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MORNINGSTAR Case Naming & Case Numbering Format

"A case without a number is a case without a home."
— MORNINGSTAR::ARCHITECT

Authority: Court ruling 2026-02-19 (Case Naming & Numbering deliberation). Vote: 4-1-0.
Canonical ref: This document is the single source of truth for case identification. All references to transcript naming, Case No. format, precedent indexing, and session IDs point here.

Formatted Conventions (Quick Reference)

Convention Format Example
Case No. (transcript header) YYYY-CATC-NNN-DDD 2026-DEL-004-001
Session ID (state/current.md) YYYY-CATC-NNN 2026-DEL-004
Standard transcript YYYY-MM-DD-[matter-slug].md 2026-02-19-case-naming-and-numbering-format.md
Special Interest transcript YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS_special_interest_[subject].md 20260216_160000_special_interest_api_design.md
Handoff document HANDOFF-YYYY-CATC-NNN.md HANDOFF-2026-ARCH-002.md
Header label Case No.: (deprecate Matter ID)

Category codes: ARCH, INFRA, DEL, CONT, SEC, EXEC, FEAT, BUG, MAINT, DOC.

Transcript storage: courtroom/transcripts/ or litigation/transcripts/ (same naming in both).

Case ID Format

YYYY-CATC-NNN-DDD
Segment Meaning Values
YYYY Year 4-digit (e.g., 2026)
CATC Category code See Category Codes
NNN Matter sequence 001-999 within category per year
DDD Deliberation sequence 001-999 within matter (first deliberation = 001)

Examples:

  • 2026-INFRA-001-001 — First deliberation of first infrastructure matter in 2026
  • 2026-DEL-004-001 — First deliberation of fourth general deliberation matter in 2026
  • 2026-CONT-001-001 — First contempt proceeding in 2026

Session ID (Short Form)

For state/current.md and session context, use the short form without DDD:

YYYY-CATC-NNN

Example: Session: 2026-DEL-004. Full Case No. (with DDD) is used in transcripts and precedent citations.

Category Codes

Code Meaning Use
ARCH Architectural decisions Agent structure, protocols, framework design
INFRA Infrastructure work Enhancements, tooling, foundational changes
DEL General deliberation Full court proceedings not fitting other categories
CONT Contempt proceedings Contempt hearings, adversarial proceedings
SEC Special inquiry / Security Special Interest hearings, security posture
EXEC Executive branch Executive-orchestration matters
FEAT Feature development Feature adoption, capability addition
BUG Bug investigation Defect root cause, remediation
MAINT Maintenance Refactors, tech debt, cleanup
DOC Documentation Doc structure, glossary, onboarding

Transcript Header (Required)

Every F3+ transcript SHALL include:

**Case No.:** YYYY-CATC-NNN-DDD
**Date:** YYYY-MM-DD
**Feasibility:** F[3-5]
**Presiding:** The Honorable Lucius J. Morningstar

Additional fields for contempt hearings: **Hearing Type:** (Contempt Proceeding / Prosecution / Investigative).

Date matching: The header Date MUST match the filename date: Standard transcripts use YYYY-MM-DD from the filename; Special Interest transcripts use the date parsed from the YYYYMMDD prefix.

Deprecated: Matter ID — use Case No.: only. The portal and generate_manifest.py prefer Case No.: but accept Matter ID for legacy transcripts.

Case Title Format (Display)

For human-readable display and precedent indexing:

Proceeding Type Format Example
Standard / Expedited In Re: [Subject] — [Concise Action] In Re: Framework Enhancements — Ratification of Slate 1
Special Interest Special Inquiry: [Subject] — [Focus] Special Inquiry: Bohemian Grove — Structure, Influence
Contempt In Re: [Respondent] — Alleged Contempt or DOJ vs. [Respondent] In Re: Xenon — Alleged Contempt of Court
Handoff Docket: [Case ID] — [Phase/Action] Docket: 2026-ARCH-002 — Implementation Handoff

Filename Formats

Type Format Example
Standard / Expedited YYYY-MM-DD-[matter-slug].md 2026-02-17-full-session-skills-to-add-to-each-agent.md
Special Interest YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS_special_interest_[subject].md 20260216_160000_special_interest_xenon_fraud_elon_musk.md
Handoff HANDOFF-YYYY-CATC-NNN.md HANDOFF-2026-ARCH-002.md

Slug rules: Lowercase, hyphens (not underscores), URL-safe, descriptive. Use [matter-slug] or [subject_slug] as appropriate.

Storage locations: Transcripts may be saved to courtroom/transcripts/ or litigation/transcripts/. Same filename convention applies in both. The portal and Court Reporter scan both directories.

Filename vs header: The filename does not require the Case No. The Case No. resides in the transcript header.

Legacy Filename Format (Grandfathered)

Older transcripts may use YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS_topic.md (no special_interest_). The portal and launch script support this for backward compatibility. New transcripts SHALL use the canonical Special Interest format: YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS_special_interest_[subject].md.

Case Registry

Location: courtroom/case-registry.yaml

The registry holds the next available NNN per category per year. The Scribe (or Judge) assigns case IDs from it to prevent collisions.

Assignment rule: When convening a new matter, check the registry for the next NNN in the chosen category. Increment and record. If the matter continues (e.g., second deliberation on same matter), increment DDD only; NNN stays the same.

Registry structure (YAML): year, last_updated, and categories: { ARCH: n, DEL: n, ... } with next NNN per category.

Precedent Indexing

When adding certified transcripts to courtroom/precedents.md, extract:

  • Case No. — YYYY-CATC-NNN-DDD from header
  • Date — from header or filename
  • Matter — brief title or subject
  • Ruling — decision summary
  • Vote — tally (e.g., 4-1-0)

Add to the Master Index and to the appropriate category table. See courtroom/precedents.md for entry schema.

Citation Format

  • In text: See Case 2026-DEL-004-001 or Per 2026-INFRA-001-001
  • In precedents: Full Case ID in Master Index
  • In handoffs: Case: 2026-ARCH-002 (short form acceptable for handoff docs)

Reconstructed Transcripts

When a transcript is recovered from CHANGELOG, state, or other sources, mark it in the header:

**Case No.:** YYYY-CATC-NNN-DDD [RECONSTRUCTED]

Document sources used in reconstruction. Reconstructed transcripts have reduced precedential weight.

Validation

The Court Reporter (courtroom/reporter.py) and courtroom/portal/generate_manifest.py SHALL:

  1. Check filename format — Standard (YYYY-MM-DD-*) or Special Interest (YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS_special_interest_*). Legacy YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS_* grandfathered.
  2. Extract Case No. — Prefer **Case No.:** in header; fall back to **Matter ID:** for legacy transcripts.
  3. Validate Case No. format — Regex: \d{4}-[A-Z]+-\d{3}(?:-\d+)? (DDD optional for short form).
  4. Report collisions — No duplicate Case No. across transcripts; flag for resolution.

Legacy Transcripts

Transcripts created before this ruling may have non-canonical case numbers (e.g., multiple transcripts sharing 2026-DEL-001). Grandfather rule: Do not mass-rename or edit certified transcripts. When a legacy transcript is cited or updated, assign a canonical Case No. via addendum if needed. New transcripts SHALL use the canonical format from first line.

"The number persists. The case endures. The record is findable."
— MORNINGSTAR::SCRIBE