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+# ADR 0003: Declare optional validation through a shared specification
+
+## Status
+
+Accepted.
+
+## Date
+
+2026-10-07
+
+## Context
+
+Consumers have different release-validation needs. Their additional checks
+include reusable mechanics such as formatting inspection and Go toolchain
+invocations, alongside assertions about product behavior. Maintaining the
+reusable mechanics in each application duplicates code and coordination work.
+
+[ADR 0001](0001-public-facade.md) establishes facade ownership of public
+contracts. [ADR 0002](0002-routine-releases.md) prioritizes routine releases
+with little application-owned code or recurring developer effort. Optional
+validation needs a common selection and execution model that supports these
+decisions as shared capabilities grow.
+
+## Decision
+
+Consumers select shared validation through a typed, facade-owned specification
+and equivalent release-profile settings. Related settings belong together.
+Omitted optional settings preserve existing default validation behavior.
+
+`Check` and `Publish` use one internal validation path bound to the captured
+candidate. ReleaseKit owns execution, ordering, coordination between selected
+checks, and propagation of failures and cancellation. The CLI maps profile
+settings to the facade and owns presentation.
+
+Shared validation exposes consistent diagnostics through facade-owned errors.
+Findings identify the check and provide actionable detail where applicable.
+Error wrapping preserves underlying causes and cancellation semantics.
+Validation failures and publication outcomes retain their distinct meanings.
+
+The existing `AdditionalChecks` callback and profile `checks` support
+product-specific assertions. Publication guards, artifact builds, and delivery
+retain their separate configuration and responsibilities. Validation execution
+and coordination remain internal implementation responsibilities.
+
+Evaluate optional capabilities by the application maintenance they remove,
+their clarity of scope, configuration burden, and maintenance cost. A
+capability can serve a small subset of consumers when those benefits justify
+shared support. Consumers select the checks appropriate to their products.
+
+GoDoc owns exact public API contracts, and the configuration reference owns
+profile settings. Roadmaps own feature scope and implementation sequencing.
+
+## Alternatives considered
+
+- Consumer-owned commands preserve local control and leave applications
+  maintaining reusable inspection, invocation, and coordination code.
+- Independently configured check and publication paths allow separate
+  validation choices and require consumers to keep those choices aligned.
+- A public validator-registration framework supports custom composition and
+  expands the public lifecycle and ordering contracts. The existing
+  additional-check extension point supports current product-specific needs.
+
+## Consequences
+
+Applications can replace repeated release mechanics with small declarations.
+Go callers and CLI users receive equivalent selected validation through the
+same release operations. Existing consumers retain their default behavior and
+additional-check integration as optional capabilities are introduced.
+
+ReleaseKit assumes responsibility for maintaining shared checks, coordinating
+their interactions, and presenting useful diagnostics. Public selections and
+error contracts carry compatibility obligations. Verification must cover
+default behavior, equivalent API and profile selections, and failure propagation.
+
+Internal execution can evolve within the facade boundaries. Each new capability
+requires a clear scope and evidence that shared ownership reduces consumer work.