diff --git a/backend/ai/anthropic_provider.py b/backend/ai/anthropic_provider.py
index cf5859d..ebb8123 100644
--- a/backend/ai/anthropic_provider.py
+++ b/backend/ai/anthropic_provider.py
@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
-import json
-import re
 import anthropic
 from ai.base import AIProvider, ClassificationResult
+from ai.utils import parse_classification, parse_suggestions
 
 MAX_AI_CHARS = 8_000
 
@@ -33,7 +32,7 @@ class AnthropicProvider(AIProvider):
             messages=[{"role": "user", "content": user_msg}],
         )
         raw = response.content[0].text
-        return _parse_classification(raw)
+        return parse_classification(raw)
 
     async def suggest_topics(
         self,
@@ -53,7 +52,7 @@ class AnthropicProvider(AIProvider):
             messages=[{"role": "user", "content": user_msg}],
         )
         raw = response.content[0].text
-        return _parse_suggestions(raw)
+        return parse_suggestions(raw)
 
     async def health_check(self) -> bool:
         try:
@@ -68,36 +67,3 @@ class AnthropicProvider(AIProvider):
             return False
 
 
-def _strip_code_fences(text: str) -> str:
-    text = re.sub(r"```(?:json)?\s*", "", text)
-    text = re.sub(r"```", "", text)
-    return text.strip()
-
-
-def _parse_classification(raw: str) -> ClassificationResult:
-    raw = _strip_code_fences(raw)
-    # Try to find JSON object
-    match = re.search(r"\{.*\}", raw, re.DOTALL)
-    if match:
-        try:
-            data = json.loads(match.group())
-            return ClassificationResult(
-                topics=data.get("assigned_topics", []),
-                suggested_new_topics=data.get("new_topic_suggestions", []),
-                reasoning=data.get("reasoning", ""),
-            )
-        except json.JSONDecodeError:
-            pass
-    return ClassificationResult()
-
-
-def _parse_suggestions(raw: str) -> list[str]:
-    raw = _strip_code_fences(raw)
-    match = re.search(r"\{.*\}", raw, re.DOTALL)
-    if match:
-        try:
-            data = json.loads(match.group())
-            return data.get("suggested_topics", [])
-        except json.JSONDecodeError:
-            pass
-    return []
diff --git a/backend/ai/openai_provider.py b/backend/ai/openai_provider.py
index fe1cdc5..e12af79 100644
--- a/backend/ai/openai_provider.py
+++ b/backend/ai/openai_provider.py
@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
-import json
-import re
 from openai import AsyncOpenAI
 from ai.base import AIProvider, ClassificationResult
+from ai.utils import parse_classification, parse_suggestions
 
 MAX_AI_CHARS = 8_000
 
@@ -35,7 +34,7 @@ class OpenAIProvider(AIProvider):
             ],
         )
         raw = response.choices[0].message.content or ""
-        return _parse_classification(raw)
+        return parse_classification(raw)
 
     async def suggest_topics(
         self,
@@ -56,7 +55,7 @@ class OpenAIProvider(AIProvider):
             ],
         )
         raw = response.choices[0].message.content or ""
-        return _parse_suggestions(raw)
+        return parse_suggestions(raw)
 
     async def health_check(self) -> bool:
         try:
@@ -70,35 +69,3 @@ class OpenAIProvider(AIProvider):
             return False
 
