type: standard

text: The Temporal Bill of Rights — Defines the seven inalienable rights protecting human time against automated systems.


text: The Contestability & Recourse Standard — Defines contestability, review, and remedy obligations for consequential systems.


type: clause

text: STD-01.1.1 (MUST) when active automated process is in progress, provide a visible, universally accessible halt control. Evidence: ui_control, event_log.


text: STD-01.1.2 (MUST) when a process is halted by the user, preserve the paused state for return without penalty. Evidence: state_snapshot, retention_policy.


text: STD-01.1.3 (MUST) when user is in a multi-step flow, offer a permanent exit option on every screen. Evidence: ui_state, interaction_map.


text: STD-01.2.1 (MUST) when user seeks to end a relationship with a system, allow exit with equal or less friction than entry. Evidence: journey_map, time_cost_log.


text: STD-01.2.2 (MUST) when entry required a single step, exit requires no more than one step. Evidence: journey_map, ui_state.


text: STD-01.2.3 (MUST) when user initiates resignation or cancellation, avoid mandatory retention scripts before exit. Evidence: journey_map, policy.


text: STD-01.3.1 (MUST) when process includes pending, processing, or review states, set hard clocks for each state. Evidence: system_sla, event_log.


text: STD-01.3.2 (MUST) when timeout threshold is reached, provide a failure response or human escalation. Evidence: escalation_policy, event_log.


text: STD-01.3.3 (MUST) when user is asked to commit to a process, declare expected duration before commitment. Evidence: ui_copy, journey_map.


text: STD-01.4.1 (MUST) when user performs a consequential action, provide an undo window for reversals. Evidence: ui_state, policy.


text: STD-01.4.2 (MUST) when system deletes or removes content, use non-destructive defaults with soft-delete. Evidence: data_retention_policy, event_log.


text: STD-01.5.1 (MUST) when user is waiting in a queue or hold state, show queue position and expected wait time. Evidence: ui_state, queue_metrics.


text: STD-01.5.2 (MUST) when system reports progress or waiting status, avoid fake progress indicators or placebo signals. Evidence: ui_state, event_log.


text: STD-01.5.3 (MUST) when wait time exceeds five minutes, offer asynchronous options. Evidence: ui_state, journey_map.


text: STD-01.6.1 (MUST) when automated denial or escalation request occurs, provide a defined escalation path to a human. Evidence: policy, support_workflow.


text: STD-01.6.2 (MUST) when automation impacts a user outcome, operating institution accepts liability. Evidence: policy, governance_record.


text: STD-01.7.1 (MUST) when system imposes compliance or usage burden, measure and publish the time tax. Evidence: burden_report, time_cost_log.


text: STD-01.7.2 (MUST) when governance metrics are tracked, include burden as a reportable metric. Evidence: governance_dashboard.


text: STD-02.1.1 (MUST) when automation materially affects a person, disclose that automated decisioning occurred. Evidence: ui_notice, policy.


text: STD-02.1.2 (MUST) when automation changes status, access, or resources, state what changed and why it matters. Evidence: ui_notice, decision_log.


text: STD-02.1.3 (MUST) when person receives an adverse or consequential outcome, provide a review/appeal path with timelines. Evidence: appeal_policy, ui_copy.


text: STD-02.2.1 (MUST) when system takes an action or decision, maintain a record of tool calls and state changes. Evidence: action_log, audit_trail.


text: STD-02.2.2 (MUST) when receipt is generated for an action, include reason codes and key inputs (redacted as needed). Evidence: receipt_template, policy.


text: STD-02.2.3 (MUST) when receipt is issued, identify accountable operator and contact channel. Evidence: receipt_template, contact_directory.


text: STD-02.3.1 (MUST) when person is materially affected, grant standing regardless of status or credentials. Evidence: policy, appeal_workflow.


text: STD-02.3.2 (MUST) when a contestation is filed, avoid retaliation or punitive impacts. Evidence: policy, case_log.


text: STD-02.3.3 (MUST) when decision is delivered via a channel, offer contestation in the same channel. Evidence: ui_state, journey_map.


text: STD-02.4.1 (MUST) when appeals are accepted, publish timelines for acknowledgment, review, resolution. Evidence: sla_doc, ui_copy.


