opencontracts-guide

OpenContracts Guide

Overview

OpenContracts is an open-source platform for legal document annotation, versioning, and analysis. It provides collaborative annotation tools for legal text, version tracking across document drafts, NLP-powered clause extraction, and integration with AI agents via MCP. Designed for legal researchers, law firms, and teams managing large document collections that need structured annotation and analysis.

Installation

# Docker deployment
git clone https://github.com/Open-Source-Legal/OpenContracts.git
cd OpenContracts
docker-compose up -d

# Access at http://localhost:3000

Core Features

Document Management

from opencontracts import Client

client = Client("http://localhost:3000")

# Upload documents
doc = client.upload(
    file="contract.pdf",
    metadata={
        "type": "NDA",
        "parties": ["Company A", "Company B"],
        "date": "2025-01-15",
        "jurisdiction": "Delaware",
    },
)

# Version tracking
versions = client.get_versions(doc.id)
for v in versions:
    print(f"v{v.number}: {v.date} — {v.changes_summary}")

# Compare versions
diff = client.compare_versions(doc.id, v1=1, v2=3)
for change in diff.changes:
    print(f"[{change.type}] Section {change.section}: "
          f"{change.description}")

Annotation

# Create annotation project
project = client.create_project(
    name="NDA Clause Analysis",
    documents=[doc.id],
    label_set=[
        "confidentiality_scope",
        "term_duration",
        "exclusions",
        "remedies",
        "governing_law",
        "dispute_resolution",
    ],
)

# Add annotations
client.annotate(
    document_id=doc.id,
    annotations=[
        {
            "start": 1250, "end": 1480,
            "label": "confidentiality_scope",
            "note": "Broad definition including derivatives",
        },
        {
            "start": 2100, "end": 2250,
            "label": "term_duration",
            "note": "5-year term with auto-renewal",
        },
    ],
)