CourtListener MCP

---
name: courtlistener
category: osint-records
cost: free
api_key_required: no
repo: https://www.courtlistener.com/help/mcp/
paired_skills: ["court-records-search-by-jurisdiction", "expert-witness-preparation", "discovery-document-review"]
capabilities: ["court-records", "case-law", "docket-search"]
---

# CourtListener MCP — US federal + state case law, PACER/RECAP dockets

Free Law Project's official MCP. Searches case law, retrieves PACER docket entries (via the RECAP archive), pulls judge profiles, and traces citation networks.

## Install

Add CourtListener as a remote MCP connector in Claude Desktop / Claude Code settings. See the official docs at the repo URL above for the current connector endpoint.

Alternatively, self-host via the Free Law Project repos on GitHub.

## Configuration

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "courtlistener": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@free-law-project/courtlistener-mcp"]
    }
  }
}
```

Check the official docs for the current recommended install method — the remote connector URL may be preferred.

## What it adds

Claude searches case law by party name, citation, or keyword; retrieves docket entries for federal and state cases already in RECAP; pulls judge profiles including prior rulings and recusal history; traces how a case has been cited. Replaces expensive PACER direct-access for the significant portion of documents already uploaded to RECAP.

## Pairs with skills

- 027 `court-records-search-by-jurisdiction`
- 103 `expert-witness-preparation`
- 106 `discovery-document-review`

## Cost

Free. CourtListener API has generous rate limits. PACER documents not yet in RECAP still cost $0.10/page to retrieve directly from PACER.