diff --git a/gitnexus-shared/src/graph/types.ts b/gitnexus-shared/src/graph/types.ts
index 49762d145..64e64552a 100644
--- a/gitnexus-shared/src/graph/types.ts
+++ b/gitnexus-shared/src/graph/types.ts
@@ -89,6 +89,8 @@ export type NodeProperties = {
   responseKeys?: string[];
   errorKeys?: string[];
   middleware?: string[];
+  // Guard clauses: early-return conditions before business logic
+  guardClauses?: { condition: string; returnStatus?: number; line: number }[];
   // Extensible
   [key: string]: unknown;
 };
@@ -131,4 +133,6 @@ export interface GraphRelationship {
   confidence: number;
   reason: string;
   step?: number;
+  /** Condition under which this call is made (e.g., "grant.status === 'submitted'") */
+  guard?: string;
 }
diff --git a/gitnexus/package-lock.json b/gitnexus/package-lock.json
index f2605cb43..960453957 100644
--- a/gitnexus/package-lock.json
+++ b/gitnexus/package-lock.json
@@ -2975,6 +2975,7 @@
       "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/express/-/express-4.22.1.tgz",
       "integrity": "sha512-F2X8g9P1X7uCPZMA3MVf9wcTqlyNp7IhH5qPCI0izhaOIYXaW9L535tGA3qmjRzpH+bZczqq7hVKxTR4NWnu+g==",
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "dependencies": {
         "accepts": "~1.3.8",
         "array-flatten": "1.1.1",
@@ -3423,6 +3424,7 @@
       "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/hono/-/hono-4.12.9.tgz",
       "integrity": "sha512-wy3T8Zm2bsEvxKZM5w21VdHDDcwVS1yUFFY6i8UobSsKfFceT7TOwhbhfKsDyx7tYQlmRM5FLpIuYvNFyjctiA==",
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "engines": {
         "node": ">=16.9.0"
       }
@@ -4324,6 +4326,7 @@
       "integrity": "sha512-QP88BAKvMam/3NxH6vj2o21R6MjxZUAd6nlwAS/pnGvN9IVLocLHxGYIzFhg6fUQ+5th6P4dv4eW9jX3DSIj7A==",
       "dev": true,
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "engines": {
         "node": ">=12"
       },
@@ -5012,6 +5015,7 @@
       "integrity": "sha512-7dxoA6kYvtgWw80265MyqJlkRl4yawIjO7S5MigytjELkX43fV2WsAXzsNfO7sBpPPCF5Gp0+XzHk0DwLCq3xQ==",
       "hasInstallScript": true,
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "dependencies": {
         "node-addon-api": "^8.0.0",
         "node-gyp-build": "^4.8.0"
@@ -5358,6 +5362,7 @@
       "integrity": "sha512-5C1sg4USs1lfG0GFb2RLXsdpXqBSEhAaA/0kPL01wxzpMqLILNxIxIOKiILz+cdg/pLnOUxFYOR5yhHU666wbw==",
       "dev": true,
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "dependencies": {
         "esbuild": "~0.27.0",
         "get-tsconfig": "^4.7.5"
@@ -5478,6 +5483,7 @@
       "integrity": "sha512-dbU7/iLVa8KZALJyLOBOQ88nOXtNG8vxKuOT4I2mD+Ya70KPceF4IAmDsmU0h1Qsn5bPrvsY9HJstCRh3hG6Uw==",
       "dev": true,
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "dependencies": {
         "lightningcss": "^1.32.0",
         "picomatch": "^4.0.4",
@@ -5556,6 +5562,7 @@
       "integrity": "sha512-tFuJqTxKb8AvfyqMfnavXdzfy3h3sWZRWwfluGbkeR7n0HUev+FmNgZ8SDrRBTVrVCjgH5cA21qGbCffMNtWvg==",
       "dev": true,
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "dependencies": {
         "@vitest/expect": "4.1.4",
         "@vitest/mocker": "4.1.4",
@@ -5745,6 +5752,7 @@
       "resolved": "https://registry.npmjs.org/zod/-/zod-4.3.6.tgz",
       "integrity": "sha512-rftlrkhHZOcjDwkGlnUtZZkvaPHCsDATp4pGpuOOMDaTdDDXF91wuVDJoWoPsKX/3YPQ5fHuF3STjcYyKr+Qhg==",
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "funding": {
         "url": "https://github.com/sponsors/colinhacks"
       }
diff --git a/gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/guard-extractor.ts b/gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/guard-extractor.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..c8efe9d5b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/guard-extractor.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,283 @@
+/**
+ * Guard Clause & Guarded Call Extraction
+ *
+ * Extracts two things from function bodies:
+ * 1. Guard clauses: early-return if-statements with status codes (e.g., if (!session) return 401)
+ * 2. Guarded calls: function calls wrapped in if/switch conditions (e.g., if (status === 'x') doThing())
+ *
+ * Uses tree-sitter AST for accurate extraction. Falls back gracefully for unsupported languages.
