Korean Law MCP
An MCP server for Korea's official legal database: search statutes, case law and ordinances, and verify article citations against fabrications
Medium risk
We rate an entry medium when the tool runs code, makes network calls or reads project files. Check what exactly it does before installing.
Why this level
- Reaches out over the network to an external legal-portal API
- Uses an access key that must be kept as a secret
Install
Manual install
npx --ignore-scripts --omit=optional korean-law-mcp setupThe setup wizard asks for the key and client and writes the config itself.
This is third-party code. Review the repository files before installing.
What it does
The server wraps Korea's open legal-portal API (법제처) into a set of ten tools the agent calls. Through them it searches statutes, court and constitutional decisions, administrative rules, local ordinances and treaties, and pulls full article and annex text. A separate tool checks the citations in a model's answer against the real database and flags articles that do not exist or whose title does not match, to catch fabricated references. It also resolves the version of a law in force on a given date, tracks repealed statutes and their successors, and runs a change radar for ordinances. Access uses your own key or a shared public server with rate limits.
Who it is for. For lawyers, compliance specialists and developers of legal services who work with Korean legislation.
Good fit when
- You need to find a Korean statute, court decision or ordinance and get the exact article text
- You need to verify that the article citations in a model's answer actually exist
- You need to know which version of a law was in force on a specific date
Not a fit when
- You need another country's legislation; the server covers only Korea
- You need legal advice rather than search and verification of primary sources
Example request
Find Article 38 of Korea's Customs Act and verify that the article citations in this draft answer existLimitations
Data comes from Korea's open legal-portal API, and the texts and output are mostly in Korean. For stable use you need your own free 법제처 key (the LAW_OC variable); the shared public server works without a key but under a shared request limit. Deploying HTTP on a non-loopback address requires setting an access token. The server checks the form and existence of article citations but does not replace legal advice.
How to disable. Remove the korean-law entry from your MCP client config. If you installed the global package, remove it with npm uninstall -g korean-law-mcp. If installed as a plugin, remove it via /plugin.
MCP
- Transport
- stdio, http
- Authentication
- API key
| Environment variables | |
|---|---|
| LAW_OC required, secret | Free key for Korea's open legal-portal API, issued at open.law.go.kr. Without your own key a public server is available under a shared limit. |
| MCP_AUTH_TOKEN secret | Access token for the HTTP endpoint, required when deploying on a non-loopback address. |
Security check
- Reaches out over the network to an external legal-portal API
- Uses an access key that must be kept as a secret
README in short
The README describes an MCP server and CLI for Korea's official legal database, where more than forty APIs are folded into about ten tools. Beyond searching statutes, case law and ordinances, it claims citation verification against fabrications, point-in-time law resolution, repealed-law tracking and an ordinance change radar. Installation goes through an npx wizard, a global npm package, Docker or a remote endpoint, with support for common MCP clients. It needs a free 법제처 key in the LAW_OC variable, and remote access provides a token and rate-limit settings. MIT license.
FAQ
Do I need a separate key?
The 법제처 key is free from open.law.go.kr and makes usage more stable. A public server answers without a key but under a shared request limit.
Can it catch a fabricated article citation?
Yes, the verification tool checks each citation against the database and flags articles that do not exist or whose title does not match.
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