# StageList

> Places entries by the lifecycle stage they belong to, so a reader at any stage finds what applies now. Five layouts over one data model: sheet, rail, index, checklist and cards.

- Status: beta
- Group: content
- Page: https://www.digitaltableteur.com/design-system/components/stage-list
- Contract: https://www.digitaltableteur.com/contracts/v1/StageList.contract.json

## When to use

StageList answers "what applies at this stage?". Each entry names its stages; the list places it under the first and writes out the later ones. Pick a layout for the reading task: sheet for scanning answers by stage (the default), rail when the order is the point, index for a long list read in two passes, checklist when the reader works through it on a project, cards for a looser overview.

## When not to use

- Do not use for a sequence the reader must follow step by step to finish a task; that is a stepper or an ordered list of instructions.
- Do not use when entries have no stage; a plain List or Table reads better.
- Do not use the checklist layout for state that must persist across devices or people; ticks stay in one browser.

## Look-alikes

The contract names no look-alike with a deciding condition.

## Props

| Prop | Type | Default | Description | Required |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `items` | `StageListItem[]` | none | Entries to place by stage; each sits under the first stage it lists. | Yes |
| `stages` | `StageListStage[]` | none | Lifecycle stages in order. | Yes |
| `phases` | `StageListPhase[]` | none | Groups consecutive stages into phases for the sheet, checklist and cards layouts. | No |
| `variant` | `"sheet" \| "rail" \| "index" \| "checklist" \| "cards"` | `sheet` | Layout of the list. | No |
| `headingLevel` | `"2" \| "3" \| "4"` | `3` | Level of the top headings the list renders. | No |
| `storageKey` | `string` | none | Checklist only: localStorage key that keeps ticks between visits. | No |
| `indexLabel` | `string` | none | Accessible name for the index layout's overview navigation. | No |
| `className` | `string` | none | Additional className for the root element. | No |

## Variants

- Available variants: `sheet`, `rail`, `index`, `checklist`, `cards` (default `sheet`).
- Allowed `headingLevel` values: `2`, `3`, `4` (default `3`).

## Invalid combinations

The contract records no invalid combinations.

## Keyboard

| Key | Behaviour |
| --- | --- |
| Tab | Moves through the index links and the checklist tick boxes in reading order; the other layouts hold no controls. |
| Space | Toggles the focused tick box. |
| Enter | Follows the focused index link to its entry. |

## Rules

Every item under When not to use is a MUST NOT. MUST and SHOULD follow RFC 2119.

| Level | Rule | How it is checked |
| --- | --- | --- |
| MUST | ARIA: Phase and stage names are real headings, one level apart, starting at headingLevel so the list slots into the page outline. | Not yet verified: no evidence record. WCAG 4.1.2. |
| MUST | ARIA: The rail is an ordered list of stages; entries are list items. | Not yet verified: no evidence record. WCAG 4.1.2. |
| MUST | ARIA: The index overview is a navigation landmark named by indexLabel; each entry is an article named by its heading. | Not yet verified: no evidence record. WCAG 4.1.2. |
| MUST | ARIA: Each checklist stage is a fieldset named by its legend; each tick box is named by the entry's lead and described by the entry's detail. | Not yet verified: no evidence record. WCAG 4.1.2. |
| MUST | ARIA: The checklist count is a polite live region so ticking announces progress without moving focus. | Not yet verified: no evidence record. WCAG 4.1.2. |
| MUST | ARIA: Recurring stages are written out in text ("Again at ..."), never conveyed by position or colour alone. | Not yet verified: no evidence record. WCAG 4.1.2. |
| MUST | Required stories produce no axe violations at the configured severity. | Automated by `npm run test:stories:matrix:ci`. WCAG 2.5.8. |
| MUST | The accessibility tree (role, name, state) matches the committed snapshot for every required story. | Automated by `npm run test:stories:matrix:ci`. WCAG 1.3.1, 4.1.2. |
| MUST | The component remains legible and operable under a real browser forced-colors: active pass. | Automated by `npm run test:stories:hc`. |
| MUST | Every documented keyboard interaction works as specified. | Not yet verified: no evidence record. WCAG 2.1.1, 2.1.2. |
| MUST | A human completed an end-to-end accessibility review of this component. | Manual review, last on 2026-10-16. |
| SHOULD | Lead each entry with the answer the reader scans for (who to call, what to do) and keep the title as the smaller line. | Not stated in the contract. |
| SHOULD | Group more than about five stages into phases so the list has a short outline. | Not stated in the contract. |
| SHOULD | Set headingLevel to one below the surrounding section heading. | Not stated in the contract. |
| SHOULD | Give each stage a phrase for the recurrence line when its label would read oddly mid-sentence. | Not stated in the contract. |
| SHOULD NOT | Do not encode stage or recurrence with colour or position alone; the text says it. | Not stated in the contract. |

## Install and import

- Install: `npm install @digitaltableteur/react` (version 0.9.1, restricted access on npm).
- Import: `import { StageList } from "@digitaltableteur/react";`
- Entry point: `@digitaltableteur/react/content` exports it too.
- Styles: import `@digitaltableteur/react/style.css` once at the app boundary.

## Links

- Machine-readable contract (Design System Contract 1.0): https://www.digitaltableteur.com/contracts/v1/StageList.contract.json
- Markdown version of this page: https://www.digitaltableteur.com/design-system/components/stage-list.md
- Component index as JSON: https://www.digitaltableteur.com/design-system/components.json
- All components: https://www.digitaltableteur.com/design-system/components
- Source: The implementation lives in a private repository. This page, its Markdown twin and the contract are generated from it at build time and are the public source of truth.