Guide · Agent skill
How to use the Open Gaps Tracker agent skill (gaps)
Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data
The gaps skill is an agent skill for Claude that reads a local YAML file of compliance or legal issues that were flagged but not yet fixed, then reports them, closes them, or records a risk acceptance. It is aimed at legal and compliance teams and anyone using the claude-for-legal plugin setup who already keeps a gap-tracker.yaml file. After this guide you will know what the skill does, how to install it, how to ask for it in plain language, and what to check before letting it change a record.
Open Gaps Trackeranthropics/claude-for-legal · Apache-2.0 Download the skill Quick start
- 1Download the ZIP. Get the gaps skill ZIP from its page on this directory.
- 2Install the skill. Unzip it into ~/.claude/skills/, or into .claude/skills/ in a project, or upload it under Settings → Capabilities → Skills in the Claude apps.
- 3Confirm the tracker exists. Check that gap-tracker.yaml is at ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/regulatory-legal/.
- 4Make the gap-surfacer skill available. Install the gap-surfacer reference skill, since gaps tells the agent to load it before substantive work.
- 5Ask for the open gaps. Request a status view with a phrase like "what gaps are open" and review the sorted report.
- 6Close or risk-accept a gap. Use --close GAP-ID or --accept GAP-ID with the exact ID, then check the tracker file to confirm the change.
What is an agent skill and what does gaps do?
An agent skill is a set of written instructions, packaged as a SKILL.md file, that an AI agent loads when a request matches the skill's description. The gaps skill tells the agent to read a tracker file and respond in one of three ways.
By default it reports open gaps, sorted by age and materiality. With the --close GAP-ID option it marks a gap closed and records a resolution note. With the --accept GAP-ID option it records a formal risk acceptance, including the rationale and the person accepting it, and sets the status to risk-accepted.
- Reads ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/regulatory-legal/gap-tracker.yaml
- Lists open items by age and materiality
- Closes a gap with a resolution note (--close GAP-ID)
- Records a risk acceptance with rationale and acceptor (--accept GAP-ID)
Install the gaps skill
Download the ZIP for the skill from its page on this directory, then choose one of the following methods. The ZIP contains SKILL.md.
For a personal install, unzip the file into ~/.claude/skills/. To limit it to one project, unzip it into the .claude/skills/ folder inside that project. If you use the Claude apps instead, upload the ZIP under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
- Personal: unzip into ~/.claude/skills/
- Single project: unzip into .claude/skills/ in the project folder
- Claude apps: upload the ZIP under Settings → Capabilities → Skills
Prepare the gap tracker file
The skill does not create a tracker. It only reads and updates an existing file, so you need gap-tracker.yaml at the path below before the skill has anything to report.
The skill also depends on the gap-surfacer reference skill. Its instructions say to load gap-surfacer before doing substantive work, so make sure that skill is available alongside gaps.
- Required file: ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/regulatory-legal/gap-tracker.yaml
- Required companion: the gap-surfacer reference skill, which holds the tracker schema and report format
~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/regulatory-legal/gap-tracker.yamlHow to trigger the skill with natural requests
You do not need to type the command. The skill is meant to activate when you ask about open gaps, the gap tracker, or remediation status. You can also invoke it directly with the argument hint shown in its description.
The examples below use the phrases named in the skill's description. The skill then reads the tracker and responds according to the request.
- "What gaps are open?"
- "Show me the gap tracker."
- "What is our remediation status?"
- "Close GAP-ID" or use --close GAP-ID to close a specific gap
- "Risk-accept GAP-ID" or use --accept GAP-ID to record a risk acceptance
Safety notes: scripts, network and writes
The skill runs no scripts and uses no network connection. Everything it does happens on the local YAML file.
It does write to that file. Closing or risk-accepting a gap changes the tracker's status directly. The reference skill sets rules for owner notifications, which require confirmation for each send, and a consequential-action gate for close and risk-accept actions. Review those rules in gap-surfacer before you rely on the skill for decisions.
- No scripts are run and no network is used
- Status changes are written directly to gap-tracker.yaml
- Owner notifications need per-send confirmation, according to the reference skill
- Check the tracker after every --accept, because a risk acceptance is a consequential decision
Tips for getting useful results
The report is only as good as the tracker. Gaps are sorted by the age and materiality fields recorded in the file, so keep those fields current. The skill does not judge whether a gap is material; that decision stays with a qualified person.
Use the close and accept options with the exact GAP-ID from your tracker so the right record is changed.
- Keep age and materiality fields up to date in gap-tracker.yaml
- Use exact GAP-IDs from the tracker
- Have a qualified reviewer check any risk acceptance before recording it
- Read the gap-surfacer reference for the schema and report format
What people use it for
- A legal team lists open remediation items by age before a weekly review meeting.
- A compliance reviewer checks the remediation status of flagged issues in a shared tracker.
- A reviewer closes a fixed gap and adds a resolution note to the record.
- A reviewer records why a known risk is accepted instead of fixed, including who accepted it.
Frequently asked questions
How do I install the gaps agent skill?
Download the ZIP from this directory page and unzip it into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use, or into .claude/skills/ inside a project. In the Claude apps, upload the ZIP under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
Does the gaps skill need a gap-tracker.yaml file?
Yes. The skill only reads and updates an existing tracker at ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/regulatory-legal/gap-tracker.yaml, so it has nothing to report without one.
Does the gaps skill need the gap-surfacer skill?
The skill's instructions say to load the gap-surfacer reference skill before doing substantive work. That reference holds the tracker schema, report format and owner-notification rules, so it should be installed alongside gaps.
Does the gaps skill run scripts or use the internet?
No. The source states that the skill runs no scripts and uses no network. It works on the local tracker file.
Is the gaps skill free and what is its licence?
The item is listed under the Apache-2.0 licence. The source does not state pricing, so check the directory page for any cost information.
Can the gaps skill decide whether a gap is material?
No. It sorts by the age and materiality fields already recorded in the file. Judgement about whether a gap is material stays with a qualified person, and legal advice is outside what the skill does.
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Our verdict
Use gaps if your team already keeps a gap-tracker.yaml file under the claude-for-legal setup and wants a sorted view of open items, plus a record of closures and risk acceptances. Pick something else if you do not maintain that file, need a judgement on materiality, or want changes made without review, since the skill writes status changes directly to the tracker.
Download the skill