+ */
+
+import Parser from 'tree-sitter';
+import TypeScript from 'tree-sitter-typescript';
+import JavaScript from 'tree-sitter-javascript';
+import Python from 'tree-sitter-python';
+import PHP from 'tree-sitter-php';
+
+export interface GuardClause {
+  /** The condition text (e.g., "!session", "!org") */
+  condition: string;
+  /** HTTP status code if detectable (401, 403, 404, etc.) */
+  returnStatus?: number;
+  /** Line number of the if-statement */
+  line: number;
+  /** Enclosing function name */
+  functionName?: string;
+  /** For throw/raise guards: the exception class name (e.g., "PermissionDenied", "UnauthorizedException") */
+  throwType?: string;
+  /** Confidence: 1.0 = has status code or throw type, 0.7 = negation guard in route handler, 0.3 = other early return */
+  confidence: number;
+}
+
+export interface GuardedCall {
+  /** Name of the called function */
+  calledName: string;
+  /** The condition text wrapping this call */
+  guard: string;
+  /** Line number of the call */
+  line: number;
+  /** Enclosing function name */
+  functionName?: string;
+}
+
+const LANGUAGE_MAP: Record<string, any> = {
+  typescript: TypeScript.typescript,
+  javascript: JavaScript,
+  python: Python,
+  php: (PHP as any).php_only ?? PHP,
+};
+
+const STATUS_PATTERN = /status[:\s]*(\d{3})/;
+
+/** Tree-sitter node types that represent throw/raise exits across languages */
+const THROW_TYPES = new Set([
+  'throw_statement',   // JS/TS, Java, C#, Kotlin
+  'throw_expression',  // PHP, Kotlin
+  'raise_statement',   // Python
+]);
+
+/**
+ * Extract the exception class name from a throw/raise node.
+ * e.g., `throw new UnauthorizedException()` → "UnauthorizedException"
+ *       `raise PermissionDenied()` → "PermissionDenied"
+ */
+function extractThrowType(node: Parser.SyntaxNode): string | undefined {
+  const text = node.text;
+  // Match: throw new ClassName(...) or raise ClassName(...)
+  const match = text.match(/(?:throw\s+new\s+|throw\s+|raise\s+)(\w+)/);
+  return match?.[1];
+}
+
+/**
+ * Extract both guard clauses and guarded calls in a single parse pass.
+ * Parses the file once and walks function bodies once for both extractions.
+ */
+export function extractGuards(content: string, language: string): { clauses: GuardClause[]; calls: GuardedCall[] } {
+  const lang = LANGUAGE_MAP[language];
+  if (!lang) return { clauses: [], calls: [] };
+
+  const parser = new Parser();
+  parser.setLanguage(lang);
+  const tree = parser.parse(content);
+
+  const clauses: GuardClause[] = [];
+  const calls: GuardedCall[] = [];
+
+  walkFunctionBodies(tree.rootNode, language, (bodyNode, funcName) => {
+    // Resolve the actual statement list — if the body is a single try-catch,
+    // look inside the try block for guards (common Next.js route handler pattern)
+    let stmtSource = bodyNode;
+    if (bodyNode.namedChildren.length <= 2) {
+      const tryStmt = bodyNode.namedChildren.find((c: any) => c.type === 'try_statement');
+      if (tryStmt) {
+        const tryBody = tryStmt.childForFieldName('body');
+        if (tryBody) stmtSource = tryBody;
+      }
+    }
+
+    for (const child of stmtSource.namedChildren) {
+      if (child.type !== 'if_statement') {
+        // Allow variable declarations between guards (e.g., const session = await getSession())
+        // Python uses 'expression_statement' for assignments and 'assignment' for var = ...
+        if (child.type === 'lexical_declaration' || child.type === 'variable_declaration' ||
+            child.type === 'expression_statement' || child.type === 'assignment') {
+          continue;
+        }
+        // Any other statement type means we've passed the guard region
+        break;
+      }
+
+      const condNode = child.childForFieldName('condition');
+      const consBlock = child.childForFieldName('consequence');
+      if (!condNode || !consBlock) continue;
+
+      const condText = condNode.text.replace(/^\(/, '').replace(/\)$/, '').trim();
+
+      // Check if the consequent block contains a return statement or throw/raise (guard clause)
+      const hasReturn = findDescendantOfType(consBlock, 'return_statement');
+      const hasThrow = findDescendantOfAnyType(consBlock, THROW_TYPES);
+      if (hasReturn || hasThrow) {
+        let returnStatus: number | undefined;
+        let throwType: string | undefined;
+        if (hasReturn) {
+          const statusMatch = hasReturn.text.match(STATUS_PATTERN);
+          if (statusMatch) {
+            returnStatus = parseInt(statusMatch[1], 10);
+          }
+        }
+        if (hasThrow) {
+          throwType = extractThrowType(hasThrow);
+          // Also try to extract status from throw text (e.g., throw new HttpException(..., 401))
+          if (!returnStatus) {
+            const statusMatch = hasThrow.text.match(STATUS_PATTERN);
+            if (statusMatch) {
+              returnStatus = parseInt(statusMatch[1], 10);
+            }
+          }
+        }
+        // Compute confidence based on evidence strength
+        let confidence = 0.3; // default: early return without clear signal
+        if (returnStatus || throwType) {
+          confidence = 1.0; // has HTTP status code or exception type — definitely a guard
+        } else if (condText.startsWith('!') || condText.startsWith('not ')) {
+          confidence = 0.7; // negation pattern (e.g., !session, !org) — likely a guard
+        }
+
+        clauses.push({
+          condition: condText,
+          returnStatus,
+          confidence,
+          line: child.startPosition.row + 1,
+          functionName: funcName,
+          ...(throwType && { throwType }),
+        });
+      } else {
+        // Not a guard clause — stop scanning for guards but still check guarded calls below
+        break;
+      }
+    }
+
+    // Second pass for guarded calls — scans all if-statements (not just early-return guards)
+    for (const child of stmtSource.namedChildren) {
+      if (child.type !== 'if_statement') continue;
+      const condNode = child.childForFieldName('condition');
+      const consBlock = child.childForFieldName('consequence');
+      if (!condNode || !consBlock) continue;
+
+      const condText = condNode.text.replace(/^\(/, '').replace(/\)$/, '').trim();
+
+      const callNodes = findAllDescendantsOfType(consBlock, 'call_expression');
+      for (const call of callNodes) {
+        const funcNode = call.childForFieldName('function');
+        if (!funcNode) continue;
+        const calledName = funcNode.type === 'member_expression'
+          ? funcNode.childForFieldName('property')?.text ?? funcNode.text
+          : funcNode.text;
+
+        // Skip common non-interesting calls (console.log, NextResponse.json, etc.)