 
-def _strip_code_fences(text: str) -> str:
-    text = re.sub(r"```(?:json)?\s*", "", text)
-    text = re.sub(r"```", "", text)
-    return text.strip()
-
-
-def _parse_classification(raw: str) -> ClassificationResult:
-    raw = _strip_code_fences(raw)
-    match = re.search(r"\{.*\}", raw, re.DOTALL)
-    if match:
-        try:
-            data = json.loads(match.group())
-            return ClassificationResult(
-                topics=data.get("assigned_topics", []),
-                suggested_new_topics=data.get("new_topic_suggestions", []),
-                reasoning=data.get("reasoning", ""),
-            )
-        except json.JSONDecodeError:
-            pass
-    return ClassificationResult()
-
-
-def _parse_suggestions(raw: str) -> list[str]:
-    raw = _strip_code_fences(raw)
-    match = re.search(r"\{.*\}", raw, re.DOTALL)
-    if match:
-        try:
-            data = json.loads(match.group())
-            return data.get("suggested_topics", [])
-        except json.JSONDecodeError:
-            pass
-    return []
diff --git a/backend/ai/utils.py b/backend/ai/utils.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7ef6ce0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/ai/utils.py
@@ -0,0 +1,51 @@
+"""Shared AI response parsing utilities — used by all provider implementations."""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import json
+import re
+
+from ai.base import ClassificationResult
+
+
+def strip_code_fences(text: str) -> str:
+    """Remove markdown code fences (```json ... ```) from *text*."""
+    text = re.sub(r"```(?:json)?\s*", "", text)
+    text = re.sub(r"```", "", text)
+    return text.strip()
+
+
+def parse_classification(raw: str) -> ClassificationResult:
+    """Parse a classification JSON response into a ClassificationResult.
+
+    Tolerates markdown code fences and extracts the first JSON object found.
+    Returns an empty ClassificationResult on any parse failure.
+    """
+    raw = strip_code_fences(raw)
+    match = re.search(r"\{.*\}", raw, re.DOTALL)
+    if match:
+        try:
+            data = json.loads(match.group())
+            return ClassificationResult(
+                topics=data.get("assigned_topics", []),
+                suggested_new_topics=data.get("new_topic_suggestions", []),
+                reasoning=data.get("reasoning", ""),
+            )
+        except json.JSONDecodeError:
+            pass
+    return ClassificationResult()
+
+
+def parse_suggestions(raw: str) -> list[str]:
+    """Parse a topic-suggestion JSON response into a list of topic name strings.
+
+    Tolerates markdown code fences. Returns an empty list on parse failure.
+    """
+    raw = strip_code_fences(raw)
+    match = re.search(r"\{.*\}", raw, re.DOTALL)
+    if match:
+        try:
+            data = json.loads(match.group())
+            return data.get("suggested_topics", [])
+        except json.JSONDecodeError:
+            pass
+    return []
diff --git a/backend/api/admin.py b/backend/api/admin.py
index 2e5a627..137e598 100644
--- a/backend/api/admin.py
+++ b/backend/api/admin.py
@@ -23,7 +23,6 @@ Security invariants:
 """
 from __future__ import annotations
 
-import re
 import uuid
 from datetime import datetime
 from typing import Optional
@@ -36,8 +35,9 @@ from sqlalchemy.ext.asyncio import AsyncSession
 from db.models import CloudConnection, Document, Quota, RefreshToken, Topic, User
 from deps.auth import get_current_admin
 from deps.db import get_db
+from deps.utils import get_client_ip
 from services.audit import write_audit_log
-from services.auth import hash_password, revoke_all_refresh_tokens, verify_password
+from services.auth import hash_password, revoke_all_refresh_tokens, validate_password_strength, verify_password
 from storage import get_storage_backend, get_storage_backend_for_document
 
 router = APIRouter(prefix="/api/admin", tags=["admin"])
@@ -46,28 +46,6 @@ router = APIRouter(prefix="/api/admin", tags=["admin"])
 
 _DEFAULT_QUOTA_BYTES = 104857600  # 100 MB free-tier default (D-06)
 
-_PASSWORD_DETAIL = (
-    "Password must be at least 12 characters and include uppercase, "
-    "lowercase, a number, and a special character."
-)
-
-
-# ── IP extraction helper ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────
-
-def _ip(request: Request) -> Optional[str]:
-    """Extract best-effort client IP from request for audit logging.
-
-    TRUST BOUNDARY: X-Forwarded-For is a client-controlled header and can be
-    forged by any caller. This value is used for forensic audit logging only —
-    not for authentication or access control decisions. In production, deploy
-    behind a trusted reverse proxy (e.g. nginx with
-    `proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $remote_addr;`) which overwrites this
-    header with the real remote IP before it reaches FastAPI, or use a
-    trusted-proxy middleware that validates the source CIDR.
-    """
-    return request.headers.get("X-Forwarded-For") or (
-        request.client.host if request.client else None
-    )
 
