pre-commit-cleanup

name	pre-commit-cleanup
description	Clean up a patch before review or commit by removing AI-style slop, checking test value, validating key paths, and surfacing remaining risks.

Pre-Commit Cleanup

Use this skill when a patch is mostly implemented and should be tightened before the user reviews it or considers committing.

1. Inspect the patch first

• Review the current diff or changed files before editing.
• Compare the new code and tests against nearby file and repo conventions.
• Identify whether the main risks are code slop, test slop, correctness issues, or unfinished validation.

2. Remove low-value code noise

• Delete comments that restate obvious code.
• Remove unnecessary defensive branches, wrappers, or indirection.
• Simplify nested logic when early returns or direct expressions are clearer.
• Eliminate type escapes or placeholder abstractions that exist only to force progress.

3. Remove low-value test noise

• Prefer tests that protect real behaviour, meaningful branches, and regression-prone paths.
• Remove or avoid tests that only pad counts, duplicate nearby coverage, or assert library/framework behaviour rather than local logic.
• Keep multiple tests when they cover distinct outcomes, edge cases, or branches that matter.
• Preserve confidence in real behaviour under test rather than maximising raw test count.

4. Check for obvious review issues

• Look for correctness risks, missing edge cases, and maintainability problems that would likely come up in review.
• Fix small high-confidence issues directly.
• If a larger design issue appears, report it instead of quietly rewriting the patch.

5. Preserve behaviour

• Keep public behaviour unchanged unless a clear bug is found.
• If cleanup reveals a real bug, fix it minimally and say so explicitly.
• Avoid broad rewrites during cosmetic cleanup.

6. Validate

• Run focused validation for the changed behaviour.
• Re-read the final diff for consistency with local style and repo patterns.

Output

• Slop patterns removed (code and tests)
• Tests kept, added, removed, or rewritten and why
• Any behaviour-affecting fix made during cleanup
• Validation performed
• Remaining risks or questions before commit or review