+        if (calledName === 'json' || calledName === 'log' || calledName === 'error') continue;
+
+        calls.push({
+          calledName,
+          guard: condText,
+          line: call.startPosition.row + 1,
+          functionName: funcName,
+        });
+      }
+    }
+  });
+
+  return { clauses, calls };
+}
+
+/**
+ * Extract guard clauses (early-return if-statements) from file content.
+ * Convenience wrapper around extractGuards for callers that only need clauses.
+ */
+export function extractGuardClauses(content: string, language: string): GuardClause[] {
+  return extractGuards(content, language).clauses;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Extract guarded calls — function calls that are wrapped in if/switch conditions.
+ * Convenience wrapper around extractGuards for callers that only need calls.
+ */
+export function extractGuardedCalls(content: string, language: string): GuardedCall[] {
+  return extractGuards(content, language).calls;
+}
+
+// ── Helpers ──
+
+function walkFunctionBodies(
+  node: Parser.SyntaxNode,
+  language: string,
+  callback: (body: Parser.SyntaxNode, funcName?: string) => void,
+): void {
+  const funcTypes = new Set([
+    'function_declaration', 'method_definition', 'arrow_function',
+    'function_definition', 'method_declaration',
+  ]);
+
+  // Python uses 'block' instead of 'statement_block'
+  const bodyTypes = language === 'python'
+    ? new Set(['block', 'statement_block'])
+    : new Set(['statement_block']);
+
+  function walk(n: Parser.SyntaxNode): void {
+    if (funcTypes.has(n.type)) {
+      // Skip arrow functions that are callback arguments (e.g., .sort((a,b) => ...),
+      // .reduce((acc, x) => ...), .then((res) => ...)). These are not route handlers
+      // and their early-returns are not HTTP guard clauses.
+      if (n.type === 'arrow_function' && n.parent) {
+        const parentType = n.parent.type;
+        // If the arrow is inside an arguments list or is a direct argument to a call, skip it
+        if (parentType === 'arguments' || parentType === 'call_expression' ||
+            parentType === 'member_expression') {
+          // Still walk children to find nested named functions
+          for (const child of n.namedChildren) walk(child);
+          return;
+        }
+      }
+
+      const body = n.childForFieldName('body');
+      const nameNode = n.childForFieldName('name');
+      const funcName = nameNode?.text;
+      if (body && bodyTypes.has(body.type)) {
+        callback(body, funcName);
+      }
+    }
+    for (const child of n.namedChildren) {
+      walk(child);
+    }
+  }
+
+  walk(node);
+}
+
+function findDescendantOfType(node: Parser.SyntaxNode, type: string): Parser.SyntaxNode | null {
+  if (node.type === type) return node;
+  for (const child of node.namedChildren) {
+    const found = findDescendantOfType(child, type);
+    if (found) return found;
+  }
+  return null;
+}
+
+function findDescendantOfAnyType(node: Parser.SyntaxNode, types: Set<string>): Parser.SyntaxNode | null {
+  if (types.has(node.type)) return node;
+  for (const child of node.namedChildren) {
+    const found = findDescendantOfAnyType(child, types);
+    if (found) return found;
+  }
+  return null;
+}
+
+function findAllDescendantsOfType(node: Parser.SyntaxNode, type: string): Parser.SyntaxNode[] {
+  const results: Parser.SyntaxNode[] = [];
+  function walk(n: Parser.SyntaxNode) {
+    if (n.type === type) results.push(n);
+    for (const child of n.namedChildren) walk(child);
+  }
+  walk(node);
+  return results;
+}
diff --git a/gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/pipeline-phases/guards.ts b/gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/pipeline-phases/guards.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..c13ec7895
--- /dev/null
+++ b/gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/pipeline-phases/guards.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,132 @@
+/**
+ * Phase: guards
+ *
+ * Enriches Function/Method nodes with guard clause metadata and annotates
+ * CALLS edges with guard conditions (guarded calls).
+ *
+ * Runs after crossFile so all Function/Method nodes and CALLS edges are present.
