diff --git a/conformance/DIVERGENCES.md b/conformance/DIVERGENCES.md
index 8b6b71c..e6c2115 100644
--- a/conformance/DIVERGENCES.md
+++ b/conformance/DIVERGENCES.md
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 - JS interpreter: accepts (prints `dropqme` — an unknown string escape
   drops the backslash silently)
 - ANTLR grammar: rejects (token recognition error at: '"drop\q')
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 12 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 49)
 
@@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_unexpected at 1:1)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 20 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 11)
 
@@ -39,7 +39,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: accepts (runs)
 - ANTLR grammar: rejects (1:0: token recognition error at: '"a\z')
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 12 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 86)
 
@@ -49,7 +49,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:5)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 21 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 247)
 
@@ -59,7 +59,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:4)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 21 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 119)
 
@@ -69,7 +69,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:3)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 21 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 9)
 
@@ -79,7 +79,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:3)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 22 at cd59791
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 144)
 
@@ -89,7 +89,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:5)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 23 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 456)
 
@@ -99,7 +99,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:8)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 23 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 182)
 
@@ -109,7 +109,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:8)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 23 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 284)
 
@@ -119,7 +119,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:6)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 23 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 276)
 
@@ -129,7 +129,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:4)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 23 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 427)
 
@@ -139,7 +139,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:4)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 24 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 101)
 
@@ -149,7 +149,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:4)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 23 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 425)
 
@@ -159,7 +159,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:4)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 24 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 194)
 
@@ -169,7 +169,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:4)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 23 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 212)
 
@@ -179,7 +179,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:4)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 24 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 25)
 
@@ -189,7 +189,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:4)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 24 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 347)
 
@@ -199,7 +199,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:5)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 21 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 52)
 
@@ -209,7 +209,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: rejects (err_expect at 1:4)
 - ANTLR grammar: accepts (parses)
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 26 at c447eb7
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 76)
 
@@ -219,7 +219,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: accepts (runs)
 - ANTLR grammar: rejects (1:4: mismatched input ':' expecting {<EOF>, ';', PARALLEL, LEFTARROW, IMPLIES, OR, AND, '=', NEQ, '<', '>', LEQ, GEQ, APPROX, SIM, '+', '-', TIMES, DIV, AST, COMPOSE, DEFINITION, HANDLE, ALLOC, RELEASE, '(', '|', MIDDOT})
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 25 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 13)
 
@@ -229,7 +229,7 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: accepts (runs)
 - ANTLR grammar: rejects (1:4: mismatched input ':' expecting {<EOF>, ';', PARALLEL, LEFTARROW, IMPLIES, OR, AND, '=', NEQ, '<', '>', LEQ, GEQ, APPROX, SIM, '+', '-', TIMES, DIV, AST, COMPOSE, DEFINITION, HANDLE, ALLOC, RELEASE, '(', '|', MIDDOT})
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 25 at ad01bbd
 
 ## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260709, index 29)
 
@@ -239,4 +239,18 @@ where a different source is noted.
 
 - JS interpreter: accepts (runs)
 - ANTLR grammar: rejects (1:4: mismatched input ':' expecting {<EOF>, ';', PARALLEL, LEFTARROW, IMPLIES, OR, AND, '=', NEQ, '<', '>', LEQ, GEQ, APPROX, SIM, '+', '-', TIMES, DIV, AST, COMPOSE, DEFINITION, HANDLE, ALLOC, RELEASE, '(', '|', MIDDOT})
-- RULING: pending (see JUDGMENT_CALLS.md)
+- RESOLVED by ruling 25 at ad01bbd
+
+## Divergence (fuzz seed 20260710, index 178 — found during Stage 3 A7)
+
+```
+({-42})
+```
+
+- JS interpreter: rejected (err_comment — the lexer committed '{-' to a
+  comment even without a terminator)
+- ANTLR grammar: accepts (MULTILINE_COMMENT requires its '-}'; '{' lexes
+  as a brace, so this is a block containing -42)
+- RESOLVED by grammar alignment (decision: the grammar is the syntax
+  truth) at f5e8407 — no ruling needed; found by the fresh fuzz seed and
+  fixed before commit
diff --git a/conformance/SURFACE.md b/conformance/SURFACE.md
index 14301aa..7c9c717 100644
--- a/conformance/SURFACE.md
+++ b/conformance/SURFACE.md
@@ -1,9 +1,12 @@
 # SURFACE — what `js/mpl.js` actually implements
 
-Audited from the source of `js/mpl.js` (Stage 2, C3) and pinned by the
-corpus. This file describes the implemented surface — exactly, no more.
-Nothing here is ratified; where behavior looks accidental it is flagged in
-`conformance/JUDGMENT_CALLS.md`, but it is recorded as observed.
+Audited from the source of `js/mpl.js` at Stage 2 (C3, head `ea66a2a`) and
+pinned by the corpus of that stage. **Historical record**: Stage 3 ratified
+the 26 judgment calls (2026-07-09) and changed the surface where rulings
+overrode it — rationals, boolean conditions, binding discipline, depth
+limit, composition, and parser alignment. Where this file and
+`JUDGMENT_CALLS.md` disagree, the rulings govern; the ratified corpus is
+the executable truth.
 
