Philippine Law MCP Server

The Chan Robles Virtual Law Library alternative for the AI age.

Query 11,663 Philippine statutes -- from the Data Privacy Act of 2012 (RA 10173) and the Cybercrime Prevention Act (RA 10175) to the Revised Penal Code, the Labor Code, the 1987 Constitution, and more -- directly from Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-compatible client.

If you're building legal tech, compliance tools, or doing Philippine legal research, this is your verified reference database.

Built by Ansvar Systems -- Stockholm, Sweden

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Why This Exists

Philippine legal research means navigating lawphil.net, the Chan Robles Virtual Law Library, the Official Gazette, and Supreme Court e-Library, then manually cross-referencing between Republic Acts, Presidential Decrees, and implementing rules. Whether you're:

• A lawyer validating citations in a brief or contract
• A compliance officer checking Data Privacy Act obligations or NPC advisories
• A legal tech developer building tools on Philippine law
• A researcher tracing legislative provisions across 11,663 statutes from 1946 to 2024

...you shouldn't need dozens of browser tabs and manual cross-referencing. Ask Claude. Get the exact provision. With context.

This MCP server makes Philippine law searchable, cross-referenceable, and AI-readable.

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Quick Start

Use Remotely (No Install Needed)

Connect directly to the hosted version -- zero dependencies, nothing to install.

Endpoint: https://philippine-law-mcp.vercel.app/mcp

Client	How to Connect
Claude.ai	Settings > Connectors > Add Integration > paste URL
Claude Code	claude mcp add philippine-law --transport http https://philippine-law-mcp.vercel.app/mcp
Claude Desktop	Add to config (see below)
GitHub Copilot	Add to VS Code settings (see below)

Claude Desktop -- add to claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "philippine-law": {
      "type": "url",
      "url": "https://philippine-law-mcp.vercel.app/mcp"
    }
  }
}

GitHub Copilot -- add to VS Code settings.json:

{
  "github.copilot.chat.mcp.servers": {
    "philippine-law": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://philippine-law-mcp.vercel.app/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Use Locally (npm)

npx @ansvar/philippine-law-mcp

Claude Desktop -- add to claude_desktop_config.json:

macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "philippine-law": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@ansvar/philippine-law-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Cursor / VS Code:

{
  "mcp.servers": {
    "philippine-law": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@ansvar/philippine-law-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

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Example Queries

Once connected, just ask naturally:

• "What does the Data Privacy Act of 2012 (RA 10173) say about personal information controllers?"
• "Find provisions in the Revised Penal Code about cybercrime"
• "What does the Cybercrime Prevention Act (RA 10175) say about online libel?"
• "Search for labor rights under the Labor Code -- illegal dismissal provisions"
• "Ano ang sinasabi ng Saligang Batas ng 1987 tungkol sa karapatan ng mga manggagawa?" (What does the 1987 Constitution say about workers' rights?)
• "What are the penalties under RA 10175 for unauthorized access to computer systems?"
• "Validate the citation 'Section 16, RA 10173'"
• "Find provisions about corporate governance in the Revised Corporation Code (RA 11232)"
• "Search for consumer protection provisions in RA 7394 (Consumer Act of the Philippines)"
• "Build a legal stance on data breach notification requirements under Philippine law"

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What's Included

Category	Count	Details
Republic Acts	11,663 statutes	RA 1 (1946) through RA series 2024
Provisions	96,519 sections	Full-text searchable with FTS5
1987 Constitution	Included	Full text with all articles and sections
Revised Penal Code	Included	Act No. 3815 with amendments
Case Law	0 (free tier)	Reserved for future ingestion
Preparatory Works	0 (free tier)	Reserved for future ingestion
Database Size	~146 MB	Optimized SQLite, portable
Daily Updates	Automated	Freshness checks against lawphil.net

Verified data only -- every citation is validated against official sources (lawphil.net, officialgazette.gov.ph). Zero LLM-generated content.

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See It In Action

Why This Works

Verbatim Source Text (No LLM Processing):

• All statute text is ingested from lawphil.net and the Official Gazette of the Philippines
• Provisions are returned unchanged from SQLite FTS5 database rows
• Zero LLM summarization or paraphrasing -- the database contains regulation text, not AI interpretations

Smart Context Management:

• Search returns ranked provisions with BM25 scoring (safe for context)
• Provision retrieval gives exact text by RA number + section
• Cross-references help navigate without loading everything at once

Technical Architecture:

lawphil.net / Official Gazette --> Parse --> SQLite --> FTS5 snippet() --> MCP response
                                     ^                        ^
                              Provision parser         Verbatim database query

Traditional Research vs. This MCP

Traditional Approach	This MCP Server
Search lawphil.net by RA number	Search by plain English: "personal information controller"
Navigate multi-section Acts manually	Get the exact provision with context
Manual cross-referencing between Acts and IRRs	build_legal_stance aggregates across sources
"Is this Act still in force?" -> check manually	check_currency tool -> answer in seconds
Find international alignment -> dig through ASEAN portals	get_eu_basis -> linked international frameworks instantly
Check Chan Robles, Official Gazette separately	Daily automated freshness checks
No API, no integration	MCP protocol -> AI-native

Traditional: Search lawphil.net -> Download HTML -> Ctrl+F -> Cross-reference with IRR -> Check NPC advisory -> Repeat

This MCP: "What are the complete obligations of a personal information controller under RA 10173 and the NPC implementing rules?" -> Done.