+ *
+ * @deps    crossFile
+ * @reads   graph (Function/Method nodes, CALLS edges)
+ * @writes  graph (node.properties.guardClauses, rel.guard)
+ * @output  guardCount, guardedCallCount
+ */
+
+import type { PipelinePhase, PipelineContext, PhaseResult } from './types.js';
+import { getLanguageFromFilename } from 'gitnexus-shared';
+import type { GraphRelationship } from 'gitnexus-shared';
+import { extractGuards } from '../guard-extractor.js';
+import { readFileContents } from '../filesystem-walker.js';
+import { isDev } from '../utils/env.js';
+
+export interface GuardsOutput {
+  guardCount: number;
+  guardedCallCount: number;
+}
+
+export const guardsPhase: PipelinePhase<GuardsOutput> = {
+  name: 'guards',
+  deps: ['crossFile'],
+
+  async execute(
+    ctx: PipelineContext,
+    _deps: ReadonlyMap<string, PhaseResult<unknown>>,
+  ): Promise<GuardsOutput> {
+    // Build file → nodes map for Function/Method nodes
+    const fileGroups = new Map<string, { label: string; id: string; name: string }[]>();
+    ctx.graph.forEachNode((n) => {
+      if (n.label !== 'Function' && n.label !== 'Method') return;
+      const fp = n.properties.filePath as string | undefined;
+      if (!fp) return;
+      let group = fileGroups.get(fp);
+      if (!group) {
+        group = [];
+        fileGroups.set(fp, group);
+      }
+      group.push({ label: n.label, id: n.id, name: n.properties.name as string });
+    });
+
+    if (fileGroups.size === 0) {
+      return { guardCount: 0, guardedCallCount: 0 };
+    }
+
+    // Pre-index CALLS edges by source file path for O(1) lookup per file
+    const callsBySourceFile = new Map<
+      string,
+      { rel: GraphRelationship; targetName: string; sourceName: string }[]
+    >();
+    ctx.graph.forEachRelationship((rel) => {
+      if (rel.type !== 'CALLS') return;
+      const sourceNode = ctx.graph.getNode(rel.sourceId);
+      const targetNode = ctx.graph.getNode(rel.targetId);
+      if (!sourceNode || !targetNode) return;
+      const fp = sourceNode.properties.filePath as string | undefined;
+      if (!fp) return;
+      let bucket = callsBySourceFile.get(fp);
+      if (!bucket) {
+        bucket = [];
+        callsBySourceFile.set(fp, bucket);
+      }
+      bucket.push({
+        rel,
+        targetName: targetNode.properties.name as string,
+        sourceName: sourceNode.properties.name as string,
+      });
+    });
+
+    const filePaths = [...fileGroups.keys()];
+    const fileContents = await readFileContents(ctx.repoPath, filePaths);
+    let guardCount = 0;
+    let guardedCallCount = 0;
+
+    for (const [filePath, content] of fileContents) {
+      const language = getLanguageFromFilename(filePath);
+      if (!language) continue;
+
+      // Single parse pass extracts both guard clauses and guarded calls
+      const { clauses, calls: guardedCalls } = extractGuards(content, language);
+
+      if (clauses.length > 0) {
+        const nodes = fileGroups.get(filePath) ?? [];
+        for (const nodeRef of nodes) {
+          const nodeGuards = clauses.filter(
+            (g) => g.functionName === nodeRef.name && g.confidence >= 0.5,
+          );
+          if (nodeGuards.length > 0) {
+            const node = ctx.graph.getNode(nodeRef.id);
+            if (node) {
+              (node.properties as Record<string, unknown>).guardClauses = nodeGuards.map((g) => ({
+                condition: g.condition,
+                returnStatus: g.returnStatus,
+                confidence: g.confidence,
+                line: g.line,
+              }));
+              guardCount += nodeGuards.length;
+            }
+          }
+        }
+      }
+
+      // Match guarded calls to pre-indexed CALLS edges for this file
+      const fileCalls = callsBySourceFile.get(filePath);
+      if (fileCalls && guardedCalls.length > 0) {
+        for (const gc of guardedCalls) {
+          for (const { rel, targetName, sourceName } of fileCalls) {
+            if (targetName !== gc.calledName) continue;
+            if (gc.functionName && sourceName !== gc.functionName) continue;
+            (rel as Record<string, unknown>).guard = gc.guard;
+            guardedCallCount++;
+          }
+        }
+      }
+    }
+
+    if (isDev && (guardCount > 0 || guardedCallCount > 0)) {
+      console.log(
+        `🛡️ Guard detection: ${guardCount} guard clauses, ${guardedCallCount} guarded call edges`,
+      );
+    }
+
+    return { guardCount, guardedCallCount };
+  },
+};
diff --git a/gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/pipeline-phases/index.ts b/gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/pipeline-phases/index.ts
index c05264de1..63ddfe9af 100644
--- a/gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/pipeline-phases/index.ts
+++ b/gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/pipeline-phases/index.ts
@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@ export { routesPhase, type RoutesOutput, type RouteEntry } from './routes.js';
 export { toolsPhase, type ToolsOutput, type ToolDef } from './tools.js';
 export { ormPhase, type ORMOutput } from './orm.js';
 export { crossFilePhase, type CrossFileOutput } from './cross-file.js';
+export { guardsPhase, type GuardsOutput } from './guards.js';
 export { mroPhase, type MROOutput } from './mro.js';
 export { communitiesPhase, type CommunitiesOutput } from './communities.js';
 export { processesPhase, type ProcessesOutput } from './processes.js';
diff --git a/gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/pipeline.ts b/gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/pipeline.ts
index e1f226289..72e326db1 100644
--- a/gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/pipeline.ts
+++ b/gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/pipeline.ts
@@ -30,6 +30,7 @@ import {
   toolsPhase,
   ormPhase,
   crossFilePhase,
+  guardsPhase,
   mroPhase,
   communitiesPhase,
   processesPhase,
@@ -64,7 +65,7 @@ export interface PipelineOptions {
  * Phase dependency graph:
  *
  *   scan → structure → [markdown, cobol] → parse → [routes, tools, orm]
- *     → crossFile → mro → communities → processes
+ *     → crossFile → guards → mro → communities → processes
  *
  * To add a new phase: create a file in pipeline-phases/, export the phase
  * object, and add it to the appropriate position in this array.
