diff --git a/api/src/opentrons/protocols/labware.py b/api/src/opentrons/protocols/labware.py
index d3159ee5d9f..ec05e3cbb72 100644
--- a/api/src/opentrons/protocols/labware.py
+++ b/api/src/opentrons/protocols/labware.py
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@
 import json
 import os
 from pathlib import Path
-from typing import Any, AnyStr, Dict, Optional, Union, List
+from typing import Any, AnyStr, Dict, Optional, Union, List, Sequence, Literal
 
 import jsonschema  # type: ignore
 
@@ -17,10 +17,30 @@
     USER_DEFS_PATH,
 )
 from opentrons_shared_data.labware.types import LabwareDefinition
+from opentrons_shared_data.errors.exceptions import InvalidProtocolData
 
 
 MODULE_LOG = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 
+LabwareProblem = Literal[
+    "no-schema-id", "bad-schema-id", "schema-mismatch", "invalid-json"
+]
+
+
+class NotALabwareError(InvalidProtocolData):
+    def __init__(
+        self, problem: LabwareProblem, wrapping: Sequence[BaseException]
+    ) -> None:
+        messages: dict[LabwareProblem, str] = {
+            "no-schema-id": "No schema ID present in file",
+            "bad-schema-id": "Bad schema ID in file",
+            "invalid-json": "File does not contain valid JSON",
+            "schema-mismatch": "File does not match labware schema",
+        }
+        super().__init__(
+            message=messages[problem], detail={"kind": problem}, wrapping=wrapping
+        )
+
 
 def get_labware_definition(
     load_name: str,
@@ -126,7 +146,7 @@ def save_definition(
         json.dump(labware_def, f)
 
 
-def verify_definition(
+def verify_definition(  # noqa: C901
     contents: Union[AnyStr, LabwareDefinition, Dict[str, Any]]
 ) -> LabwareDefinition:
     """Verify that an input string is a labware definition and return it.
@@ -146,15 +166,24 @@ def verify_definition(
     if isinstance(contents, dict):
         to_return = contents
     else:
-        to_return = json.loads(contents)
+        try:
+            to_return = json.loads(contents)
+        except json.JSONDecodeError as e:
+            raise NotALabwareError("invalid-json", [e]) from e
     try:
         schema_version = to_return["schemaVersion"]
+    except KeyError as e:
+        raise NotALabwareError("no-schema-id", [e]) from e
+
+    try:
         schema = schemata_by_version[schema_version]
-    except KeyError:
-        raise RuntimeError(
-            f'Invalid or unknown labware schema version {to_return.get("schemaVersion", None)}'
-        )
-    jsonschema.validate(to_return, schema)
+    except KeyError as e:
+        raise NotALabwareError("bad-schema-id", [e]) from e
+
+    try:
+        jsonschema.validate(to_return, schema)
+    except jsonschema.ValidationError as e:
+        raise NotALabwareError("schema-mismatch", [e]) from e
 
     # we can type ignore this because if it passes the jsonschema it has
     # the correct structure
diff --git a/api/src/opentrons/util/entrypoint_util.py b/api/src/opentrons/util/entrypoint_util.py
index 2da4cac874c..508f6769bc5 100644
--- a/api/src/opentrons/util/entrypoint_util.py
+++ b/api/src/opentrons/util/entrypoint_util.py
@@ -6,7 +6,6 @@
 from dataclasses import dataclass
 import json
 import logging
-from json import JSONDecodeError
 import pathlib
 import subprocess
 import sys
@@ -21,8 +20,6 @@
     TYPE_CHECKING,
 )
 
-from jsonschema import ValidationError  # type: ignore
-
 from opentrons.calibration_storage.deck_configuration import (
     deserialize_deck_configuration,
 )
@@ -32,7 +29,7 @@
     JUPYTER_NOTEBOOK_LABWARE_DIR,
     SystemArchitecture,
 )
-from opentrons.protocol_api import labware
+from opentrons.protocols import labware
 from opentrons.calibration_storage import helpers
 from opentrons.protocol_engine.errors.error_occurrence import (
     ErrorOccurrence as ProtocolEngineErrorOccurrence,
@@ -79,7 +76,7 @@ def labware_from_paths(
             if child.is_file() and child.suffix.endswith("json"):
                 try:
                     defn = labware.verify_definition(child.read_bytes())
-                except (ValidationError, JSONDecodeError):
+                except labware.NotALabwareError:
                     log.info(f"{child}: invalid labware, ignoring")
                     log.debug(
                         f"{child}: labware invalid because of this exception.",
diff --git a/shared-data/python/opentrons_shared_data/errors/exceptions.py b/shared-data/python/opentrons_shared_data/errors/exceptions.py
index b27b3c9c3d3..bdc952d5760 100644
--- a/shared-data/python/opentrons_shared_data/errors/exceptions.py
+++ b/shared-data/python/opentrons_shared_data/errors/exceptions.py
@@ -1,4 +1,5 @@
 """Exception hierarchy for error codes."""
+
 from typing import Dict, Any, Optional, List, Iterator, Union, Sequence, overload
 from logging import getLogger
 from traceback import format_exception_only, format_tb
@@ -1099,7 +1100,7 @@ def __init__(
         self,
         message: Optional[str] = None,
         detail: Optional[Dict[str, str]] = None,
-        wrapping: Optional[Sequence[EnumeratedError]] = None,
+        wrapping: Optional[Sequence[Union[EnumeratedError, BaseException]]] = None,
     ) -> None:
         """Build an InvalidProtocolData."""
         super().__init__(ErrorCodes.INVALID_PROTOCOL_DATA, message, detail, wrapping)