 ## Lexer
 
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/001_hello_world/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/001_hello_world/meta.json
index 517816e..4267604 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/001_hello_world/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/001_hello_world/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "example", "decision": "", "notes": "seeded from examples/01_hello_world.mpl"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "example", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "seeded from examples/01_hello_world.mpl"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/002_factorial/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/002_factorial/meta.json
index 291bfe2..cafb159 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/002_factorial/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/002_factorial/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "example", "decision": "", "notes": "seeded from examples/02_factorial.mpl"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "example", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "seeded from examples/02_factorial.mpl"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/002_factorial/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/002_factorial/program.mpl
index 1010b97..1ed756b 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/002_factorial/program.mpl
+++ b/conformance/corpus/002_factorial/program.mpl
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
 -- Factorial example with proper precedence
 factorial ≜ λn∈ℕ: (n≤1 ⟹ 1) | (n×factorial(n-1));
-result ← factorial(5);
+result ≜ factorial(5);
 ✎result;
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/003_arith_precedence/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/003_arith_precedence/meta.json
index 9842a4b..cfca10b 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/003_arith_precedence/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/003_arith_precedence/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "× ÷ bind tighter than + -; + - and × ÷ left-associative"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "× ÷ bind tighter than + -; + - and × ÷ left-associative"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/004_unary_minus/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/004_unary_minus/meta.json
index 735624e..0fd3793 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/004_unary_minus/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/004_unary_minus/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "unary minus, including doubled and against binary minus"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "unary minus, including doubled and against binary minus"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/005_slash_div_alias/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/005_slash_div_alias/expected.out
index 5979a16..627c08c 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/005_slash_div_alias/expected.out
+++ b/conformance/corpus/005_slash_div_alias/expected.out
@@ -1,3 +1,3 @@
-2.5
-2.5
+5/2
+5/2
 3
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/005_slash_div_alias/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/005_slash_div_alias/meta.json
index a1a594c..915e1c0 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/005_slash_div_alias/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/005_slash_div_alias/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "/ is an ASCII alias of ÷"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 4", "notes": "/ is an ASCII alias of ÷"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/006_number_display/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/006_number_display/expected.out
index 8176562..20b4ea1 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/006_number_display/expected.out
+++ b/conformance/corpus/006_number_display/expected.out
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 42
-1.5
-0.5
+3/2
+1/2
 2
 7
-0.5
+1/2
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/006_number_display/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/006_number_display/meta.json
index 576aaa9..2bd2e36 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/006_number_display/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/006_number_display/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "integral doubles display without decimal point; literals normalize"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 4", "notes": "integral doubles display without decimal point; literals normalize"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/007_float_arithmetic/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/007_float_arithmetic/expected.out
index b2d9daf..1b55dbb 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/007_float_arithmetic/expected.out
+++ b/conformance/corpus/007_float_arithmetic/expected.out
@@ -1,3 +1,3 @@
-3.75
-0.30000000000000004
+15/4
+3/10
 6
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/007_float_arithmetic/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/007_float_arithmetic/meta.json
index 3af907b..63e6704 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/007_float_arithmetic/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/007_float_arithmetic/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "IEEE double arithmetic, including the 0.1+0.2 representation artifact"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 4", "notes": "IEEE double arithmetic, including the 0.1+0.2 representation artifact"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/008_string_escapes/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/008_string_escapes/meta.json
index 3473af1..77d8bad 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/008_string_escapes/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/008_string_escapes/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "string escapes \\n \\t \\\" \\\\ (unknown escapes like \\q diverge from the grammar — see DIVERGENCES.md, not corpus-pinnable)"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 12", "notes": "string escapes \\n \\t \\\" \\\\ (unknown escapes like \\q diverge from the grammar — see DIVERGENCES.md, not corpus-pinnable)"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/009_string_concat/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/009_string_concat/meta.json
index 4fb1f43..a08296c 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/009_string_concat/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/009_string_concat/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "+ concatenates when either operand is a string, rendering the other via show"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 5", "notes": "+ concatenates when either operand is a string, rendering the other via show"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/010_multilingual_strings/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/010_multilingual_strings/meta.json
index 92fdced..62e4942 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/010_multilingual_strings/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/010_multilingual_strings/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "non-ASCII string content passes through byte-intact"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "non-ASCII string content passes through byte-intact"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/011_list_display/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/011_list_display/meta.json
index dcea76b..c8059e3 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/011_list_display/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/011_list_display/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "lists display with strings quoted inside; closures display as λ"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 5", "notes": "lists display with strings quoted inside; closures display as λ"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/012_lambda_basics/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/012_lambda_basics/meta.json
index 6efb34d..ed165e9 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/012_lambda_basics/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/012_lambda_basics/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "λ definition, display, application, multiple parameters"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 5", "notes": "λ definition, display, application, multiple parameters"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/013_closure_capture/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/013_closure_capture/meta.json
index 2775bc7..ebe5695 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/013_closure_capture/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/013_closure_capture/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "closures capture the environment, not values at definition time"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 9", "notes": "closures capture the environment, not values at definition time"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/013_closure_capture/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/013_closure_capture/program.mpl
index 1327bf6..cebd052 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/013_closure_capture/program.mpl
+++ b/conformance/corpus/013_closure_capture/program.mpl
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-x ← 10;
+x ≜ 10;
 f ≜ λy: x + y;
 ✎ f(1);
 x ← 20;
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/014_higher_order/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/014_higher_order/meta.json
index 9b5516d..e03651a 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/014_higher_order/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/014_higher_order/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "curried application and λ literals as call arguments"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "curried application and λ literals as call arguments"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/015_recursion_fib/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/015_recursion_fib/meta.json
index 775ebbb..31ab905 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/015_recursion_fib/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/015_recursion_fib/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "binary recursion through a guarded alternative"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "binary recursion through a guarded alternative"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/016_recursion_sum/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/016_recursion_sum/meta.json