@@ -80,6 +81,7 @@ function buildPhaseList(options?: PipelineOptions): PipelinePhase[] {
     toolsPhase,
     ormPhase,
     crossFilePhase,
+    guardsPhase,
   ];
 
   if (!options?.skipGraphPhases) {
diff --git a/gitnexus/src/core/lbug/csv-generator.ts b/gitnexus/src/core/lbug/csv-generator.ts
index 616a00cac..448c50850 100644
--- a/gitnexus/src/core/lbug/csv-generator.ts
+++ b/gitnexus/src/core/lbug/csv-generator.ts
@@ -199,6 +199,19 @@ class BufferedCSVWriter {
 // STREAMING CSV GENERATION — SINGLE PASS
 // ============================================================================
 
+/**
+ * Serialize guard clauses array to a string for CSV storage.
+ * Format: JSON array of "condition:status" strings.
+ */
+const serializeGuardClauses = (guards: { condition: string; returnStatus?: number; line: number }[]): string => {
+  if (!guards || guards.length === 0) return '';
+  return JSON.stringify(guards.map(g => ({
+    condition: g.condition,
+    ...(g.returnStatus ? { status: g.returnStatus } : {}),
+    line: g.line,
+  })));
+};
+
 export interface StreamedCSVResult {
   nodeFiles: Map<NodeTableName, { csvPath: string; rows: number }>;
   relCsvPath: string;
@@ -235,9 +248,11 @@ export const streamAllCSVsToDisk = async (
   );
   const folderWriter = new BufferedCSVWriter(path.join(csvDir, 'folder.csv'), 'id,name,filePath');
   const codeElementHeader = 'id,name,filePath,startLine,endLine,isExported,content,description';
+  const functionHeader =
+    'id,name,filePath,startLine,endLine,isExported,content,description,guardClauses';
   const functionWriter = new BufferedCSVWriter(
     path.join(csvDir, 'function.csv'),
-    codeElementHeader,
+    functionHeader,
   );
   const classWriter = new BufferedCSVWriter(path.join(csvDir, 'class.csv'), codeElementHeader);
   const interfaceWriter = new BufferedCSVWriter(
@@ -245,7 +260,7 @@ export const streamAllCSVsToDisk = async (
     codeElementHeader,
   );
   const methodHeader =
-    'id,name,filePath,startLine,endLine,isExported,content,description,parameterCount,returnType';
+    'id,name,filePath,startLine,endLine,isExported,content,description,parameterCount,returnType,guardClauses';
   const methodWriter = new BufferedCSVWriter(path.join(csvDir, 'method.csv'), methodHeader);
   const codeElemWriter = new BufferedCSVWriter(
     path.join(csvDir, 'codeelement.csv'),
@@ -309,8 +324,8 @@ export const streamAllCSVsToDisk = async (
     );
   }
 
+  // Function and Method have dedicated cases; only Class/Interface/CodeElement use the generic writer
   const codeWriterMap: Record<string, BufferedCSVWriter> = {
-    Function: functionWriter,
     Class: classWriter,
     Interface: interfaceWriter,
     CodeElement: codeElemWriter,
@@ -382,8 +397,29 @@ export const streamAllCSVsToDisk = async (
         );
         break;
       }
+      case 'Function': {
+        const content = await extractContent(node, contentCache);
+        const funcGuardClauses = node.properties.guardClauses || [];
+        const funcGuardStr = serializeGuardClauses(funcGuardClauses);
+        await functionWriter.addRow(
+          [
+            escapeCSVField(node.id),
+            escapeCSVField(node.properties.name || ''),
+            escapeCSVField(node.properties.filePath || ''),
+            escapeCSVNumber(node.properties.startLine, -1),
+            escapeCSVNumber(node.properties.endLine, -1),
+            node.properties.isExported ? 'true' : 'false',
+            escapeCSVField(content),
+            escapeCSVField(node.properties.description || ''),
+            escapeCSVField(funcGuardStr),
+          ].join(','),
+        );
+        break;
+      }
       case 'Method': {
         const content = await extractContent(node, contentCache);
+        const methodGuardClauses = node.properties.guardClauses || [];
+        const methodGuardStr = serializeGuardClauses(methodGuardClauses);
         await methodWriter.addRow(
           [
             escapeCSVField(node.id),
@@ -396,6 +432,7 @@ export const streamAllCSVsToDisk = async (
             escapeCSVField(node.properties.description || ''),
             escapeCSVNumber(node.properties.parameterCount, 0),
             escapeCSVField(node.properties.returnType || ''),
+            escapeCSVField(methodGuardStr),
           ].join(','),
         );
         break;
@@ -448,7 +485,7 @@ export const streamAllCSVsToDisk = async (
         );
         break;
       default: {
-        // Code element nodes (Function, Class, Interface, CodeElement)
+        // Code element nodes (Class, Interface, CodeElement)
         const writer = codeWriterMap[node.label];
         if (writer) {
           const content = await extractContent(node, contentCache);
@@ -507,7 +544,7 @@ export const streamAllCSVsToDisk = async (
 
   // --- Stream relationship CSV ---
   const relCsvPath = path.join(csvDir, 'relations.csv');
-  const relWriter = new BufferedCSVWriter(relCsvPath, 'from,to,type,confidence,reason,step');
