# OpenAgreements [](https://www.npmjs.com/package/open-agreements) [](https://opensource.org/licenses/Apache-2.0) [](https://github.com/open-agreements/open-agreements/actions/workflows/ci.yml) [](https://app.codecov.io/gh/open-agreements/open-agreements) OpenAgreements helps people and software agents find primary-source-backed U.S. legal guidance and produce reviewable DOCX files from standard agreement templates. ## What OpenAgreements does - Publishes jurisdiction-specific practice guides with citations to primary law. - Provides standard agreement templates with source and license metadata. - Fills templates locally through a CLI or over MCP. - Publishes review checklists and comparison surveys in human- and machine-readable formats. OpenAgreements provides legal information and document mechanics, not legal advice. It does not decide whether a form or clause is right for a transaction, and generated documents are drafts for human review. The project’s longer-term goal is a citable conformance layer for legal AI: primary law becomes inspectable requirements, an AI can check a document against them, and a lawyer owns the final call. Read [Why OpenAgreements Exists](https://openagreements.org/manifesto.md) for the rationale; this README stays focused on using the project. ## Fill your first agreement Install the CLI locally, inspect the available forms, and fill the Common Paper Mutual NDA: ```bash npm install -g open-agreements open-agreements list open-agreements fill common-paper-mutual-nda \ --set party_1_name="Jane Doe" \ --set party_1_company="Acme Manufacturing, Inc." \ --set party_2_name="John Smith" \ --set party_2_company="Northeast Logistics LLC" \ --set effective_date="2026-07-15" \ --set purpose="Evaluating a potential logistics relationship" \ --output mutual-nda.docx ``` The last command writes `mutual-nda.docx`. Open it in Word or another DOCX viewer and review every filled term before signature. Defaults supply the standard one-year term, Delaware governing law, and other omitted cover terms; the CLI reports any priority fields that still need attention. For a complete, copyable example and field-review steps, follow the [quick start](https://github.com/open-agreements/open-agreements/blob/main/docs/quickstart.md). ## Understand the workflow ```text standard form + source and license metadata → supplied field values → validation and local rendering → reviewable DOCX → human legal and business review ``` The standard form is authoritative until rendering. Your supplied values become the transaction-specific inputs. The generated DOCX is an output for review; it is never automatically accepted or signed. The legal-content path is separate: practice guides cite primary sources, surveys compare jurisdictions, and checklists turn requirements into review steps. Those materials can inform a decision, but they do not mutate an agreement. ## Choose your next step - [Install OpenAgreements](https://github.com/open-agreements/open-agreements/blob/main/docs/installation.md) — choose local CLI, local MCP, or hosted MCP. - [Fill a standard agreement](https://github.com/open-agreements/open-agreements/blob/main/docs/quickstart.md) — complete the canonical workflow end to end. - [Use legal guidance and checklists](https://github.com/open-agreements/open-agreements/blob/main/docs/workflows/use-legal-content.md) — find the right human- or machine-readable source. - [Connect an AI agent](https://github.com/open-agreements/open-agreements/blob/main/docs/using-with-ai-agents.md) — configure Claude Code, Codex CLI, Cursor, or Gemini CLI. - [Browse the full catalog](https://github.com/open-agreements/open-agreements/blob/main/docs/reference/catalog.md) — templates, guides, surveys, checklists, skills, and packages. - [Understand system boundaries](https://github.com/open-agreements/open-agreements/blob/main/docs/architecture.md) — follow content and documents through the system. - [Contribute](https://github.com/open-agreements/open-agreements/blob/main/CONTRIBUTING.md) — change code, documentation, templates, or field-selectors. {{LINKS}} ## Privacy and document handling - Local CLI and local stdio MCP processing stay on your machine. - Hosted MCP template filling runs server-side; filled documents are not stored after the response is returned. - Some field-selector workflows download an official source document at runtime. Choose an execution mode that matches your document-sensitivity and internal policy requirements. See the [trust-boundary status](https://github.com/open-agreements/open-agreements/blob/main/docs/trust-checklist.md) and [security policy](https://github.com/open-agreements/open-agreements/blob/main/SECURITY.md). ## License Project code is licensed under [Apache License 2.0](LICENSE). Content retains its source-specific license. See the [licensing reference](https://github.com/open-agreements/open-agreements/blob/main/docs/licensing.md) and each template's `metadata.yaml` before redistribution or modification.