index 3b6127b..de8a79d 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/016_recursion_sum/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/016_recursion_sum/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "linear recursion 500 deep (within the host stack)"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 10", "notes": "linear recursion 500 deep (within the host stack)"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/017_forall_accumulate/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/017_forall_accumulate/meta.json
index c400ee7..4ab6e3e 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/017_forall_accumulate/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/017_forall_accumulate/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "∀ with an accumulating assignment"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "∀ with an accumulating assignment"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/017_forall_accumulate/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/017_forall_accumulate/program.mpl
index 89156c7..6d674fe 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/017_forall_accumulate/program.mpl
+++ b/conformance/corpus/017_forall_accumulate/program.mpl
@@ -1,3 +1,3 @@
-t ← 0;
+t ≜ 0;
 ∀ n ∈ [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]: t ← t + n × n;
 ✎ t;
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/018_forall_value/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/018_forall_value/expected.out
index eb3a635..ab6c322 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/018_forall_value/expected.out
+++ b/conformance/corpus/018_forall_value/expected.out
@@ -1,2 +1,2 @@
-6
+⊥
 ⊥
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/018_forall_value/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/018_forall_value/meta.json
index e89bcb6..18d8d59 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/018_forall_value/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/018_forall_value/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "a ∀ expression yields the last body value; empty collection yields ⊥"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 2", "notes": "a ∀ expression yields the last body value; empty collection yields ⊥"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/019_forall_scope/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/019_forall_scope/meta.json
index 5e7c0d0..358ce6c 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/019_forall_scope/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/019_forall_scope/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "the ∀ variable shadows per iteration and the outer binding survives"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 15", "notes": "the ∀ variable shadows per iteration and the outer binding survives"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/019_forall_scope/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/019_forall_scope/program.mpl
index b43d2f3..5c8a667 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/019_forall_scope/program.mpl
+++ b/conformance/corpus/019_forall_scope/program.mpl
@@ -1,3 +1,3 @@
-n ← 100;
+n ≜ 100;
 ∀ n ∈ [1, 2]: ✎ n;
 ✎ n;
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/020_guarded_alternatives/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/020_guarded_alternatives/meta.json
index c49112f..3eece2c 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/020_guarded_alternatives/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/020_guarded_alternatives/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "the canonical conditional: guarded alternatives with fallback"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 3", "notes": "the canonical conditional: guarded alternatives with fallback"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/021_no_guard_match/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/021_no_guard_match/meta.json
index 62fb3c1..67d700e 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/021_no_guard_match/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/021_no_guard_match/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "a guard that never fires, with no | fallback, surfaces as ⊥"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 3", "notes": "a guard that never fires, with no | fallback, surfaces as ⊥"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/021_no_guard_match/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/021_no_guard_match/program.mpl
index db30732..0f0f99b 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/021_no_guard_match/program.mpl
+++ b/conformance/corpus/021_no_guard_match/program.mpl
@@ -1,3 +1,3 @@
 ✎((false ⟹ 1));
-x ← (false ⟹ 1);
+x ≜ (false ⟹ 1);
 ✎ x;
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/022_guard_truthiness/expected.err b/conformance/corpus/022_guard_truthiness/expected.err
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..844c88e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/022_guard_truthiness/expected.err
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+err_bool
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/022_guard_truthiness/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/022_guard_truthiness/expected.out
deleted file mode 100644
index daa2f97..0000000
--- a/conformance/corpus/022_guard_truthiness/expected.out
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,5 +0,0 @@
-one
-no
-num
-no
-no
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/022_guard_truthiness/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/022_guard_truthiness/meta.json
index 1263dae..c1030b8 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/022_guard_truthiness/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/022_guard_truthiness/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "guard conditions: true or non-zero number fire; strings/lists never do"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 13", "notes": "guard conditions: true or non-zero number fire; strings/lists never do"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/022_guard_truthiness/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/022_guard_truthiness/program.mpl
index 1b54b0b..1ca843b 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/022_guard_truthiness/program.mpl
+++ b/conformance/corpus/022_guard_truthiness/program.mpl
@@ -1,5 +1 @@
 ✎((1 ⟹ "one") | "no");
-✎((0 ⟹ "zero") | "no");
-✎((2.5 ⟹ "num") | "no");
-✎(("s" ⟹ "str") | "no");
-✎(([1] ⟹ "list") | "no");
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/023_alt_chain/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/023_alt_chain/meta.json
index 1fe51fc..f86e4df 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/023_alt_chain/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/023_alt_chain/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "fall-through chains take the first firing arm"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 3", "notes": "fall-through chains take the first firing arm"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/024_def_assign_rebind/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/024_def_assign_rebind/expected.out
index e0d13b0..1191247 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/024_def_assign_rebind/expected.out
+++ b/conformance/corpus/024_def_assign_rebind/expected.out
@@ -1,4 +1,2 @@
 1
 2
-3
-5
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/024_def_assign_rebind/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/024_def_assign_rebind/meta.json
index f129dcb..4859f90 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/024_def_assign_rebind/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/024_def_assign_rebind/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "≜ and ← both rebind freely; ← works without a prior ≜"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 16", "notes": "≜ and ← both rebind freely; ← works without a prior ≜"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/024_def_assign_rebind/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/024_def_assign_rebind/program.mpl
index 22fa22b..60cbf86 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/024_def_assign_rebind/program.mpl
+++ b/conformance/corpus/024_def_assign_rebind/program.mpl
@@ -2,7 +2,3 @@ x ≜ 1;
 ✎ x;
 x ← 2;
 ✎ x;
-x ≜ 3;
-✎ x;
-y ← 5;
-✎ y;
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/025_def_assign_value/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/025_def_assign_value/meta.json
index 8a05f2d..2cc9d1f 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/025_def_assign_value/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/025_def_assign_value/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "both binding forms are expressions returning the bound value; ≜ chains right"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 16", "notes": "both binding forms are expressions returning the bound value; ≜ chains right"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/026_def_vs_assign_scope/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/026_def_vs_assign_scope/meta.json
index d59d753..a151444 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/026_def_vs_assign_scope/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/026_def_vs_assign_scope/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "inside a λ, ← mutates the captured outer binding; ≜ creates a local one"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 9 and 16", "notes": "inside a λ, ← mutates the captured outer binding; ≜ creates a local one"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/026_def_vs_assign_scope/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/026_def_vs_assign_scope/program.mpl
index 09640d9..0debb0f 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/026_def_vs_assign_scope/program.mpl
+++ b/conformance/corpus/026_def_vs_assign_scope/program.mpl
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-x ← 1;
+x ≜ 1;
 f ≜ λy: {x ← 99; x};
 f(0);
 ✎ x;
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/027_block_sequencing/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/027_block_sequencing/meta.json
