FedWatch — Federal Funding & Lien Watcher

courts_search

Court dockets via CourtListener/RECAP — GATED on the expansion's one named credential gap: CourtListener's API returns 401 without a token, no CourtListener credential exists in fleet stores, and account creation is out of scope for this server. Provisioning a COURTLISTENER_API_TOKEN secret is the exact unlock; until then calls return that named gate. PACER is never scraped.

Tool call template

This tool declares no required parameters. Add optional parameters from the input schema as needed.

{
  "id": 1,
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "arguments": {},
    "name": "courts_search"
  }
}

Input Schema

Name	Required	Description
`limit`	No	Maximum returned records (tier-capped)
`keyword`	No	Docket/case keyword (reserved for the promoted adapter)
`source_id`	No	Source id: courtlistener_dockets (default)

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

First observedOct 24, 2026

TDQS

B3.2/5.0

Behavior4/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

With no annotations, the description carries the full burden and does disclose the most important behavior: the tool is gated, returns 401 without a token, and never scrapes PACER. It omits result format, pagination, and rate-limit behavior, so it stops short of full transparency.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness3/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

The first clause front-loads the resource well, but the remainder is dense internal-provisioning prose ("the expansion's one named credential gap", "fleet stores") that is relevant to operators more than to an agent selecting a tool. It is not padded, but it is front-loaded with the wrong emphasis.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness3/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

No output schema and no annotations means the description must cover return values, and it does not — an agent cannot tell what a docket record looks like or how results are capped ('tier-capped' is undefined). The auth/gate story is complete, but the operational story is not.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters3/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Schema description coverage is 100%, so the baseline is 3; the description adds nothing about limit, keyword, or source_id beyond what the schema already states. The 'keyword is reserved for the promoted adapter' nuance lives in the schema, not the description.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose3/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

"Court dockets via CourtListener/RECAP" identifies the resource and implicitly distinguishes it from the other *_search siblings, but the sentence is immediately swallowed by credential-gate messaging. An agent learns the domain but not what the search actually returns or how results are ranked/shaped.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines3/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

It gives a strong negative guideline — calls will fail with 401 until COURTLISTENER_API_TOKEN is provisioned, and PACER is never scraped — which is genuinely actionable. However it never says when to prefer this over a sibling or what to do instead while gated (there is no alternative named).

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.

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