case_number=`, `?citation_number=`, `?petition_id=`, `?jurisdiction_code=`) and `/api/search?q=` for identity confirmation. At minimum resolve: the jurisdiction; the authoritative case/citation/petition record; charges; docket entries (to confirm a signed disposition vs. a hold); the current fee schedule; the payment policy; and the form metadata — whichever the task needs. See `references/portal_api.md`. 5. **Reconcile using the source-of-authority hierarchy** in `references/reconciliation_rules.md` §1. In short: CMS wins for identity and structured sentence data; the current fee-schedule/policy/form tables win for money rules and form metadata; **hearing notes win for what happened in open court** (accepted plea/finding, count amendments, a departure pronounced or expressly rejected, whether a final order was signed); a corroborating memo settles counsel classification; draft/stale/carry-forward values are never authoritative. Record each audit finding's resolution source accordingly. 6. **Apply the domain computations** (reconciliation_rules.md §§3–8): - **Fees**: start from current-window fee-schedule rows; include mandatory fees and only-when-triggered conditional fees (PD user fee only for public defenders; charge-specific assessments only on the qualifying conviction count); include a fine only if actually imposed; **exclude** every unsupported/stale/discretionary fee and itemize exclusions with the schema's reason codes. - **Installments**: validate the monthly amount against the policy band and the budget (income − obligations), then run `scripts/installments.py` for the breakdown and dates; apply the policy's restitution priority and account-fee treatment. - **Traffic fine tiers**: map the citation's `violation_code` to the current `standard_fine` row; add the county surcharge once. - **License suspension / probation referral**: start dates, months, end dates, and whether a referral was actually ordered. - **Holds**: any matter without a signed final order is held/excluded with zeroed financials and null dates, counted separately. - **Placeholders**: use the exact placeholder string for form-required fields absent from all sources; never invent identifiers or contacts. 7. **Assemble the output strictly to schema.** Include only allowed keys; use enum values verbatim; apply every ordering rule (sort the arrays as directed, e.g. by case_number/citation_number/petition_id, and any secondary key); format all money to two decimals and all dates/datetimes/times per the template; use `null` exactly where the schema allows it (e.g. no disposition date for a held matter). 8. **Self-check before returning** (see checklist below). Then output the JSON object only — no markdown, no commentary — unless the template says otherwise. ## Output discipline - Exactly one JSON object, matching the template's structure and key names. - Only the keys the template defines; every enum value drawn verbatim from the template's allowed list. - Money: numbers to two decimals. Dates: `YYYY-MM-DD`. Datetimes: `YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS`. Times: `HH:MM`. Use `null` only where permitted. - Arrays sorted exactly per the template's ordering rules. ## Self-check - [ ] Every required top-level key and every required item key is present. - [ ] Every enum field uses an allowed value verbatim (no prose substitutes). - [ ] Arrays are sorted per the ordering rules (primary and any secondary key). - [ ] Currency has two decimals; dates/times use the required formats; `null` used only where allowed. - [ ] Identity/counsel/charge/departure/status values reflect the correct authoritative source, not a draft/stale worksheet value. - [ ] No stale/archived amount used; no unsupported fee posted; every excluded item has the right reason code. - [ ] Any un-signed / deferred / continued matter is held (zeroed financials, null dates) and counted as held/excluded, not disposed. - [ ] Installment breakdown and all schedule dates match `scripts/installments.py`; monthly validated against band + budget. - [ ] Totals are internally consistent (case totals sum to register/batch totals; disposed + held counts add up). - [ ] No invented identifiers or contacts; missing required fields use the exact placeholder string and are listed where the schema asks.