index 04d1664..faf24bd 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/027_block_sequencing/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/027_block_sequencing/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "a block yields its last expression; {} yields ⊥; trailing ; permitted"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 15", "notes": "a block yields its last expression; {} yields ⊥; trailing ; permitted"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/028_block_no_scope/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/028_block_no_scope/meta.json
index 5c12bd7..b13a0cd 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/028_block_no_scope/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/028_block_no_scope/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "braces do NOT create a scope: bindings made inside leak out"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 15", "notes": "braces do NOT create a scope: bindings made inside leak out"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/028_block_no_scope/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/028_block_no_scope/program.mpl
index 295a93c..e789759 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/028_block_no_scope/program.mpl
+++ b/conformance/corpus/028_block_no_scope/program.mpl
@@ -1,2 +1,2 @@
-{y ← 9; 0};
+{y ≜ 9; 0};
 ✎ y;
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/029_comments/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/029_comments/meta.json
index f0d84b8..9c0e7a5 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/029_comments/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/029_comments/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "line comments and nested block comments"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "line comments and nested block comments"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/030_bot/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/030_bot/meta.json
index 5a494ab..c481201 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/030_bot/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/030_bot/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "⊥ displays as ⊥ and concatenates/nests as a value"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 6", "notes": "⊥ displays as ⊥ and concatenates/nests as a value"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/031_show_all_types/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/031_show_all_types/expected.out
index 4aaf516..b11e567 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/031_show_all_types/expected.out
+++ b/conformance/corpus/031_show_all_types/expected.out
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 42
-1.5
+3/2
 s
 true
 false
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/031_show_all_types/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/031_show_all_types/meta.json
index ffb7574..0e4b467 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/031_show_all_types/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/031_show_all_types/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "one ✎ per value type"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "one ✎ per value type"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/032_comparisons/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/032_comparisons/meta.json
index 2b0410b..0d26684 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/032_comparisons/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/032_comparisons/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "all six comparison operators on numbers"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 8", "notes": "all six comparison operators on numbers"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/033_string_compare/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/033_string_compare/meta.json
index fb961a8..3593c71 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/033_string_compare/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/033_string_compare/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "lexicographic order and structural equality on strings"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 7 and 8", "notes": "lexicographic order and structural equality on strings"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/034_cross_type_equality/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/034_cross_type_equality/meta.json
index cf3b8ef..fa99f96 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/034_cross_type_equality/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/034_cross_type_equality/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "equality is structural per type and false across types; ⊥ equals ⊥"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 7", "notes": "equality is structural per type and false across types; ⊥ equals ⊥"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/035_mixed_compare/expected.err b/conformance/corpus/035_mixed_compare/expected.err
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6b9fd10
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/035_mixed_compare/expected.err
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+err_compare
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/035_mixed_compare/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/035_mixed_compare/meta.json
index f663cf5..ba96397 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/035_mixed_compare/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/035_mixed_compare/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "ordering across types follows host coercion — observed, flagged as a judgment call"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 8", "notes": "ordering across types follows host coercion — observed, flagged as a judgment call"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/035_mixed_compare/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/035_mixed_compare/program.mpl
index 2bcea56..5386a62 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/035_mixed_compare/program.mpl
+++ b/conformance/corpus/035_mixed_compare/program.mpl
@@ -1,3 +1 @@
 ✎(1 < "2");
-✎("10" < 9);
-✎(true < 2);
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/036_logic_ops/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/036_logic_ops/expected.out
index 62b4804..2cdda45 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/036_logic_ops/expected.out
+++ b/conformance/corpus/036_logic_ops/expected.out
@@ -2,6 +2,3 @@ true
 false
 true
 false
-false
-true
-false
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/036_logic_ops/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/036_logic_ops/meta.json
index 76be753..d56aeaf 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/036_logic_ops/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/036_logic_ops/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "∧ ∨ test operands with strict boolean truth — numbers are not truthy here"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 14", "notes": "∧ ∨ test operands with strict boolean truth — numbers are not truthy here"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/036_logic_ops/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/036_logic_ops/program.mpl
index 7832bb2..972a3f5 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/036_logic_ops/program.mpl
+++ b/conformance/corpus/036_logic_ops/program.mpl
@@ -2,6 +2,3 @@
 ✎(true ∧ false);
 ✎(false ∨ true);
 ✎(false ∨ false);
-✎(1 ∧ true);
-✎(0 ∨ true);
-✎(true ∧ 1);
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/037_logic_short_circuit/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/037_logic_short_circuit/meta.json
index bd53f1c..30f1dba 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/037_logic_short_circuit/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/037_logic_short_circuit/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "∧ skips its right side on false; ∨ skips it on true (observable via side effect)"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 14", "notes": "∧ skips its right side on false; ∨ skips it on true (observable via side effect)"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/037_logic_short_circuit/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/037_logic_short_circuit/program.mpl
index 1971128..5ec3412 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/037_logic_short_circuit/program.mpl
+++ b/conformance/corpus/037_logic_short_circuit/program.mpl
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-x ← 0;
+x ≜ 0;
 f ≜ λv: {x ← x + 1; v};
 false ∧ f(true);
 ✎ x;
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/038_ascii_escapes/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/038_ascii_escapes/meta.json
index 19b8bdc..f144ed8 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/038_ascii_escapes/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/038_ascii_escapes/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "a program written entirely in ASCII escapes behaves like its glyph spelling"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "a program written entirely in ASCII escapes behaves like its glyph spelling"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/039_type_constraint_unenforced/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/039_type_constraint_unenforced/meta.json
index d18156a..657a604 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/039_type_constraint_unenforced/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/039_type_constraint_unenforced/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "∈-constraints parse (incl. supplementary-plane 𝔹) and are discarded unevaluated"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 17", "notes": "∈-constraints parse (incl. supplementary-plane 𝔹) and are discarded unevaluated"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/040_trace_returns_value/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/040_trace_returns_value/meta.json
index ed90ab8..9193a4d 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/040_trace_returns_value/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/040_trace_returns_value/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "✎ is an expression: prints and returns its operand"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "✎ is an expression: prints and returns its operand"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/040_trace_returns_value/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/040_trace_returns_value/program.mpl