+  const relWriter = new BufferedCSVWriter(relCsvPath, 'from,to,type,confidence,reason,step,guard');
   for (const rel of graph.iterRelationships()) {
     await relWriter.addRow(
       [
@@ -517,6 +554,7 @@ export const streamAllCSVsToDisk = async (
         escapeCSVNumber(rel.confidence, 1.0),
         escapeCSVField(rel.reason),
         escapeCSVNumber((rel as any).step, 0),
+        escapeCSVField(rel.guard || ''),
       ].join(','),
     );
   }
diff --git a/gitnexus/src/core/lbug/lbug-adapter.ts b/gitnexus/src/core/lbug/lbug-adapter.ts
index f019960c5..d09d3c748 100644
--- a/gitnexus/src/core/lbug/lbug-adapter.ts
+++ b/gitnexus/src/core/lbug/lbug-adapter.ts
@@ -587,8 +587,11 @@ const getCopyQuery = (table: NodeTableName, filePath: string): string => {
   if (table === 'Tool') {
     return `COPY ${t}(id, name, filePath, description) FROM "${filePath}" ${COPY_CSV_OPTS}`;
   }
+  if (table === 'Function') {
+    return `COPY ${t}(id, name, filePath, startLine, endLine, isExported, content, description, guardClauses) FROM "${filePath}" ${COPY_CSV_OPTS}`;
+  }
   if (table === 'Method') {
-    return `COPY ${t}(id, name, filePath, startLine, endLine, isExported, content, description, parameterCount, returnType) FROM "${filePath}" ${COPY_CSV_OPTS}`;
+    return `COPY ${t}(id, name, filePath, startLine, endLine, isExported, content, description, parameterCount, returnType, guardClauses) FROM "${filePath}" ${COPY_CSV_OPTS}`;
   }
   // TypeScript/JS code element tables have isExported; multi-language tables do not
   if (TABLES_WITH_EXPORTED.has(table)) {
diff --git a/gitnexus/src/core/lbug/schema.ts b/gitnexus/src/core/lbug/schema.ts
index 5579036f1..bfa40a2f7 100644
--- a/gitnexus/src/core/lbug/schema.ts
+++ b/gitnexus/src/core/lbug/schema.ts
@@ -46,6 +46,7 @@ CREATE NODE TABLE Function (
   isExported BOOLEAN,
   content STRING,
   description STRING,
+  guardClauses STRING,
   PRIMARY KEY (id)
 )`;
 
@@ -87,6 +88,7 @@ CREATE NODE TABLE Method (
   description STRING,
   parameterCount INT32,
   returnType STRING,
+  guardClauses STRING,
   PRIMARY KEY (id)
 )`;
 
@@ -423,7 +425,8 @@ CREATE REL TABLE ${REL_TABLE_NAME} (
   type STRING,
   confidence DOUBLE,
   reason STRING,
-  step INT32
+  step INT32,
+  guard STRING
 )`;
 
 // ============================================================================
diff --git a/gitnexus/test/fixtures/guard-clauses/route-handler.ts b/gitnexus/test/fixtures/guard-clauses/route-handler.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..216177096
--- /dev/null
+++ b/gitnexus/test/fixtures/guard-clauses/route-handler.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+// Next.js route handler with typical guard clause patterns
+import { NextRequest, NextResponse } from 'next/server';
+
+async function handlePOST(request: NextRequest) {
+  const session = await getSession();
+  if (!session) {
+    return NextResponse.json({ error: "Unauthorized" }, { status: 401 });
+  }
+
+  const org = await getOrg(slug);
+  if (!org) {
+    return NextResponse.json({ error: "Not found" }, { status: 404 });
+  }
+
+  if (!hasPermission(session.role, 'grants.create')) {
+    return NextResponse.json({ error: "Forbidden" }, { status: 403 });
+  }
+
+  // Business logic - only reached after all guards pass
+  const result = await createGrant(data);
+
+  if (result.requiresApproval) {
+    initializeApprovalWorkflow(result.id);
+  }
+
+  return NextResponse.json(result);
+}
diff --git a/gitnexus/test/integration/guard-detection.test.ts b/gitnexus/test/integration/guard-detection.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..52c3c8186
--- /dev/null
+++ b/gitnexus/test/integration/guard-detection.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+import { describe, it, expect } from 'vitest';
+import { extractGuardClauses, extractGuardedCalls } from '../../src/core/ingestion/guard-extractor.js';
+import { readFileSync } from 'node:fs';
+import { join, dirname } from 'node:path';
+import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url';
+
+const __dirname = dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url));
+
+const fixture = readFileSync(
+  join(__dirname, '../fixtures/guard-clauses/route-handler.ts'),
+  'utf-8'
+);
+
+describe('guard detection integration', () => {
+  it('detects all guard clauses in a Next.js route handler', () => {
+    const guards = extractGuardClauses(fixture, 'typescript');
+    expect(guards.length).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(3);
+
+    const statuses = guards.map(g => g.returnStatus).filter(Boolean);
+    expect(statuses).toContain(401);
+    expect(statuses).toContain(403);
+    expect(statuses).toContain(404);
+  });
+
+  it('detects guarded calls (conditional business logic)', () => {
+    const guarded = extractGuardedCalls(fixture, 'typescript');
+    const approvalCall = guarded.find(g => g.calledName === 'initializeApprovalWorkflow');
+    expect(approvalCall).toBeDefined();
