Bankruptcy Observer MCP Server

Agent-first access to US business bankruptcy filings, dockets, documents, and case intelligence via the Model Context Protocol (MCP). Connect your AI agent (Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, or any MCP client) and it reads the full docket, pulls documents, summarizes cases in plain English, and reports what changed.

Free tier (no credentials): search_bankruptcy_cases_tool (exact debtor name match, no leading *) and get_case_by_case_number_tool (7-digit numbers, e.g. 26-10543) return limited fields, plus list_plans_tool / purchase_plan_tool. All other tools, full data, dockets, documents, and live updates require an authenticated subscription.

MCP Endpoint

https://mcp.bankruptcyobserver.com/mcp

POST JSON-RPC 2.0 (initialize, tools/list, tools/call). Supports Streamable HTTP / NDJSON progressive, Mcp- headers, and full OAuth 2.1 (DCR + PKCE S256) plus direct Bearer api_token.

Subscriber Tiers

Website subscribers — MCP access included

Every paid subscription at bankruptcyobserver.com includes MCP access. Your token appears in the subscriber dashboard at bankruptcyobserver.com/subscriber/mcp-setup.

Current plan names and prices come from list_plans_tool (always up to date; never hardcoded here). All plans are returned from VwSubscriptions where service = 'BKO'.

Direct Signup via MCP Tools (Stripe)

Use the MCP tools from any client (no auth needed for these two) to subscribe to BKO plans:

After payment the token is immediately usable with Authorization: Bearer BKO-... (or via the OAuth bootstrap at /oauth/authorize for ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor, etc.).

Browser alternative: /subscribe (simple form that drives the same server-side checkout flow).

Authentication / Connecting Your Agent

Direct (simple): send Authorization: Bearer <your token> (or X-API-Key header) on every request. Website subscribers and direct MCP signups alike find their token in the online dashboard at /subscriber/mcp-setup immediately after payment (no token is emailed).

curl -X POST https://mcp.bankruptcyobserver.com/mcp \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer BKO-..." \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","id":1,"method":"tools/call","params":{"name":"get_recent_developments_tool","arguments":{}}}'

OAuth 2.1 (for picky clients): Use DCR at /oauth/register, authorize at /oauth/authorize (paste your existing subscriber api_token to bootstrap), token at /oauth/token. Host-aware metadata at /.well-known/...

Tokens are self-contained in the mcpauth.mcp_users table (mcp_service='bko'). Legacy VwClientAuth tokens (apiToken) also work for the authorize bootstrap step.

Document downloads & cost preview

Each docket entry from get_docket_entries_tool includes a docket_id (40-character hex hash). Use get_document_tool in two steps:

  1. Cost preview{"docket_id": "..."} (omit accept_charge). Response includes mode: "cost_preview", cost, page_count, currency, and already_owned.
  2. Download — after the user confirms, {"docket_id": "...", "accept_charge": true}. Returns a signed PDF URL and records the purchase.

get_document_cost_tool returns the same preview as step 1 if your connector lists it. ChatGPT and other clients with stale tool catalogs can use get_document_tool alone — reconnect the connector after server updates to refresh tools/list.

Tools

Case intelligence (subscribers)

Search (Full Access plan; exact-name + 7-digit number shapes are free)

Account (no auth required)

Quotas & Limits

Daily / monthly counters (reset automatically) stored in mcp_users + mcp_user_quotas. Per-tool gating via mcp_user_tool_access if configured. check_subscription_tool returns your current usage.

Contact & More

https://www.bankruptcyobserver.com/contact — for billing, data questions, or enterprise plans.

Main site: bankruptcyobserver.com — website subscriptions include MCP access (token in your subscriber dashboard). More docs: bankruptcyobserver.com/mcp.