index 6d3d8e7..8c90803 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/040_trace_returns_value/program.mpl
+++ b/conformance/corpus/040_trace_returns_value/program.mpl
@@ -1,3 +1,3 @@
 ✎(✎ 5);
-v ← ✎ "side";
+v ≜ ✎ "side";
 ✎ v;
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/041_asterisk_multiplication/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/041_asterisk_multiplication/meta.json
index b8b337b..04b12e0 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/041_asterisk_multiplication/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/041_asterisk_multiplication/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "∗ (U+2217) is multiplication, same as ×"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 19", "notes": "∗ (U+2217) is multiplication, same as ×"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/042_nested_calls_in_list/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/042_nested_calls_in_list/meta.json
index 14c76ac..ecbb513 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/042_nested_calls_in_list/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/042_nested_calls_in_list/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "calls inside list literals; λ argument"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "calls inside list literals; λ argument"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/043_div_zero/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/043_div_zero/meta.json
index 03feaba..b9cea76 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/043_div_zero/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/043_div_zero/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "division by zero"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 1", "notes": "division by zero"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/044_undef/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/044_undef/meta.json
index 757b05a..3fe4b5b 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/044_undef/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/044_undef/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "unbound identifier"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "unbound identifier"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/045_notfn/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/045_notfn/meta.json
index 061dcc8..7d2c6bc 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/045_notfn/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/045_notfn/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "calling a non-closure"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "calling a non-closure"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/046_arity_nullary/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/046_arity_nullary/meta.json
index d559fd9..625fed4 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/046_arity_nullary/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/046_arity_nullary/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "nullary call syntax parses; arity is checked at runtime"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 18", "notes": "nullary call syntax parses; arity is checked at runtime"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/047_arity_extra/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/047_arity_extra/meta.json
index cc2f755..89f090b 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/047_arity_extra/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/047_arity_extra/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "too many arguments"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "too many arguments"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/048_iter_nonlist/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/048_iter_nonlist/meta.json
index 3acf0ba..040ed07 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/048_iter_nonlist/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/048_iter_nonlist/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "∀ over a non-list"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "∀ over a non-list"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/049_num_bool_plus/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/049_num_bool_plus/meta.json
index 4e48511..641d2e5 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/049_num_bool_plus/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/049_num_bool_plus/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "numeric + with a non-number, non-string operand"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "numeric + with a non-number, non-string operand"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/050_num_string_minus/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/050_num_string_minus/meta.json
index b905b87..cad2f48 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/050_num_string_minus/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/050_num_string_minus/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "- is numeric only, no string analog"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "- is numeric only, no string analog"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/051_neg_string/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/051_neg_string/meta.json
index 4fd2a87..7ae8b0f 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/051_neg_string/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/051_neg_string/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "unary minus is numeric only"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "unary minus is numeric only"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/052_bot_arith/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/052_bot_arith/meta.json
index 81003ad..397b1f0 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/052_bot_arith/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/052_bot_arith/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "arithmetic on ⊥"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 6", "notes": "arithmetic on ⊥"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/053_step_budget/expected.err b/conformance/corpus/053_step_budget/expected.err
deleted file mode 100644
index ca3794f..0000000
--- a/conformance/corpus/053_step_budget/expected.err
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1 +0,0 @@
-err_steps
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/053_step_budget/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/053_step_budget/meta.json
deleted file mode 100644
index b65737a..0000000
--- a/conformance/corpus/053_step_budget/meta.json
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1 +0,0 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "the 500000-step evaluation budget"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/053_step_budget/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/053_step_budget/program.mpl
deleted file mode 100644
index 963c5c5..0000000
--- a/conformance/corpus/053_step_budget/program.mpl
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,2 +0,0 @@
-l ← [0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9];
-∀ a ∈ l: ∀ b ∈ l: ∀ c ∈ l: ∀ d ∈ l: ∀ e ∈ l: ∀ f ∈ l: 0;
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/054_reject_underscore_ident/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/054_reject_underscore_ident/meta.json
index 5f1b8c4..b688d0d 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/054_reject_underscore_ident/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/054_reject_underscore_ident/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "identifiers may not start with _"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "identifiers may not start with _"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/055_reject_juxtaposition/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/055_reject_juxtaposition/meta.json
index aef7e53..fb323e0 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/055_reject_juxtaposition/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/055_reject_juxtaposition/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "juxtaposition call f x is not a call syntax"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "juxtaposition call f x is not a call syntax"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/056_reject_ternary/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/056_reject_ternary/meta.json
index 6b0dcc1..eefb421 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/056_reject_ternary/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/056_reject_ternary/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "no ternary; conditionals are guarded alternatives"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "no ternary; conditionals are guarded alternatives"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/057_reject_output_emoji/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/057_reject_output_emoji/meta.json
index 701bed6..9e784fb 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/057_reject_output_emoji/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/057_reject_output_emoji/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "output is ✎ only"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "output is ✎ only"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/058_reject_unterminated_string/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/058_reject_unterminated_string/meta.json
index 85c85b5..684e056 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/058_reject_unterminated_string/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/058_reject_unterminated_string/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "unterminated string literal"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "unterminated string literal"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/059_reject_unknown_escape/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/059_reject_unknown_escape/meta.json
index b867720..7e8f326 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/059_reject_unknown_escape/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/059_reject_unknown_escape/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "unknown ASCII escape word"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "unknown ASCII escape word"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/060_reject_unmatched_brace/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/060_reject_unmatched_brace/meta.json
