CourtAPI — Federal Court Data vs North Dakota Code
A side-by-side look at the CourtAPI — Federal Court Data and North Dakota Code MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.
Verdict: choose CourtAPI — Federal Court Data for legal work as a local process; choose North Dakota Code for legal as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.
Which MCP server should you choose?
Choose CourtAPI — Federal Court Data when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Legal domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- You have the keys it needs:
COURTAPI_APP_ID, COURTAPI_APP_KEY, COURTAPI_BASE_URL. - You want tools like
find_cases, get_case, get_dockets.
Choose North Dakota Code when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Legal domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- Its auth model fits you: No auth required.
Feature & specification comparison
Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Legal | Legal |
| Quality signal | 56/100 · Good | 45/100 · Fair |
| Install command | Confirmed | Confirmed |
| Transport | Local subprocess (stdio) | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | Not declared | No auth required |
| Pricing | Not declared | Free |
| Required env vars | COURTAPI_APP_IDCOURTAPI_APP_KEYCOURTAPI_BASE_URL | None listed |
| Verified owner | Community listing | Community listing |
| GitHub stars | 0 | 0 |
| Directory activity | 3 views 0 installs 0 upvotes | 1 views 0 installs 0 upvotes |
| Tools | 10 | Not listed |
| Full listing | View CourtAPI — Federal Court Data | View North Dakota Code |
Tools & capabilities
CourtAPI — Federal Court Data tools 10
find_casesDiscover federal court cases you don't have the court+number for yet. Pass a party/company name, a (partial) case number, or free-text keywords. Returns court_code + case_number needed by all other tools. No PACER cost. Note: keyword search (search-filings) charges 1 CourtAPI API call per 25 results returned. Examples: query='Sbarro', query='1:14-bk', query='retail chapter 11 2026'.get_caseGet all metadata for a known case: title, chapter, judge, key dates (filed/closed/discharged), assets, liabilities, and links to sub-resources (dockets, claims, parties, etc.) with their last-modified timestamps. Always call this first after finding a case. The response includes a 'menu' object where each entry has a 'modified' timestamp (null = never purchased) showing what sub-resources are available. Free unless include_live_pacer=true.get_docketsGet the docket sheet for a case — all filings in chronological order with dates, descriptions, and attached document info (is_cached, download_cost). The header includes judge, attorneys, trustees, and 341 meeting date. Supports keyword search and date/number range filtering. Free unless include_live_pacer=true.get_documentGet a PDF attached to a docket entry. Always checks the cache first. If cached (is_cached=true), returns download_url + preview_url + ocr_link at no cost. If not cached and purchase=true, buys from PACER and returns download_url + receipt. If not cached and purchase=false (default), returns cost info so you can decide. docket_seq comes from docket entries (e.g. '42.00000'). part defaults to 1 (main doc).get_claimsGet the bankruptcy claims register — all proofs of claim filed by creditors, with amounts (filed/allowed/paid), claim type (secured/unsecured), creditor names, and filing dates. Essential for Chapter 11 analysis and creditor research. Supports keyword search and date/number range filtering.get_partiesGet all parties in a case (debtors, creditors, plaintiffs, defendants, trustees) and optionally their attorneys with firm name, contact info, and bar number. Useful for conflicts checks, service lists, and identifying who is involved.get_creditorsGet the creditor list for a bankruptcy case — all creditors scheduled in Schedules D/E/F, whether or not they filed a proof of claim. Different from get_claims (which shows filed proofs of claim).ncl_searchSearch PACER's National Case Locator across all federal courts at once. More comprehensive than find_cases for party name searches — queries PACER directly. Costs PACER credits. Returns up to ~50 cases per page; pass search_id + page to paginate. Use for: finding a person's cases across all courts, SSN lookups, cross-court party searches.list_courtsList all PACER courts with their court codes. Call this when you need a court_code and don't know it. Returns ~200 courts; use type to filter. Common codes: nysbke, debke, ilnbke, cacdbe, txnbke.get_pacer_credentialsCheck or update PACER credentials stored in CourtAPI. PACER credentials are required before any include_live_pacer=true call. action='check' → show stored username (password not returned). action='set' → store pacer_user + pacer_pass. action='validate' → test credentials without storing. action='delete' → remove stored credentials.
North Dakota Code tools
No tool names declared yet. Check the project README from the listing page.
Ready-to-paste client configs
Paste either block (or both) into your client config, e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json. We only show a config when the install command is confirmed.
CourtAPI — Federal Court Data
{
"mcpServers": {
"courtapi-federal-court-data": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@courtio/courtapi-mcp"
],
"env": {
"COURTAPI_APP_ID": "YOUR_COURTAPI_APP_ID_HERE",
"COURTAPI_APP_KEY": "YOUR_COURTAPI_APP_KEY_HERE",
"COURTAPI_BASE_URL": "YOUR_COURTAPI_BASE_URL_HERE"
}
}
}
}
North Dakota Code
{
"mcpServers": {
"north-dakota-code": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@pipeworx/mcp-north-dakota-code"
]
}
}
}
Frequently asked questions
CourtAPI — Federal Court Data is categorized under Legal and uses a local stdio subprocess. North Dakota Code belongs to Legal and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick CourtAPI — Federal Court Data for legal work and North Dakota Code for legal.
Copy the mcpServers block from the config section on this page into your client's config (for example claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json), then fully restart the client.
CourtAPI — Federal Court Data has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. North Dakota Code is listed as free. Auth: no auth required. If a server needs environment variables such as API keys, define them under the env key in your client's MCP config.
Yes. MCP clients support multiple servers: add courtapi-federal-court-data and north-dakota-code as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.
On AllMCPs, CourtAPI — Federal Court Data has a quality signal of 56/100 (Good) with 3 views, 0 installs and 0 GitHub stars. North Dakota Code has 45/100 (Fair) with 1 views, 0 installs and 0 GitHub stars.