text: STD-02.4.2 (MUST) when review concerns high-stakes domains, provide transparent status updates and expected resolution. Evidence: status_updates, queue_metrics.


text: STD-02.4.3 (MUST) when review deadlines are missed, escalate to higher-authority or trigger failsafe remedy. Evidence: escalation_policy, event_log.


text: STD-02.5.1 (MUST) when harm is reversible, support undo/rollback without extraordinary effort. Evidence: remedy_policy, ui_state.


text: STD-02.5.2 (MUST) when harm is irreversible, provide a defined compensation pathway. Evidence: remedy_policy, case_log.


text: STD-02.5.3 (MUST) when remedy is issued, assign authority to named humans. Evidence: org_chart, authority_matrix.


text: STD-02.6.1 (MUST) when automated denial or action occurs, offer human review on request. Evidence: review_policy, support_workflow.


text: STD-02.6.2 (MUST) when reviewers are evaluated, avoid incentives that bias against remedies. Evidence: performance_policy, incentive_plan.


text: STD-02.6.3 (MUST) when logs support review or redress, retain tamper-evident records long enough for investigation. Evidence: audit_trail, retention_policy.


text: STD-02.7.1 (MUST) when automation causes errors or latency, operator accepts liability for harms. Evidence: policy, governance_record.


text: STD-02.7.2 (MUST) when vendors manage logs or controls, operators still guarantee access and remedy. Evidence: vendor_contract, access_policy.


text: STD-02.7.3 (MUST) when automation throughput increases, fund review capacity proportional to actions. Evidence: capacity_plan, case_volume_metrics.


type: mechanism

text: MEC-01 Decision log with dissent — Capture high-stakes calls, dissenting views, and follow-ups so governance stays legible to teams and impacted people.

object_refs: MEC-01 design-authority repair-log contestability


text: MEC-02 Progressive consent prompts — Stage requests for data or automation over time, with reminders and exits that honor the consent journey.

object_refs: MEC-02 consent-journey permission-surface safety-valve


text: MEC-03 Maintenance windowing — Schedule improvements, monitoring, and resourcing using a visible stewardship window.

object_refs: MEC-03 maintenance-window maintenance-metabolism repair-log


text: MEC-05 Kill switch for runaway automation — Pre-authorized halt paths with named stewards, thresholds, and restoration drills so harms stop in seconds.

object_refs: MEC-05 stoppability ethical-interrupts time-to-halt


text: MEC-06 Appeal paths inside the UI — Give people a built-in channel to dispute outputs, get human review, or learn how a decision was made.

object_refs: MEC-06 contestability appeal-passage-rate permission-surface


type: validator

text: Burden Modeler — Score time tax and constructive denial risk across user journeys.


text: Risk Radar — Surface cumulative exposure across high-friction touchpoints.


text: Latency Audit — Validate bounded duration requirements against system latency.


type: glossary

text: Ethotechnics


text: Moral Behavior (of Systems)


text: Ethical Load Path


text: Ethotechnic Audit

object_refs: ethotechnic-audit /ai-governance/


text: Conviviality

object_refs: conviviality /mechanisms


text: Ethotechnic Maturity


text: Legibility

object_refs: legibility /civic-services/


text: Sociotechnical Alignment


text: Moral Latency

object_refs: moral-latency /healthcare/


text: Accountability Diffusion


text: Extraction

object_refs: extraction /ai-governance/ /resources/


text: Extraction by Endurance


text: Drift (System Drift)


text: Externalization


text: Brittleness


text: Optimization Myopia


text: Precision Laundering


text: Compliance Collapse


text: Ethics Debt


text: Unowned Harm


text: Capability Overhang

object_refs: capability-overhang /mechanisms


text: Ethics Theater


text: Stoppability


text: Reversibility


text: Fair Burden Distribution


text: Contestability


text: Explainability for Accountability


text: Human Refusal-Tolerance


text: Graceful Degradation


text: Soft Edges


text: Governability

object_refs: governability /mechanisms


text: Incident Literacy


text: Fail-Safe Mode


text: Fail-Open Mode


text: Fail-Silent Mode


text: Crumple Zone / Human-as-Crumple-Zone


text: Harm Visibility


text: Dead Zones / Moral Dead Zones


text: Escalation Horizon


text: Interaction Surface


text: Maintenance Window


text: Care Retrospective


text: Repair Log


text: Finitude


text: Cognitive Saturation Point


text: Compassion Bandwidth


text: Administrative Shame


text: Dread Work


text: Refusal Budget


text: Behavioral Shaping

object_refs: behavioral-shaping /ai-governance/


text: Burden Distribution


text: Burden Gradient


text: Failure Load


text: Burden Transfer Event


text: Maintenance Metabolism


text: Maintenance Debt


text: Moral Overhead


text: Temporal Exaction


text: Asymmetric Sustaining


text: Fragility Subsidy


text: Burden Index


text: Harm Internalization


text: Maintenance Ethics


text: Moral Performance Indicators (MPIs)