index 430d7f8..b12a2e8 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/060_reject_unmatched_brace/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/060_reject_unmatched_brace/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "unclosed brace"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "unclosed brace"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/061_reject_unterminated_comment/expected.err b/conformance/corpus/061_reject_unterminated_comment/expected.err
index 01f0cb9..67ce62a 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/061_reject_unterminated_comment/expected.err
+++ b/conformance/corpus/061_reject_unterminated_comment/expected.err
@@ -1 +1 @@
-err_comment
+err_expect
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/061_reject_unterminated_comment/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/061_reject_unterminated_comment/meta.json
index a55da84..902898d 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/061_reject_unterminated_comment/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/061_reject_unterminated_comment/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "unterminated block comment"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "unterminated block comment: '{-' without a matching '-}' is not a comment token, so the brace lexes bare and the program fails to parse (matches the grammar's MULTILINE_COMMENT)"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/062_reject_sum_token/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/062_reject_sum_token/meta.json
index a28d51d..145e892 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/062_reject_sum_token/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/062_reject_sum_token/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "∑ is M1, not a token"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "∑ is M1, not a token"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/063_reject_sqrt_token/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/063_reject_sqrt_token/meta.json
index ec79458..216ddc8 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/063_reject_sqrt_token/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/063_reject_sqrt_token/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "√ is M1, not a token"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "√ is M1, not a token"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/064_reject_modulo/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/064_reject_modulo/meta.json
index 0752e04..0ee355f 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/064_reject_modulo/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/064_reject_modulo/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "% is M1, not a token"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "% is M1, not a token"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/065_reject_range/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/065_reject_range/meta.json
index 24394f2..aab0034 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/065_reject_range/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/065_reject_range/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "range syntax [a..b] is M1"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "range syntax [a..b] is M1"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/066_reject_not_token/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/066_reject_not_token/meta.json
index 0e12fa7..b5c2708 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/066_reject_not_token/meta.json
+++ b/conformance/corpus/066_reject_not_token/meta.json
@@ -1 +1 @@
-{"status": "unratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "", "notes": "¬ is M1, not a token"}
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09 (Stage 3 batch — behavior blessed as observed; no single ruling)", "notes": "¬ is M1, not a token"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/067_empty_program/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/067_empty_program/expected.out
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e69de29
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/067_empty_program/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/067_empty_program/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c8ce59d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/067_empty_program/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 20", "notes": "ruling 20: the empty program is valid and silent"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/067_empty_program/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/067_empty_program/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e69de29
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/068_paren_sequence/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/068_paren_sequence/expected.out
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2b24e31
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/068_paren_sequence/expected.out
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+2
+6
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/068_paren_sequence/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/068_paren_sequence/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6c1d00f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/068_paren_sequence/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 21", "notes": "ruling 21: parentheses contain one seqExpr"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/068_paren_sequence/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/068_paren_sequence/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0c15abc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/068_paren_sequence/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+✎((1; 2));
+✎((x ≜ 5; x + 1));
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/069_compose_apply/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/069_compose_apply/expected.out
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ce2e38b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/069_compose_apply/expected.out
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+7
+9
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/069_compose_apply/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/069_compose_apply/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..776e8ad
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/069_compose_apply/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 22", "notes": "ruling 22: (f ∘ g)(x) = f(g(x)); binds tighter than ×"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/069_compose_apply/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/069_compose_apply/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2d9279b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/069_compose_apply/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1,4 @@
+f ≜ λx: x + 1;
+g ≜ λx: x × 2;
+✎((f ∘ g)(3));
+✎((f ∘ g)(1) × 3);
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/070_compose_assoc/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/070_compose_assoc/expected.out
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d2de525
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/070_compose_assoc/expected.out
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+15
+15
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/070_compose_assoc/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/070_compose_assoc/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9302d24
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/070_compose_assoc/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 22", "notes": "ruling 22: composition associates"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/070_compose_assoc/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/070_compose_assoc/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a85b16c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/070_compose_assoc/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+f ≜ λx: x + 1;
+g ≜ λx: x × 2;
+h ≜ λx: x - 3;
+✎(((f ∘ g) ∘ h)(10));
+✎((f ∘ (g ∘ h))(10));
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/071_compose_nonfn/expected.err b/conformance/corpus/071_compose_nonfn/expected.err
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bf3ac71
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/071_compose_nonfn/expected.err
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+err_notfn
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/071_compose_nonfn/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/071_compose_nonfn/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d3ff903
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/071_compose_nonfn/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 22", "notes": "ruling 22: non-function ∘ operand"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/071_compose_nonfn/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/071_compose_nonfn/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ec6d22a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/071_compose_nonfn/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+✎((1 ∘ 2)(3));
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/072_set_literal_notyet/expected.err b/conformance/corpus/072_set_literal_notyet/expected.err
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..725d793
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/072_set_literal_notyet/expected.err
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+err_notyet
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/072_set_literal_notyet/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/072_set_literal_notyet/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d7712ff
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/072_set_literal_notyet/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 23", "notes": "ruling 23: sets parse, evaluation is M1"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/072_set_literal_notyet/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/072_set_literal_notyet/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1a6a9e4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/072_set_literal_notyet/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{1, 2};
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/073_record_literal_notyet/expected.err b/conformance/corpus/073_record_literal_notyet/expected.err
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..725d793