+    expect(approvalCall!.guard).toContain('result.requiresApproval');
+  });
+
+  it('does not flag unconditional calls as guarded', () => {
+    const guarded = extractGuardedCalls(fixture, 'typescript');
+    const createCall = guarded.find(g => g.calledName === 'createGrant');
+    expect(createCall).toBeUndefined(); // createGrant is unconditional
+  });
+});
diff --git a/gitnexus/test/unit/guard-extractor.test.ts b/gitnexus/test/unit/guard-extractor.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..9333a8314
--- /dev/null
+++ b/gitnexus/test/unit/guard-extractor.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,158 @@
+import { describe, it, expect } from 'vitest';
+import { extractGuardClauses, extractGuardedCalls, type GuardClause, type GuardedCall } from '../../src/core/ingestion/guard-extractor.js';
+
+describe('extractGuardClauses', () => {
+  it('extracts early-return guard clauses from a route handler', () => {
+    const content = `
+async function handlePOST(request: NextRequest) {
+  const session = await getSession();
+  if (!session) {
+    return NextResponse.json({ error: "Unauthorized" }, { status: 401 });
+  }
+  if (!org) {
+    return NextResponse.json({ error: "Not found" }, { status: 404 });
+  }
+  // business logic
+  const result = await createGrant(data);
+  return NextResponse.json(result);
+}`;
+    const guards = extractGuardClauses(content, 'typescript');
+    expect(guards).toHaveLength(2);
+    expect(guards[0]).toMatchObject({
+      condition: '!session',
+      returnStatus: 401,
+      line: expect.any(Number),
+    });
+    expect(guards[1]).toMatchObject({
+      condition: '!org',
+      returnStatus: 404,
+      line: expect.any(Number),
+    });
+  });
+
+  it('returns empty array for functions without guards', () => {
+    const content = `function add(a: number, b: number) { return a + b; }`;
+    const guards = extractGuardClauses(content, 'typescript');
+    expect(guards).toEqual([]);
+  });
+
+  it('detects throw-based guard clauses in TypeScript/JavaScript', () => {
+    const content = `
+function validateUser(user: User) {
+  if (!user) {
+    throw new UnauthorizedException("User not found");
+  }
+  if (!user.isActive) {
+    throw new ForbiddenException("Account disabled");
+  }
+  return user;
+}`;
+    const guards = extractGuardClauses(content, 'typescript');
+    expect(guards).toHaveLength(2);
+    expect(guards[0]).toMatchObject({
+      condition: '!user',
+      throwType: 'UnauthorizedException',
+      line: expect.any(Number),
+    });
+    expect(guards[1]).toMatchObject({
+      condition: '!user.isActive',
+      throwType: 'ForbiddenException',
+      line: expect.any(Number),
+    });
+  });
+
+  it('detects mixed return and throw guard clauses', () => {
+    const content = `
+function handleRequest(req: Request) {
+  if (!req.auth) {
+    throw new UnauthorizedException();
+  }
+  if (!req.body) {
+    return new Response(null, { status: 400 });
+  }
+  return processRequest(req);
+}`;
+    const guards = extractGuardClauses(content, 'typescript');
+    expect(guards).toHaveLength(2);
+    expect(guards[0]).toMatchObject({
+      condition: '!req.auth',
+      throwType: 'UnauthorizedException',
+    });
+    expect(guards[1]).toMatchObject({
+      condition: '!req.body',
+      returnStatus: 400,
+    });
+    // First guard should NOT have returnStatus, second should NOT have throwType
+    expect(guards[0].returnStatus).toBeUndefined();
+    expect(guards[1].throwType).toBeUndefined();
+  });
+
+  it('detects Python raise-based guard clauses', () => {
+    const content = `
+def handle(request):
+    if not request.user.is_authenticated:
+        raise PermissionDenied()
+    if not request.data:
+        raise ValidationError("No data")
+    return process(request.data)
+`;
+    const guards = extractGuardClauses(content, 'python');
+    expect(guards).toHaveLength(2);
+    expect(guards[0]).toMatchObject({
+      condition: 'not request.user.is_authenticated',
+      throwType: 'PermissionDenied',
+      line: expect.any(Number),
+    });
+    expect(guards[1]).toMatchObject({
+      condition: 'not request.data',
+      throwType: 'ValidationError',
+      line: expect.any(Number),
+    });
+  });
+
+  it('extracts throwType for Java-style throw new', () => {
+    const content = `
+function checkPermissions(user) {
+  if (user === null) {
+    throw new NullPointerException("user is null");
+  }
+  if (!user.hasRole("admin")) {
+    throw new AccessDeniedException("admin required");
+  }
+}`;
+    const guards = extractGuardClauses(content, 'javascript');
+    expect(guards).toHaveLength(2);
+    expect(guards[0].throwType).toBe('NullPointerException');
+    expect(guards[1].throwType).toBe('AccessDeniedException');
+  });
+});
+
+describe('extractGuardedCalls', () => {
+  it('extracts the condition wrapping a function call', () => {
+    const content = `
+function processGrant(grant: Grant) {
+  if (grant.status === 'submitted') {