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Available Tools (13)

Core Legal Research Tools (8)

Tool	Description
search_legislation	FTS5 full-text search across 96,519 provisions with BM25 ranking
get_provision	Retrieve specific provision by RA number + section (e.g., "RA 10173" + "Section 16")
validate_citation	Validate citation against database (zero-hallucination check)
build_legal_stance	Aggregate citations from statutes across multiple Republic Acts
format_citation	Format citations per Philippine conventions (full/short/pinpoint)
check_currency	Check if statute is in force, amended, or repealed
list_sources	List all available statutes with metadata and data provenance
about	Server info, capabilities, dataset statistics, and coverage summary

International Law Alignment Tools (5)

Tool	Description
get_eu_basis	Get international frameworks aligned with Philippine statutes
get_philippine_implementations	Find Philippine laws implementing international frameworks
search_eu_implementations	Search international documents with Philippine alignment counts
get_provision_eu_basis	Get international law references for a specific provision
validate_eu_compliance	Check alignment status against international frameworks

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International Law Alignment

The Philippines is not an EU member state. Philippine law draws from US common law traditions (civil procedure, constitutional structure) alongside a civil law heritage. International alignment is primarily through ASEAN frameworks, APEC, and bilateral agreements.

Metric	Value
Legal System	Mixed civil law and common law (US influence)
Data Protection	Data Privacy Act of 2012 (RA 10173) -- NPC oversight, APEC CBPR aligned
Cybercrime	Cybercrime Prevention Act (RA 10175) -- Budapest Convention signatory (2018)
ASEAN Framework	ASEAN Digital Data Governance Framework, ASEAN Cybersecurity Cooperation Strategy
Trade	ASEAN Free Trade Area, bilateral agreements with EU, US, Japan

Key Philippine Statutes with International Alignment

1. RA 10173 (Data Privacy Act 2012) -- Aligned with APEC CBPR, informed by EU Directive 95/46/EC
2. RA 10175 (Cybercrime Prevention Act 2012) -- Budapest Convention on Cybercrime principles
3. RA 11232 (Revised Corporation Code 2019) -- OECD corporate governance principles
4. RA 8792 (E-Commerce Act 2000) -- UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Commerce
5. RA 7394 (Consumer Act 1992) -- UN Guidelines for Consumer Protection principles

Note: The Philippines does not have an EU adequacy decision. Transfers of personal data from EU to Philippines require Standard Contractual Clauses or other GDPR Art. 46 safeguards. The NPC actively benchmarks RA 10173 against GDPR for adequacy purposes.

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Data Sources & Freshness

All content is sourced from authoritative Philippine legal databases:

• LawPhil Project -- Philippine Laws, Statutes, and Codes
• Official Gazette of the Philippines -- Official government publications
• Chan Robles Virtual Law Library -- Republic Acts archive

Data Provenance

Field	Value
Authority	Official Gazette of the Philippines (Office of the President)
Retrieval method	lawphil.net and Official Gazette HTML
Languages	English (primary legal language; Filipino for constitutional texts)
License	Public domain (Philippine government publications)
Coverage	11,663 Republic Acts (RA 1, 1946 through 2024) + Constitution + Revised Penal Code
Last ingested	2026-02-25

Automated Freshness Checks (Daily)

A daily GitHub Actions workflow monitors all data sources:

Source	Check	Method
Statute amendments	Official Gazette date comparison	All 11,663 Acts checked
New statutes	Official Gazette publications (90-day window)	Diffed against database
Reference staleness	Git commit timestamps	Flagged if >90 days old

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Security

This project uses multiple layers of automated security scanning:

Scanner	What It Does	Schedule
CodeQL	Static analysis for security vulnerabilities	Weekly + PRs
Semgrep	SAST scanning (OWASP top 10, secrets, TypeScript)	Every push
Gitleaks	Secret detection across git history	Every push
Trivy	CVE scanning on filesystem and npm dependencies	Daily
Docker Security	Container image scanning + SBOM generation	Daily
Socket.dev	Supply chain attack detection	PRs
OSSF Scorecard	OpenSSF best practices scoring	Weekly
Dependabot	Automated dependency updates	Weekly

See SECURITY.md for the full policy and vulnerability reporting.