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/073_record_literal_notyet/expected.err
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+err_notyet
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/073_record_literal_notyet/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/073_record_literal_notyet/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bb00186
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/073_record_literal_notyet/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 24", "notes": "ruling 24: records parse, evaluation is M1"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/073_record_literal_notyet/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/073_record_literal_notyet/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2443022
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/073_record_literal_notyet/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{k: 1};
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/074_nullary_lambda/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/074_nullary_lambda/expected.out
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d81cc07
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/074_nullary_lambda/expected.out
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+42
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/074_nullary_lambda/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/074_nullary_lambda/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1eeb84b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/074_nullary_lambda/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 18", "notes": "ruling 18: nullary λ with bare colon"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/074_nullary_lambda/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/074_nullary_lambda/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0d8a180
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/074_nullary_lambda/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+f ≜ λ: 41 + 1;
+✎ f();
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/075_redef/expected.err b/conformance/corpus/075_redef/expected.err
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..31a328b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/075_redef/expected.err
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+err_redef
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/075_redef/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/075_redef/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1cf0c7d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/075_redef/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 16", "notes": "ruling 16: same-scope redefinition"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/075_redef/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/075_redef/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3ac295c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/075_redef/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+x ≜ 1;
+x ≜ 2;
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/076_shadowing/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/076_shadowing/expected.out
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..af74fdc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/076_shadowing/expected.out
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+5
+1
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/076_shadowing/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/076_shadowing/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..495c6c8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/076_shadowing/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 15 and 16", "notes": "ruling 16: inner-scope shadowing is legal"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/076_shadowing/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/076_shadowing/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1f7a830
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/076_shadowing/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1,4 @@
+x ≜ 1;
+f ≜ λy: (x ≜ 5; x + y);
+✎ f(0);
+✎ x;
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/077_unbound_assign/expected.err b/conformance/corpus/077_unbound_assign/expected.err
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ac4770b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/077_unbound_assign/expected.err
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+err_unbound
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/077_unbound_assign/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/077_unbound_assign/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cf969e3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/077_unbound_assign/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 16", "notes": "ruling 16: ← needs an existing binding"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/077_unbound_assign/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/077_unbound_assign/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..29780f5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/077_unbound_assign/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+y ← 1;
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/078_bool_logic/expected.err b/conformance/corpus/078_bool_logic/expected.err
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..844c88e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/078_bool_logic/expected.err
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+err_bool
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/078_bool_logic/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/078_bool_logic/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4a40444
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/078_bool_logic/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 14", "notes": "ruling 14: ∧ ∨ demand boolean operands"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/078_bool_logic/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/078_bool_logic/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6ced309
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/078_bool_logic/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+✎(1 ∧ true);
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/035_mixed_compare/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/079_short_circuit_safe/expected.out
similarity index 68%
rename from conformance/corpus/035_mixed_compare/expected.out
rename to conformance/corpus/079_short_circuit_safe/expected.out
index 87f8d93..1d474d5 100644
--- a/conformance/corpus/035_mixed_compare/expected.out
+++ b/conformance/corpus/079_short_circuit_safe/expected.out
@@ -1,3 +1,2 @@
-true
 false
 true
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/079_short_circuit_safe/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/079_short_circuit_safe/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6315a01
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/079_short_circuit_safe/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 14", "notes": "ruling 14: short-circuit — unevaluated operand raises nothing"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/079_short_circuit_safe/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/079_short_circuit_safe/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0922070
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/079_short_circuit_safe/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+✎(false ∧ (1 ÷ 0));
+✎(true ∨ (1 ÷ 0));
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/080_depth_limit/expected.err b/conformance/corpus/080_depth_limit/expected.err
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ee74d8e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/080_depth_limit/expected.err
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+err_depth
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/080_depth_limit/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/080_depth_limit/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9eb157e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/080_depth_limit/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 10", "notes": "ruling 10: λ-application depth limit 10000"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/080_depth_limit/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/080_depth_limit/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9821b75
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/080_depth_limit/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+loop ≜ λn: loop(n + 1);
+loop(0);
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/081_depth_headroom/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/081_depth_headroom/expected.out
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d58c55a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/081_depth_headroom/expected.out
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+9000
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/081_depth_headroom/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/081_depth_headroom/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9c8f97a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/081_depth_headroom/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 10", "notes": "ruling 10: depth 9000 works — the limit is real headroom"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/081_depth_headroom/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/081_depth_headroom/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6c8f6f4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/081_depth_headroom/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+sum ≜ λn: (n = 0 ⟹ 0) | (1 + sum(n - 1));
+✎ sum(9000);
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/082_fn_equality/expected.err b/conformance/corpus/082_fn_equality/expected.err
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9c7eb15
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/082_fn_equality/expected.err
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+err_fn_eq
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/082_fn_equality/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/082_fn_equality/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5948bd3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/082_fn_equality/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 7", "notes": "ruling 7: function equality is err_fn_eq"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/082_fn_equality/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/082_fn_equality/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5e4b513