 
 # ── Safe response helper ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────
@@ -90,25 +68,6 @@ def _user_to_dict(user: User) -> dict:
     }
 
 
-# ── Password strength helper ──────────────────────────────────────────────────
-
-def _validate_password_strength(password: str) -> None:
-    """Raise ValueError with the spec message if password fails any strength rule.
-
-    Rules (AUTH-01): min 12 chars, has uppercase, has lowercase, has digit,
-    has special char (non-alphanumeric).
-    """
-    if len(password) < 12:
-        raise ValueError(_PASSWORD_DETAIL)
-    if not re.search(r"[A-Z]", password):
-        raise ValueError(_PASSWORD_DETAIL)
-    if not re.search(r"[a-z]", password):
-        raise ValueError(_PASSWORD_DETAIL)
-    if not re.search(r"[0-9]", password):
-        raise ValueError(_PASSWORD_DETAIL)
-    if not re.search(r"[^A-Za-z0-9]", password):
-        raise ValueError(_PASSWORD_DETAIL)
-
 
 # ── Request models ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
@@ -121,10 +80,7 @@ class UserCreate(BaseModel):
     @field_validator("password")
     @classmethod
     def password_strength(cls, v: str) -> str:
-        try:
-            _validate_password_strength(v)
-        except ValueError as exc:
-            raise ValueError(str(exc)) from exc
+        validate_password_strength(v)
         return v
 
 
@@ -264,7 +220,7 @@ async def create_user(
     session.add(quota)
     await session.flush()  # persist User + Quota before audit_log FK references them
     # D-13: admin user created event
-    _ip_addr = _ip(request)
+    _ip_addr = get_client_ip(request)
     await write_audit_log(
         session,
         event_type="admin.user_created",
@@ -316,7 +272,7 @@ async def update_user_status(
                 detail="Cannot deactivate the only admin",
             )
 
-    _ip_addr = _ip(request)
+    _ip_addr = get_client_ip(request)
     user.is_active = body.is_active
 
     if not body.is_active:
@@ -426,7 +382,7 @@ async def update_user_quota(
         else None
     )
 
-    _ip_addr = _ip(request)
+    _ip_addr = get_client_ip(request)
     old_limit = quota.limit_bytes
     quota.limit_bytes = body.limit_bytes
     session.add(quota)
@@ -471,7 +427,7 @@ async def update_ai_config(
     if user is None:
         raise HTTPException(status_code=status.HTTP_404_NOT_FOUND, detail="User not found")
 
-    _ip_addr = _ip(request)
+    _ip_addr = get_client_ip(request)
     user.ai_provider = body.ai_provider
     user.ai_model = body.ai_model
     session.add(user)
@@ -532,7 +488,7 @@ async def delete_user(
             detail="Cannot delete admin accounts",
         )
 
-    _ip_addr = _ip(request)
+    _ip_addr = get_client_ip(request)
 
     # SEC-09 (cloud): purge cloud-stored documents and credentials BEFORE DB delete.
     # Must run before MinIO cleanup so that credentials are still available to build
diff --git a/backend/api/auth.py b/backend/api/auth.py
index b6556ed..076b03e 100644
--- a/backend/api/auth.py
+++ b/backend/api/auth.py
@@ -19,7 +19,6 @@ Security invariants:
 """
 from __future__ import annotations
 
-import re
 import uuid
 from typing import Literal, Optional
 
@@ -32,6 +31,7 @@ from config import settings
 from db.models import BackupCode, Quota, RefreshToken, User
 from deps.auth import get_current_user
 from deps.db import get_db
+from deps.utils import get_client_ip
 from services import auth as auth_service
 from services.audit import write_audit_log
 from slowapi import Limiter
@@ -43,30 +43,6 @@ router = APIRouter(prefix="/api/auth", tags=["auth"])
 # IP-level rate limiter (SEC-02 — 10 req/min on register/login/refresh)
 limiter = Limiter(key_func=get_remote_address)
 
