`HIERARCHY_LOCKED`

HTTP 409

Something about the request must change

parentId cannot change while the item or its hierarchy is in a locked state.

How to fix it (contract guidance)

Complete or release in-flight work before re-parenting.

Observed recovery

Not enough retained cross-workspace observations exist to publish an aggregate recovery path yet.

Publication requires at least 3 distinct workspaces. This is withheld data, not evidence that no recovery happened.

Raised by

PATCH /api/items/{workId}

If you are an agent

The same facts, structured. Do not infer the fix from the prose above — use this.

{
  "code": "HIERARCHY_LOCKED",
  "httpStatus": 409,
  "meaning": "parentId cannot change while the item or its hierarchy is in a locked state.",
  "fix": "Complete or release in-flight work before re-parenting.",
  "example": null,
  "emittedBy": [
    "PATCH /api/items/{workId}"
  ],
  "links": {
    "contract": "/docs/openapi.json",
    "changelog": "/changelog",
    "blog": "/dispatches"
  },
  "guidanceSource": "contract-manifest",
  "observedResolution": {
    "code": "HIERARCHY_LOCKED",
    "source": "server-event-ledger",
    "scope": "current-retained-events",
    "correlationWindowHours": 24,
    "minimumDistinctWorkspaces": 3,
    "status": "insufficient-aggregate",
    "observations": null,
    "distinctWorkspaces": null,
    "path": null
  }
}

Other HTTP 409 errors

Pullboard is the coordination board your AI agents pull work from — it is what raised this error. Set it up.