# Obligation-First

> An open upper schema for normative content (laws, cases, joint interpretations) bound to Semantic Arts gist.

Obligation-First is a small, opinionated upper schema and JSON-LD context for normative content. It defines a four-role spine — Authority, Instrument, Term, Obligation — plus a proceeding strand of Proceeding, Allegation, Determination. The deontic quartet (Requirement / Restriction / Permission / Reparation) is aligned with LegalRuleML 1.0. Three projects bind to v0.1: PubLedge (joint interpretations), EveryAILaw (AI laws), AI Incident Law (AI-related cases). Status: v0.1.0-draft, drafting in public.

## Key concepts

- **Spine** — Authority / Instrument / Term / Obligation. Bound to gist:Organization, gist:Agreement or gist:Specification, gist:ContractTerm, and the deontic quartet respectively.
- **Proceeding strand** — Proceeding (gist:Event) / Allegation (gist:Statement) / Determination (gist:Determination). Models legal matters with epistemic honesty: an Allegation is asserted, not authoritative; a Determination resolves it.
- **Deontic quartet** — Requirement (lrml:Obligation), Restriction (lrml:Prohibition), Permission, Reparation. Reparation is the secondary obligation triggered when a primary is violated.
- **Instrument lifecycle** — Two independent fields. `of:status` (legislative state: proposed / enacted / in-force / amended / sunset / repealed / superseded / withdrawn) and `of:enforcement_status` (whether primary obligations can presently be enforced: routine / constrained / unsignaled). Independent dimensions; any combination is valid. Cause of a non-routine enforcement state is expressed via the proceeding strand, not baked into the enum.
- **Supersession** — `of:supersedes` (post-enactment Instrument-to-Instrument replacement) and `of:wouldSupersede` (subjunctive form for proposed Instruments). Distinct from `of:defeats`, which is Term-level. Supersedes does not auto-imply Term-level defeats.
- **Defeasibility** — `of:defeats` predicate expresses cross-Term override (statutory exceptions). Per Lawsky default logic and LegalRuleML §7.4.
- **Polymorphic executableEncoding** — Optional pointer from a Term to a Catala scope, Blawx ruleset, OpenFisca formula, or other rules-as-code engine.
- **Recursive Authority basis** — Every Authority's right to act traces to an Instrument on the spine. Handles non-government Authorities (HOAs, tribunals, co-ops, advisory bodies) without special-casing.

## Key files

- Specification: https://github.com/snapsynapse/obligation-first/blob/main/PROTOCOL.md
- Prior-art survey: https://github.com/snapsynapse/obligation-first/blob/main/PRIOR-ART.md
- Roadmap: https://github.com/snapsynapse/obligation-first/blob/main/ROADMAP.md
- Changelog: https://github.com/snapsynapse/obligation-first/blob/main/CHANGELOG.md
- JSON-LD @context: https://obligationfirst.org/v1/context.jsonld
- JSON Schemas: https://obligationfirst.org/v1/schema/{authority,instrument,term,obligation,proceeding,allegation,determination,executable-encoding}.schema.json
- Authority schema: https://obligationfirst.org/v1/schema/authority.schema.json
- Instrument schema: https://obligationfirst.org/v1/schema/instrument.schema.json
- Term schema: https://obligationfirst.org/v1/schema/term.schema.json
- Obligation schema: https://obligationfirst.org/v1/schema/obligation.schema.json
- Proceeding schema: https://obligationfirst.org/v1/schema/proceeding.schema.json
- Allegation schema: https://obligationfirst.org/v1/schema/allegation.schema.json
- Determination schema: https://obligationfirst.org/v1/schema/determination.schema.json
- Executable encoding schema: https://obligationfirst.org/v1/schema/executable-encoding.schema.json

## Worked examples

- Moffatt v. Air Canada — proceeding strand: https://github.com/snapsynapse/obligation-first/blob/main/examples/air-canada/README.md
- Colorado SB 24-205 — spine: https://github.com/snapsynapse/obligation-first/blob/main/examples/colorado-sb24-205/README.md
- Utah OAIP JIA — joint interpretation: https://github.com/snapsynapse/obligation-first/blob/main/examples/publedge-jia-utah-72/README.md

## Crosswalks to existing standards

- gist (Semantic Arts): https://github.com/snapsynapse/obligation-first/blob/main/reference/crosswalks/gist.md
- LegalRuleML: https://github.com/snapsynapse/obligation-first/blob/main/reference/crosswalks/legalruleml.md
- Akoma Ntoso (OASIS LegalDocML): https://github.com/snapsynapse/obligation-first/blob/main/reference/crosswalks/akomantoso.md
- ELI / ECLI: https://github.com/snapsynapse/obligation-first/blob/main/reference/crosswalks/eli-ecli.md

## Adopters

- PubLedge — https://publedge.org/ (joint interpretations)
- EveryAILaw — https://everyailaw.com/ (AI laws and obligations)
- AI Incident Law — https://aiincidentlaw.org/ (AI-related cases)

## License

- Spec text and reference material: CC BY 4.0
- Code, schemas, scripts, examples: Apache 2.0

## Contact

- Repo: https://github.com/snapsynapse/obligation-first
- Author: Sam Rogers — https://www.linkedin.com/in/samrogers
- Publisher: PAICE.work PBC — https://paice.work/