-# ── Password strength validation ─────────────────────────────────────────────
-_PASSWORD_DETAIL = (
-    "Password must be at least 12 characters and include uppercase, "
-    "lowercase, a number, and a special character."
-)
-
-
-def _validate_password_strength(password: str) -> bool:
-    """Return True if password passes all strength rules (AUTH-01).
-
-    Rules: min 12 chars, has uppercase, has lowercase, has digit, has special char.
-    """
-    if len(password) < 12:
-        return False
-    if not re.search(r"[A-Z]", password):
-        return False
-    if not re.search(r"[a-z]", password):
-        return False
-    if not re.search(r"[0-9]", password):
-        return False
-    if not re.search(r"[^A-Za-z0-9]", password):
-        return False
-    return True
-
 
 # ── Request models ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
@@ -132,11 +108,10 @@ async def register(
     - Inserts User + Quota rows in a single transaction
     """
     # Password strength check
-    if not _validate_password_strength(body.password):
-        raise HTTPException(
-            status_code=status.HTTP_422_UNPROCESSABLE_ENTITY,
-            detail=_PASSWORD_DETAIL,
-        )
+    try:
+        auth_service.validate_password_strength(body.password)
+    except ValueError as exc:
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=status.HTTP_422_UNPROCESSABLE_ENTITY, detail=str(exc))
 
     # HIBP breach check
     if await auth_service.check_hibp(body.password):
@@ -228,7 +203,7 @@ async def login(
     user: Optional[User] = result.scalar_one_or_none()
 
     # IP extraction for audit log (used in both success and failure paths)
-    _ip = request.headers.get("X-Forwarded-For") or (request.client.host if request.client else None)
+    _ip = get_client_ip(request)
 
     # Verify password (anti-enumeration: same error regardless of whether user exists)
     if user is None or not auth_service.verify_password(body.password, user.password_hash):
@@ -385,7 +360,7 @@ async def logout(request: Request, response: Response, session: AsyncSession = D
     """Revoke current refresh token and clear the cookie."""
     import hashlib as _hashlib
 
-    _ip = request.headers.get("X-Forwarded-For") or (request.client.host if request.client else None)
+    _ip = get_client_ip(request)
 
     raw_token = request.cookies.get("refresh_token")
     _logout_user_id = None
@@ -423,7 +398,7 @@ async def logout_all(
     current_user: User = Depends(get_current_user),
 ):
     """Sign out of all devices: revoke all refresh tokens for current user."""
-    _ip = request.headers.get("X-Forwarded-For") or (request.client.host if request.client else None)
+    _ip = get_client_ip(request)
     count = await auth_service.revoke_all_refresh_tokens(session, current_user.id)
     # D-13: sign-out-all event
     await write_audit_log(
@@ -497,14 +472,13 @@ async def change_password(
         )
 
     # Password strength check
-    if not _validate_password_strength(body.new_password):
-        raise HTTPException(
-            status_code=status.HTTP_422_UNPROCESSABLE_ENTITY,
-            detail=_PASSWORD_DETAIL,
-        )
+    try:
+        auth_service.validate_password_strength(body.new_password)
+    except ValueError as exc:
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=status.HTTP_422_UNPROCESSABLE_ENTITY, detail=str(exc))
 
     # Update password
-    _ip = request.headers.get("X-Forwarded-For") or (request.client.host if request.client else None)
+    _ip = get_client_ip(request)
     user = await session.get(User, current_user.id)
     user.password_hash = auth_service.hash_password(body.new_password)
     # D-13: password changed event (flush within same transaction before commit)
@@ -594,7 +568,7 @@ async def enable_totp(
     await auth_service.store_backup_codes(session, current_user.id, plain_codes)
 
     # D-13: TOTP enrolled event
-    _ip = request.headers.get("X-Forwarded-For") or (request.client.host if request.client else None)
+    _ip = get_client_ip(request)
     await write_audit_log(
         session,
         event_type="auth.totp_enrolled",
@@ -620,7 +594,7 @@ async def disable_totp(
 
     Clears totp_secret, sets totp_enabled=False, and deletes all backup codes.
     """
-    _ip = request.headers.get("X-Forwarded-For") or (request.client.host if request.client else None)
+    _ip = get_client_ip(request)
     user = await session.get(User, current_user.id)
     user.totp_enabled = False
     user.totp_secret = None
@@ -699,11 +673,10 @@ async def password_reset_confirm(
         )
 