text: Service-Level Indicators of Justice (SLJs)


text: Institutional Metabolism Mapping


text: Time-to-Halt (TTH)

object_refs: time-to-halt kill-switch


text: Time-to-Restore (TTR)


text: Appeal Passage Rate


text: Irreversibility Index


text: User Burden Ratio


text: Human Substitution Index


text: Moral Debt


text: Signal Credibility


text: Design Authority


text: Oversight Horizon


text: Permission Surface


text: Bounded Autonomy


text: Earned Autonomy


text: Scope Discipline


text: Right of Exit


text: Externalized Harm Channels


text: Stewardship Window


text: Stewardship

object_refs: stewardship /maintenance-playbooks/


text: Governance by Suspension


text: Endurance Asymmetry


text: Continuity Privilege


text: Proxy Privilege


text: Latency-as-Action


text: Bounded Duration


text: Continuity of State


text: Safe Pause / Status Quo During Pendency


text: Traceable Ownership


text: Time Transparency


text: Protective Friction


text: Punitive Friction


text: Dignity Friction


text: Velocity Friction


text: Safety Valve


text: Consent Journey


text: Humane Friction


text: Appropriate Friction

object_refs: appropriate-friction /mechanisms


text: Frictionless Harm


text: Decision Edge


text: Decision Artifact


text: Non-Decision


text: Stable Clock


text: Utility Window


text: Utility Expiry


text: Futility Threshold


text: Constructive Denial


text: Critical Action


text: Irreversible Boundary


text: Ethical Interrupts


text: Actionability Threshold


text: Normative Uncertainty


text: Heroism-Dependent Systems


text: Empathy Surrogacy


text: Error Cascades


text: Invisible Fallbacks


text: Dead-User Zones


text: Moral Lock-In


text: Moral Drift Control


text: Structural Gentleness Coefficients


text: Burden Elasticity


text: Care Redundancy


text: Meta-Contestability


text: User-State Modeling for Harm Prevention


text: Design for Ethical Latency


text: Distributed Accountability Protocols


text: Ethotechnic Failure Taxonomy


text: Adaptive Refusal Pathways


text: Aftercare Automation


text: Alignment Dividend


text: Ambiguity Budgets


text: Anticipatory Consent


text: Boundary of Acceptable Harm


text: Care Floor Guarantees


text: Compassion Telemetry


text: Conflict Observability


text: Counter-Abuse Guardrails


text: Crisis Rehearsal Loops


text: Data Dignity Budgets


text: Decision Debt Ledger


text: Downstream Equity Buffers


text: Ethical Circuit Breakers


text: Ethical Load Testing


text: Exhaustion Triggers


text: Friction Budgets


text: Graceful Rollback Lanes


text: Harm Amnesty Windows


text: Heat Maps of Refusal


text: Human Override Lanes


text: Incident Memory Chains


text: Moral Dry Runs


text: Moral Feature Gating


text: Pathways to Restitution


text: Refusal-Aware Routing


text: Relief Invariants


text: Repair Quorums


text: Rest Cycle Enforcement


text: The Conservancy Principle


text: The Burden Inversion Rule


text: The Stop-Before-Explain Rule


text: The Maintenance Doctrine


text: The Principle of Low-Failure-Load Design


text: The Reversibility Mandate


text: The Contestability Guarantee


type: finding

text: Exit flow introduces retention script before allowing cancellation. Impact: Users cannot exit without additional friction or persuasion. Closure: Remove retention gate and ensure one-step cancellation path..


text: Queue wait times are hidden during high-volume spikes. Impact: Users lack legible expectations and cannot plan alternatives. Closure: Expose queue position and wait estimates with a fallback SLA notice..