docket

A local-first case file organizer for public defenders.

Public defenders routinely carry 100+ active cases with zero software budget. docket is a small, fast, free tool for tracking cases, deadlines, and documents — built for that reality.

Who it's for

• Public defenders and court-appointed counsel
• Legal aid organizations
• Solo practitioners doing indigent defense
• Law students in criminal defense clinics

Principles

• Local-first. Everything lives in a single SQLite file (docket.db) in the directory where you run docket. It is created on first use.
• Zero network. docket makes no network connections. Ever.
• Zero telemetry. No analytics, no crash reporting, no phone-home of any kind. Your data never leaves your machine.
• Boring tech. SQLite via rusqlite (bundled — no system dependency), a Rust core library, and a clap CLI. Your data is in an open, portable format you can back up with cp.

Quickstart

cargo install --path .

# Add a case
docket case add --number CR-2026-0142 --defendant "J. Doe" \
  --charges "possession w/ intent" --court "Superior Court, Dept. 4"

# Add a case with a pseudonym instead of a real name (see below)
docket case add --number CR-2026-0143 --pseudonym "Client J.D." \
  --charges "petty theft"

# List and inspect
docket case list
docket case list --status open
docket case show CR-2026-0142

# Deadlines
docket deadline add --case CR-2026-0142 --kind arraignment --due 2026-10-02
docket deadline add --case CR-2026-0142 --kind discovery_cutoff --due 2026-11-15
docket deadlines            # overdue + next 14 days, overdue highlighted
docket deadlines --days 30
docket deadline done 1

# Documents
docket doc add --case 1 --kind discovery --path ./police-report.pdf

# Search across case numbers, names, charges, notes
docket search "possession"

# Close a case
docket close CR-2026-0142

# Court-day summary (stdout, or --out summary.txt)
docket export CR-2026-0142
docket export CR-2026-0142 --pdf summary.pdf

# Local reminder. Silent if nothing is due. Safe to cron.
docket remind                 # overdue + due today
docket remind --days 3        # plus the next 3 days
docket remind --notify        # desktop popup if notify-send exists; still no network

Desktop window, same core, no network. The window keeps its own database under the app data folder and shows that path. It does not read the CLI's docket.db in the current directory.

cargo build --manifest-path src-tauri/Cargo.toml
./src-tauri/target/debug/docket-desktop

Pseudonyms and screen sharing

Public defenders share their screens constantly — in court, on calls, in trainings. docket case add supports a --pseudonym flag:

docket case add --number CR-2026-0143 --pseudonym "Client J.D." --charges "..."

When --pseudonym is given, the pseudonym is stored in the defendant name field instead of the real name. The real name is never written to the database, so it can't leak onto a shared screen, a screenshot, or a backup. You track the pseudonym-to-client mapping however your office already handles confidential keys (paper file, encrypted vault, etc.).

An honest note

docket is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to any court system. It is a personal organizer, nothing more. You are responsible for complying with your jurisdiction's confidentiality rules, your office's data handling policies, and your professional obligations regarding client information. "Local-first" helps — nothing is transmitted anywhere — but it does not replace your judgment about what to store and how to protect the machine it lives on. Consider full-disk encryption.

Roadmap

• Rust core library + CLI
• Export a case summary to plain text for court days
• Deadline reminders (optional, local only — docket remind)
• PDF export (docket export --pdf)
• Tauri GUI (docket-desktop, same local store, no network)
• Windows and Mac release builds (workflow is in, run it when the suite is finished)

License

Apache-2.0. See LICENSE.

Part of Blackshield Company.