     # Password strength validation
-    if not _validate_password_strength(body.new_password):
-        raise HTTPException(
-            status_code=status.HTTP_422_UNPROCESSABLE_ENTITY,
-            detail=_PASSWORD_DETAIL,
-        )
+    try:
+        auth_service.validate_password_strength(body.new_password)
+    except ValueError as exc:
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=status.HTTP_422_UNPROCESSABLE_ENTITY, detail=str(exc))
 
     # HIBP breach check (SEC-03)
     if await auth_service.check_hibp(body.new_password):
diff --git a/backend/api/documents.py b/backend/api/documents.py
index 8f46651..ac4cd27 100644
--- a/backend/api/documents.py
+++ b/backend/api/documents.py
@@ -48,14 +48,7 @@ except ImportError:
     # Fallback for test environments where minio is not installed
     S3Error = Exception  # type: ignore[assignment,misc]
 
-try:
-    from storage.google_drive_backend import CloudConnectionError
-except ImportError:
-    # Fallback: define a stub so the except clause compiles even if google deps absent
-    class CloudConnectionError(Exception):  # type: ignore[no-redef]
-        def __init__(self, msg: str = "", *, reason: str = "") -> None:
-            super().__init__(msg)
-            self.reason = reason
+from storage.exceptions import CloudConnectionError
 
 # Valid cloud backend slugs (T-05-06-01: validated against allowlist, not user-supplied string)
 _CLOUD_PROVIDERS = frozenset({"google_drive", "onedrive", "nextcloud", "webdav"})
diff --git a/backend/api/folders.py b/backend/api/folders.py
index eae2d37..e270bfa 100644
--- a/backend/api/folders.py
+++ b/backend/api/folders.py
@@ -30,6 +30,7 @@ from sqlalchemy.ext.asyncio import AsyncSession
 from db.models import Document, Folder, Quota, Share, User
 from deps.auth import get_regular_user
 from deps.db import get_db
+from deps.utils import get_client_ip
 from services.audit import write_audit_log
 from storage import get_storage_backend
 
@@ -51,14 +52,6 @@ class DocumentMove(BaseModel):
     folder_id: Optional[str] = None
 
 
-# ── Helper: extract IP address ────────────────────────────────────────────────
-
-def _get_ip(request: Request) -> Optional[str]:
-    """Extract client IP, honouring X-Forwarded-For for reverse proxy setups (Pitfall 5)."""
-    return request.headers.get("X-Forwarded-For") or (
-        request.client.host if request.client else None
-    )
-
 
 # ── Helper: folder serialization ──────────────────────────────────────────────
 
@@ -148,7 +141,7 @@ async def create_folder(
         user_id=current_user.id,
         actor_id=current_user.id,
         resource_id=folder.id,
-        ip_address=_get_ip(request),
+        ip_address=get_client_ip(request),
         metadata_={"name": folder.name, "parent_id": str(parent_uuid) if parent_uuid else None},
     )
 
@@ -316,7 +309,7 @@ async def rename_folder(
         user_id=current_user.id,
         actor_id=current_user.id,
         resource_id=folder.id,
-        ip_address=_get_ip(request),
+        ip_address=get_client_ip(request),
         metadata_={"old_name": old_name, "new_name": folder.name},
     )
 
@@ -436,7 +429,7 @@ async def delete_folder(
         user_id=current_user.id,
         actor_id=current_user.id,
         resource_id=uid,
-        ip_address=_get_ip(request),
+        ip_address=get_client_ip(request),
         metadata_={"name": folder_name, "doc_count": len(docs)},
     )
 
diff --git a/backend/api/shares.py b/backend/api/shares.py
index e33ee88..4bfe09f 100644
--- a/backend/api/shares.py
+++ b/backend/api/shares.py
@@ -27,6 +27,7 @@ from sqlalchemy.ext.asyncio import AsyncSession
 from db.models import Document, Share, User
 from deps.auth import get_regular_user
 from deps.db import get_db
+from deps.utils import get_client_ip
 from services.audit import write_audit_log
 