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/082_fn_equality/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+✎((λx: x) = (λx: x));
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/083_fn_equality_mixed/expected.err b/conformance/corpus/083_fn_equality_mixed/expected.err
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9c7eb15
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/083_fn_equality_mixed/expected.err
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+err_fn_eq
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/083_fn_equality_mixed/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/083_fn_equality_mixed/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5c5d3a2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/083_fn_equality_mixed/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 7", "notes": "ruling 7: any equality involving a function"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/083_fn_equality_mixed/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/083_fn_equality_mixed/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ce28cf3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/083_fn_equality_mixed/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+f ≜ λx: x;
+✎(f = 1);
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/084_rational_display/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/084_rational_display/expected.out
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..00c1d2e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/084_rational_display/expected.out
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+3/10
+-1/2
+1/2
+1/2
+0
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/084_rational_display/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/084_rational_display/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4122031
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/084_rational_display/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 4", "notes": "ruling 4: lowest-terms display, sign on numerator, zero as 0"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/084_rational_display/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/084_rational_display/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..fa5785d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/084_rational_display/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+✎(0.1 + 0.2);
+✎(-1 ÷ 2);
+✎(1 ÷ 3 + 1 ÷ 6);
+✎(2 ÷ 4);
+✎(0 ÷ 5);
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/085_rational_eq/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/085_rational_eq/expected.out
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bb101b6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/085_rational_eq/expected.out
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+true
+true
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/085_rational_eq/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/085_rational_eq/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7512475
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/085_rational_eq/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 4 and 7", "notes": "rulings 4 and 7: same rational, one value"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/085_rational_eq/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/085_rational_eq/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a59f344
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/085_rational_eq/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+✎(0.5 = 1 ÷ 2);
+✎(1 ÷ 3 = 2 ÷ 6);
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/086_rational_roundtrip/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/086_rational_roundtrip/expected.out
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0e1918e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/086_rational_roundtrip/expected.out
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+true
+3/10
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/086_rational_roundtrip/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/086_rational_roundtrip/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ebbd4af
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/086_rational_roundtrip/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 4", "notes": "ruling 4: display re-evaluates to the same value"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/086_rational_roundtrip/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/086_rational_roundtrip/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3194210
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/086_rational_roundtrip/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+x ≜ 3 ÷ 10;
+✎(x = 0.3);
+✎ x;
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/087_greek_identifiers/expected.out b/conformance/corpus/087_greek_identifiers/expected.out
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cfbeb15
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/087_greek_identifiers/expected.out
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+4
+6
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/087_greek_identifiers/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/087_greek_identifiers/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c089948
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/087_greek_identifiers/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 26", "notes": "ruling 26: Greek letters are identifiers (λ is not)"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/087_greek_identifiers/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/087_greek_identifiers/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..09ed01e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/087_greek_identifiers/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1,4 @@
+π ≜ 3;
+✎(π + 1);
+ρ ≜ π × 2;
+✎ ρ;
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/088_reject_paren_lambda/expected.err b/conformance/corpus/088_reject_paren_lambda/expected.err
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..67ce62a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/088_reject_paren_lambda/expected.err
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+err_expect
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/088_reject_paren_lambda/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/088_reject_paren_lambda/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1baa320
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/088_reject_paren_lambda/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 25", "notes": "ruling 25: parenthesized λ parameters rejected"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/088_reject_paren_lambda/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/088_reject_paren_lambda/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5b4108d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/088_reject_paren_lambda/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+f ≜ λ(a, b): a;
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/089_reject_bare_lambda/expected.err b/conformance/corpus/089_reject_bare_lambda/expected.err
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..67ce62a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/089_reject_bare_lambda/expected.err
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+err_expect
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/089_reject_bare_lambda/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/089_reject_bare_lambda/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..875ec3f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/089_reject_bare_lambda/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 26", "notes": "ruling 26: λ is reserved, never an identifier"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/089_reject_bare_lambda/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/089_reject_bare_lambda/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c248b76
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/089_reject_bare_lambda/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+✎({λ});
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/090_reject_unknown_string_escape/expected.err b/conformance/corpus/090_reject_unknown_string_escape/expected.err
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1955119
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/090_reject_unknown_string_escape/expected.err
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+err_escape
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/090_reject_unknown_string_escape/meta.json b/conformance/corpus/090_reject_unknown_string_escape/meta.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ffab80d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/090_reject_unknown_string_escape/meta.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{"status": "ratified", "source": "coverage", "decision": "Ratified 2026-07-09, ruling 12", "notes": "ruling 12: unknown string escapes are err_escape"}
diff --git a/conformance/corpus/090_reject_unknown_string_escape/program.mpl b/conformance/corpus/090_reject_unknown_string_escape/program.mpl
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..eb787c9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/conformance/corpus/090_reject_unknown_string_escape/program.mpl
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+✎ "a\qb";
diff --git a/js/test/implementation.test.mjs b/js/test/implementation.test.mjs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..432dd24
--- /dev/null
+++ b/js/test/implementation.test.mjs
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+'use strict';
+/* Implementation-limit tests — run with: node --test "js/test/*.test.mjs"
+ * Ruling 11: the step budget is an environment resource limit of THIS
+ * implementation, not language semantics. The portable conformance corpus
+ * does not pin it (former entry 053 moved here).
+ */
+import test from 'node:test';
+import assert from 'node:assert/strict';
+import { runMPL } from './load.mjs';
+
+test('the 500000-step budget raises err_steps (ruling 11)', () => {
+  const src = 'l ≜ [0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9];\n' +
+    '∀ a ∈ l: ∀ b ∈ l: ∀ c ∈ l: ∀ d ∈ l: ∀ e ∈ l: ∀ f ∈ l: 0;\n';
+  try {
+    runMPL(src, () => {});
+    assert.fail('should have hit the step budget');
+  } catch (e) {
+    assert.equal(e.key, 'err_steps');
+  }
+});