+    approveGrant(grant.id);
+  }
+  if (user.role === 'admin') {
+    deleteGrant(grant.id);
+  }
+  alwaysCalled();
+}`;
+    const guarded = extractGuardedCalls(content, 'typescript');
+    expect(guarded).toContainEqual(
+      expect.objectContaining({
+        calledName: 'approveGrant',
+        guard: "grant.status === 'submitted'",
+      })
+    );
+    expect(guarded).toContainEqual(
+      expect.objectContaining({
+        calledName: 'deleteGrant',
+        guard: "user.role === 'admin'",
+      })
+    );
+    // alwaysCalled has no guard
+    expect(guarded.find(g => g.calledName === 'alwaysCalled')).toBeUndefined();
+  });
+});
diff --git a/gitnexus/test/unit/guard-schema.test.ts b/gitnexus/test/unit/guard-schema.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..3a02a82ad
--- /dev/null
+++ b/gitnexus/test/unit/guard-schema.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+import { describe, it, expect } from 'vitest';
+import { NODE_TABLES, RELATION_SCHEMA, FUNCTION_SCHEMA, METHOD_SCHEMA } from '../../src/core/lbug/schema.js';
+import type { NodeProperties, GraphRelationship } from '../../src/core/graph/types.js';
+
+describe('guard clause schema', () => {
+  it('NodeProperties accepts guardClauses field', () => {
+    const props: NodeProperties = {
+      name: 'handlePOST',
+      filePath: 'route.ts',
+      guardClauses: [{ condition: '!session', returnStatus: 401, line: 5 }],
+    };
+    expect(props.guardClauses).toHaveLength(1);
+  });
+
+  it('GraphRelationship accepts guard field', () => {
+    const rel: GraphRelationship = {
+      id: 'test',
+      sourceId: 'a',
+      targetId: 'b',
+      type: 'CALLS',
+      confidence: 1.0,
+      reason: 'guarded-call',
+      guard: "grant.status === 'submitted'",
+    };
+    expect(rel.guard).toBe("grant.status === 'submitted'");
+  });
+
+  it('RELATION_SCHEMA includes guard column', () => {
+    expect(RELATION_SCHEMA).toContain('guard STRING');
+  });
+
+  it('FUNCTION_SCHEMA includes guardClauses column', () => {
+    expect(FUNCTION_SCHEMA).toContain('guardClauses STRING');
+  });
+
+  it('METHOD_SCHEMA includes guardClauses column', () => {
+    expect(METHOD_SCHEMA).toContain('guardClauses STRING');
+  });
+});
diff --git a/package-lock.json b/package-lock.json
index 65c0870ed..2ff9dd273 100644
--- a/package-lock.json
+++ b/package-lock.json
@@ -49,6 +49,7 @@
       "integrity": "sha512-CGOfOJqWjg2qW/Mb6zNsDm+u5vFQ8DxXfbM09z69p5Z6+mE1ikP2jUXw+j42Pf1XTYED2Rni5f95npYeuwMDQA==",
       "dev": true,
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "dependencies": {
         "@babel/code-frame": "^7.29.0",
         "@babel/generator": "^7.29.0",
@@ -603,6 +604,7 @@
       "integrity": "sha512-NZZgp0Fm2IkD+La5PR81sd+g+8oS6JwJje+aRWsDocxHkjyRw0J5L5ZTlN3LI1LlOcGL7ph3eaIUmTXMIjLk0w==",
       "dev": true,
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "dependencies": {
         "@eslint-community/regexpp": "^4.12.2",
         "@typescript-eslint/scope-manager": "8.57.2",
@@ -632,6 +634,7 @@
       "integrity": "sha512-30ScMRHIAD33JJQkgfGW1t8CURZtjc2JpTrq5n2HFhOefbAhb7ucc7xJwdWcrEtqUIYJ73Nybpsggii6GtAHjA==",
       "dev": true,
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "dependencies": {
         "@typescript-eslint/scope-manager": "8.57.2",
         "@typescript-eslint/types": "8.57.2",
@@ -836,6 +839,7 @@
       "integrity": "sha512-UVJyE9MttOsBQIDKw1skb9nAwQuR5wuGD3+82K6JgJlm/Y+KI92oNsMNGZCYdDsVtRHSak0pcV5Dno5+4jh9sw==",
       "dev": true,
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "bin": {
         "acorn": "bin/acorn"
       },
@@ -988,6 +992,7 @@
         }
       ],
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "dependencies": {
         "baseline-browser-mapping": "^2.9.0",
         "caniuse-lite": "^1.0.30001759",
@@ -1226,6 +1231,7 @@
       "integrity": "sha512-XoMjdBOwe/esVgEvLmNsD3IRHkm7fbKIUGvrleloJXUZgDHig2IPWNniv+GwjyJXzuNqVjlr5+4yVUZjycJwfQ==",
       "dev": true,
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "dependencies": {
         "@eslint-community/eslint-utils": "^4.8.0",
         "@eslint-community/regexpp": "^4.12.1",
@@ -2357,6 +2363,7 @@
       "integrity": "sha512-UOnG6LftzbdaHZcKoPFtOcCKztrQ57WkHDeRD9t/PTQtmT0NHSeWWepj6pS0z/N7+08BHFDQVUrfmfMRcZwbMg==",
       "dev": true,
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "bin": {
         "prettier": "bin/prettier.cjs"
       },
@@ -2696,6 +2703,7 @@
       "integrity": "sha512-QP88BAKvMam/3NxH6vj2o21R6MjxZUAd6nlwAS/pnGvN9IVLocLHxGYIzFhg6fUQ+5th6P4dv4eW9jX3DSIj7A==",
       "dev": true,
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "engines": {
         "node": ">=12"
       },
@@ -2884,6 +2892,7 @@
       "integrity": "sha512-rftlrkhHZOcjDwkGlnUtZZkvaPHCsDATp4pGpuOOMDaTdDDXF91wuVDJoWoPsKX/3YPQ5fHuF3STjcYyKr+Qhg==",
       "dev": true,
       "license": "MIT",
+      "peer": true,
       "funding": {
         "url": "https://github.com/sponsors/colinhacks"
       }