 router = APIRouter(prefix="/api/shares", tags=["shares"])
@@ -62,21 +63,6 @@ class SharePermissionPatch(BaseModel):
 # ── Helpers ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 
-def _ip(request: Request) -> Optional[str]:
-    """Extract best-effort client IP from request (behind proxy or direct).
-
-    TRUST BOUNDARY: X-Forwarded-For is a client-controlled header and can be
-    forged by any caller. This value is used for forensic audit logging only —
-    not for authentication or access control decisions. In production, deploy
-    behind a trusted reverse proxy (e.g. nginx with
-    `proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $remote_addr;`) which overwrites this
-    header with the real remote IP before it reaches FastAPI, or use a
-    trusted-proxy middleware that validates the source CIDR.
-    """
-    return request.headers.get("X-Forwarded-For") or (
-        request.client.host if request.client else None
-    )
-
 
 # ── POST /api/shares ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
@@ -141,7 +127,7 @@ async def grant_share(
         user_id=current_user.id,
         actor_id=current_user.id,
         resource_id=uid,
-        ip_address=_ip(request),
+        ip_address=get_client_ip(request),
         metadata_={"recipient_id": str(recipient.id)},
     )
 
@@ -283,7 +269,7 @@ async def update_share_permission(
         user_id=current_user.id,
         actor_id=current_user.id,
         resource_id=share.document_id,
-        ip_address=_ip(request),
+        ip_address=get_client_ip(request),
         metadata_={"share_id": str(share.id), "new_permission": body.permission},
     )
     await session.commit()
@@ -328,7 +314,7 @@ async def revoke_share(
         user_id=current_user.id,
         actor_id=current_user.id,
         resource_id=document_id,
-        ip_address=_ip(request),
+        ip_address=get_client_ip(request),
         metadata_={"recipient_id": str(recipient_id)},
     )
 
diff --git a/backend/deps/utils.py b/backend/deps/utils.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9f46df4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/deps/utils.py
@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+"""Shared dependency utilities — request parsing helpers used across all API routers."""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import uuid
+from typing import Optional
+
+from fastapi import HTTPException, Request
+
+
+def get_client_ip(request: Request) -> Optional[str]:
+    """Extract best-effort client IP from request for audit logging.
+
+    TRUST BOUNDARY: X-Forwarded-For is a client-controlled header and can be
+    forged by any caller. This value is used for forensic audit logging only —
+    not for authentication or access control decisions. In production, deploy
+    behind a trusted reverse proxy (e.g. nginx with
+    ``proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $remote_addr;``) which overwrites this
+    header with the real remote IP before it reaches FastAPI.
+    """
+    return request.headers.get("X-Forwarded-For") or (
+        request.client.host if request.client else None
+    )
+
+
+def parse_uuid(value: str, detail: str = "Not found") -> uuid.UUID:
+    """Parse *value* as a UUID, raising HTTP 404 with *detail* on failure.
+
+    Use at API boundaries to convert path/body string IDs to UUID objects.
+    Returns the parsed UUID so callers can use it directly without a try/except.
+    """
+    try:
+        return uuid.UUID(value)
+    except ValueError:
+        raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail=detail)
diff --git a/backend/services/auth.py b/backend/services/auth.py
index 508a096..02c084c 100644
--- a/backend/services/auth.py
+++ b/backend/services/auth.py
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ from __future__ import annotations
 import hashlib
 import hmac
 import logging
+import re
 import secrets
 import uuid
 from datetime import datetime, timezone, timedelta
@@ -36,6 +37,11 @@ from sqlalchemy.ext.asyncio import AsyncSession
 from config import settings
 from db.models import BackupCode, Quota, RefreshToken, User
 
+_PASSWORD_DETAIL = (
+    "Password must be at least 12 characters and include uppercase, "
+    "lowercase, a number, and a special character."
+)
+
 logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 
 # ── Password hashing ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
@@ -59,6 +65,22 @@ def verify_password(plain: str, hashed: str) -> bool:
         return False
 
