A framework for managing legal disputes with software engineering rigor.
Track evidence. Enforce deadlines. Escalate automatically. Build arguments from structured knowledge.

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What Is LANCE?

LANCE applies software engineering lifecycle discipline to legal disputes:

Evidence management with SHA-256 integrity verification and chain of custody

Statute of limitations tracking with jurisdiction-aware auto-calculation

Case state machine with entry/exit criteria (like CI/CD gates)

Escalation engine with rule-based triggers (no response → auto-draft next action)

Legal knowledge base with embedded statutes, case law, and regulations

Damages calculator with prejudgment interest computation

Attorney handoff — one command generates a complete case package

Philosophy

"Never regress. Always escalate. Block on critical."

Inspired by SPEAR — legal disputes only move forward.

EVIDENCE ──> DEMAND ──> NEGOTIATION ──> REGULATORY ──> LITIGATION ──> RESOLUTION
    ^                        |                |
    └────────────────────────┴────────────────┘  (loops back for new evidence)

Quick Start

# Clone
git clone https://github.com/migueljnew-droid/lance.git
cd lance

# Install dependencies
pip install -r requirements.txt

# Initialize a new case
python -m engine.cli init --name "My Case" --jurisdiction CA

# Add evidence
python -m engine.cli evidence add \
  --file contract.pdf \
  --type contract \
  --description "Original agreement dated 2020-01-15"

# Check deadlines
python -m engine.cli deadlines

# View case status
python -m engine.cli status

Case State Machine

Every case moves through defined states with entry/exit criteria:

State	Entry Criteria	Exit Criteria
	Case created, claim identified	Dossier complete, docs hashed, damages estimated
	Evidence complete	All demands sent, tracking recorded, deadlines set
	Respondent acknowledged	Settlement reached OR negotiation failed
	Demand expired OR violation found	Complaints filed, confirmations received
	Both parties agree	Settled or failed
	Attorney retained, SOL verified	Judgment or settlement
	Terms documented	Payment received, registrations corrected

Claude Code Integration

LANCE ships as a Claude Code skill for AI-assisted legal work:

/lance status            # Case state, deadlines, pending actions
/lance deadlines         # All deadlines with countdown
/lance escalate          # What should happen next (rule-based)
/lance research [topic]  # Query knowledge base + web for law
/lance argue [claim]     # Build legal argument from evidence + law
/lance damages           # Calculate estimated recovery with interest
/lance audit             # Run financial audit on royalty data
/lance handoff           # Generate attorney package
/lance log [event]       # Record communication or event

Core Components

Deadline Engine

Tracks two types of deadlines:

• Response deadlines — 30/60/90 day windows after sending demands
• Statute of limitations — jurisdiction-aware, with discovery rule and tolling support

Alerts at configurable intervals (365, 180, 90, 30, 14, 7, 3, 1 days before expiry).

Evidence Chain

Every document gets:

• SHA-256 hash — proves integrity
• Chain of custody entries — who held it, when, what action
• Claim linkage — which legal claims this evidence supports
• Metadata — type, date, source, custodian

Knowledge Base

Structured YAML files covering:

• Federal statutes — Copyright Act (17 USC), Music Modernization Act
• State statutes — California Civil Code, CCP, Business & Professions Code
• Regulations — ASCAP/BMI consent decrees, MLC rules, Copyright Office procedures
• Case law — Organized by topic with facts, holdings, and application notes
• SOL reference — By claim type and jurisdiction with tolling doctrines

Escalation Rules

rules:
  - trigger: "no_response"
    days: 30
    action: "draft_follow_up"
  - trigger: "no_response"
    days: 60
    action: "draft_regulatory_complaint"
  - trigger: "settlement_offered"
    action: "compare_against_damages_estimate"
  - trigger: "sol_approaching"
    days: 90
    action: "alert_retain_attorney"

Damages Calculator

• Computes estimated damages from financial discrepancy data
• Applies jurisdiction-specific prejudgment interest rates
• Supports multiple claim types with different calculation methods
• Outputs court-ready damages summary

Architecture

lance/
├── knowledge/              # Legal Knowledge Base (YAML, queryable)
│   ├── statutes/           # Federal and state statutes
│   ├── regulations/        # Agency rules, consent decrees
│   ├── precedent/          # Case law organized by topic
│   └── templates/          # Letter and filing templates
├── engine/                 # Python engine
│   ├── cli.py              # Command-line interface
│   ├── case.py             # Case loader + state machine
│   ├── models.py           # Pydantic data models
│   ├── deadlines.py        # SOL + response deadline calculator
│   ├── evidence.py         # Hashing, chain of custody, manifest
│   ├── escalation.py       # Rule-based escalation engine
│   ├── damages.py          # Damages calculator with interest
│   ├── knowledge.py        # Knowledge base query engine
│   ├── arguments.py        # Legal argument builder
│   └── handoff.py          # Attorney handoff package generator
├── cases/                  # Active cases (one dir per case)
├── skill/                  # Claude Code skill definition
├── tests/                  # Test suite
└── examples/               # Example case configurations

Use Cases

🎵	Music publishing disputes — royalty audits, share corrections, publisher accountability
📝	Contract disputes — breach, accounting, fiduciary duty claims
©	IP disputes — copyright infringement, licensing disagreements
💼	Employment disputes — wage theft, misclassification, benefits claims
🛒	Consumer disputes — warranty claims, fraud, unfair business practices

Disclaimer

LANCE is a case management and legal research assistance tool. It does NOT provide legal advice. Always consult a licensed attorney for legal decisions. The legal knowledge base is for reference and research purposes only.

License

MIT License. See LICENSE for details.

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Built by Miguel Jiminez  ·  Inspired by SPEAR Framework