Glossary of developer terms
Look up terminology used across the HMCTS API Marketplace.
- API
- Application Programming Interface. A defined way for one piece of software to request data or actions from another, without needing to know how that other system works internally.
- OpenAPI specification
- A standard, machine-readable format for describing what an API does, its endpoints, and the data it returns. Every HMCTS API on the marketplace publishes one.
- OAuth 2.0
- The industry-standard framework HMCTS APIs use for authorisation. Your service proves who it is and is issued a token, rather than using a shared password.
- JWT bearer token
- JSON Web Token. A signed, time-limited credential issued after authentication, which your service includes with each API request to prove it is authorised.
- Sandbox
- A test environment that mimics production but contains no real case or personal data. Always integrate and test here first.
- Producer
- A team that owns and publishes an API on the marketplace.
- Consumer
- A team that requests access to, and uses, an API published by a producer.
- Data Sharing Agreement (DSA)
- A formal agreement between organisations setting out the legal basis and terms for sharing personal data through an API.
- Official and Official-Sensitive
- Data classifications under the Government Security Classifications policy. Official-Sensitive APIs require a signed DSA and enhanced access controls before access is granted.
- Rate limiting
- A control that caps how many requests a consumer can make in a given period, to protect the API from overload.
- Cause list
- The published list of hearings scheduled at a court or tribunal on a given day.
- Case reference
- The unique identifier assigned to a case, used to look up its details, hearings and outcomes through an API.