 
+def validate_password_strength(password: str) -> None:
+    """Raise ValueError with a descriptive message if *password* fails any strength rule.
+
+    Rules (AUTH-01): min 12 chars, uppercase, lowercase, digit, special char.
+    Callers at the API boundary should catch ValueError and map it to HTTP 422.
+    """
+    if (
+        len(password) < 12
+        or not re.search(r"[A-Z]", password)
+        or not re.search(r"[a-z]", password)
+        or not re.search(r"[0-9]", password)
+        or not re.search(r"[^A-Za-z0-9]", password)
+    ):
+        raise ValueError(_PASSWORD_DETAIL)
+
+
 # ── JWT helpers ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 def create_access_token(user_id: str, role: str) -> str:
diff --git a/backend/storage/exceptions.py b/backend/storage/exceptions.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..18f0bf5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/storage/exceptions.py
@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+"""Storage exception types — import from here, never redefine elsewhere."""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+
+class CloudConnectionError(Exception):
+    """Raised when a cloud provider signals a non-retryable connection problem.
+
+    Attributes:
+        reason: "token_expired"  — access token expired; API layer can refresh and retry.
+                "invalid_grant" — refresh token revoked; user must reconnect.
+
+    The backend never updates the DB. The API layer (_call_cloud_op in cloud.py)
+    catches this exception, performs the DB state transition, and decides whether
+    to retry or surface a 503 to the client (B2 design, D-05/D-06).
+    """
+
+    def __init__(self, msg: str = "", *, reason: str = "") -> None:
+        super().__init__(msg)
+        self.reason = reason  # "token_expired" | "invalid_grant"
diff --git a/backend/storage/google_drive_backend.py b/backend/storage/google_drive_backend.py
index a6d3344..eb9f13e 100644
--- a/backend/storage/google_drive_backend.py
+++ b/backend/storage/google_drive_backend.py
@@ -37,23 +37,7 @@ from googleapiclient.errors import HttpError
 from googleapiclient.http import MediaIoBaseDownload, MediaIoBaseUpload
 
 from storage.base import StorageBackend
-
-
-class CloudConnectionError(Exception):
-    """Raised when a cloud provider signals a non-retryable connection problem.
-
-    Attributes:
-        reason: "token_expired"  — access token expired; API layer can refresh and retry.
-                "invalid_grant" — refresh token revoked; user must reconnect.
-
-    The backend never updates the DB. The API layer (_call_cloud_op in cloud.py)
-    catches this exception, performs the DB state transition, and decides whether
-    to retry or surface a 503 to the client (B2 design, D-05/D-06).
-    """
-
-    def __init__(self, msg: str = "", *, reason: str = "") -> None:
-        super().__init__(msg)
-        self.reason = reason  # "token_expired" | "invalid_grant"
+from storage.exceptions import CloudConnectionError  # noqa: F401  re-exported for import compatibility
 
 
 class GoogleDriveBackend(StorageBackend):
diff --git a/backend/tasks/document_tasks.py b/backend/tasks/document_tasks.py
index 661d1ee..4d89c33 100644
--- a/backend/tasks/document_tasks.py
+++ b/backend/tasks/document_tasks.py
@@ -76,12 +76,7 @@ async def _run(document_id: str) -> dict:
                 if user is None:
                     return {"document_id": document_id, "status": "missing_user"}
 
-                try:
-                    from storage.google_drive_backend import CloudConnectionError
-                except ImportError:
-                    class CloudConnectionError(Exception):  # type: ignore[no-redef]
-                        pass
-
+                from storage.exceptions import CloudConnectionError
                 try:
                     backend = await get_storage_backend_for_document(doc, user, session)
                     file_bytes = await backend.get_object(doc.object_key)
diff --git a/backend/tests/test_classifier.py b/backend/tests/test_classifier.py
index 06c7a87..7578067 100644
--- a/backend/tests/test_classifier.py
+++ b/backend/tests/test_classifier.py
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ Uses a mock provider — no real AI calls made.
 """
 import json
 import pytest
-from ai.openai_provider import _parse_classification, _parse_suggestions, _strip_code_fences
+from ai.utils import parse_classification as _parse_classification, parse_suggestions as _parse_suggestions, strip_code_fences as _strip_code_fences
 from ai.base import ClassificationResult