> [1] MIT (Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence Laboratory) / Harvard University (HLS, Berkman Center for Internet & Society) bearing this philosophy out in 2014.

The notion is far older than that.

Can you help us trace it further back with an older citation? That would be much appreciated.

10 May 2012: https://blog.abevoelker.com/gitlaw-github-for-laws-and-legal...

I assume if my google-fu were better, I could find references to "RCS for lawyers" or "SCCS for lawyers" though, that were decades old.