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Important Disclaimers

Legal Advice

THIS TOOL IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE

Statute text is sourced from lawphil.net and the Official Gazette. However:

• This is a research tool, not a substitute for professional legal counsel
• Court case coverage is not included -- do not rely solely on this for jurisprudence research
• Verify critical citations against primary sources for court filings
• Implementing rules and regulations (IRRs) are not included -- check NPC, BSP, SEC issuances
• International alignment reflects relationship analysis, not direct transposition

Before using professionally, read: DISCLAIMER.md | PRIVACY.md

Client Confidentiality

Queries go through the Claude API. For privileged or confidential matters, use on-premise deployment. For guidance on professional obligations, consult the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP). See PRIVACY.md for compliance guidance.

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Documentation

• International Alignment Guide -- ASEAN and international framework documentation
• Security Policy -- Vulnerability reporting and scanning details
• Disclaimer -- Legal disclaimers and professional use notices
• Privacy -- Client confidentiality and data handling

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Development

Setup

git clone https://github.com/Ansvar-Systems/philippine-law-mcp
cd philippine-law-mcp
npm install
npm run build
npm test

Running Locally

npm run dev                                       # Start MCP server
npx @anthropic/mcp-inspector node dist/index.js   # Test with MCP Inspector

Data Management

npm run ingest                    # Ingest statutes from lawphil.net / Official Gazette
npm run build:db                  # Rebuild SQLite database
npm run drift:detect              # Run drift detection against anchors
npm run check-updates             # Check for amendments and new statutes
npm run census                    # Generate coverage census report

Performance

• Search Speed: <100ms for most FTS5 queries
• Database Size: ~146 MB (efficient, portable)
• Reliability: 100% ingestion success rate across 11,663 Republic Acts

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Related Projects: Complete Compliance Suite

This server is part of Ansvar's Compliance Suite -- MCP servers that work together for end-to-end compliance coverage:

@ansvar/eu-regulations-mcp

Query 49 EU regulations directly from Claude -- GDPR, AI Act, DORA, NIS2, MiFID II, eIDAS, and more. Full regulatory text with article-level search. npx @ansvar/eu-regulations-mcp

@ansvar/philippine-law-mcp (This Project)

Query 11,663 Philippine statutes directly from Claude -- Data Privacy Act, Cybercrime Prevention Act, Revised Penal Code, Labor Code, 1987 Constitution, and more. npx @ansvar/philippine-law-mcp

@ansvar/us-regulations-mcp

Query US federal and state compliance laws -- HIPAA, CCPA, SOX, GLBA, FERPA, and more. npx @ansvar/us-regulations-mcp

@ansvar/security-controls-mcp

Query 261 security frameworks -- ISO 27001, NIST CSF, SOC 2, CIS Controls, SCF, and more. npx @ansvar/security-controls-mcp

@ansvar/sanctions-mcp

Offline-capable sanctions screening -- OFAC, EU, UN sanctions lists. pip install ansvar-sanctions-mcp

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Contributing

Contributions welcome! See CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.

Priority areas:

• Supreme Court case law expansion (e-Library)
• NPC advisory opinions and circular ingestion
• Implementing rules and regulations (IRRs) coverage
• Historical statute versions and amendment tracking

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Roadmap

• Core statute database with FTS5 search
• Full corpus ingestion (11,663 Republic Acts, 96,519 provisions)
• 1987 Constitution and Revised Penal Code included
• International law alignment tools
• Vercel Streamable HTTP deployment
• npm package publication
• Supreme Court case law expansion
• NPC advisory opinions and circulars
• Implementing rules and regulations (IRRs)
• Historical statute versions (amendment tracking)

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Citation

If you use this MCP server in academic research:

@software{philippine_law_mcp_2026,
  author = {Ansvar Systems AB},
  title = {Philippine Law MCP Server: Production-Grade Legal Research Tool},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://github.com/Ansvar-Systems/philippine-law-mcp},
  note = {11,663 Philippine Republic Acts with 96,519 provisions including the 1987 Constitution and Revised Penal Code}
}

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License

Apache License 2.0. See LICENSE for details.

Data Licenses

• Statutes & Legislation: Official Gazette of the Philippines (public domain)
• Republic Acts: LawPhil Project (public domain -- Philippine government publications)

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About Ansvar Systems

We build AI-accelerated compliance and legal research tools for the global market. This MCP server started as our internal reference tool for Philippine law -- turns out everyone building compliance tools for Southeast Asia has the same research frustrations.

So we're open-sourcing it. Navigating 11,663 Republic Acts shouldn't require a law degree.

ansvar.eu -- Stockholm, Sweden

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_{Built with care in Stockholm, Sweden}