diff --git a/packages/loopover-engine/src/review/cla-check.ts b/packages/loopover-engine/src/review/cla-check.ts
index 362dd39ed2..6d5b753627 100644
--- a/packages/loopover-engine/src/review/cla-check.ts
+++ b/packages/loopover-engine/src/review/cla-check.ts
@@ -50,8 +50,12 @@ export function evaluateClaCheck(
   config: ClaCheckConfig,
   ctx: { body?: string | null | undefined; checkRunConclusion?: string | null | undefined },
 ): AdvisoryFinding[] {
-  if (config.consentPhrase === null && config.checkRunName === null) return []; // nothing configured ⇒ no finding
-  const phraseSatisfied = config.consentPhrase !== null && (ctx.body ?? "").toLowerCase().includes(config.consentPhrase.toLowerCase());
+  // A blank/whitespace-only consentPhrase is treated as unset (null), the same as the config-as-code path
+  // (focus-manifest normalizeOptionalString) already does — otherwise `"".includes("")` would make phrase
+  // detection unconditionally satisfied and silently bypass the CLA gate for every PR.
+  const consentPhrase = config.consentPhrase !== null && config.consentPhrase.trim() !== "" ? config.consentPhrase : null;
+  if (consentPhrase === null && config.checkRunName === null) return []; // nothing configured ⇒ no finding
+  const phraseSatisfied = consentPhrase !== null && (ctx.body ?? "").toLowerCase().includes(consentPhrase.toLowerCase());
   const checkRunSatisfied = config.checkRunName !== null && (ctx.checkRunConclusion === "success" || ctx.checkRunConclusion === "neutral");
   if (phraseSatisfied || checkRunSatisfied) return [];
   // A configured check-run whose conclusion is unresolved: cannot confirm OR deny consent via that method, so
@@ -69,7 +73,7 @@ export function evaluateClaCheck(
     ];
   }
   const missing: string[] = [];
-  if (config.consentPhrase !== null) missing.push(`the PR description must contain "${config.consentPhrase}"`);
+  if (consentPhrase !== null) missing.push(`the PR description must contain "${consentPhrase}"`);
   if (config.checkRunName !== null) missing.push(`the "${config.checkRunName}" check must pass`);
   return [
     {
diff --git a/src/review/cla-check.ts b/src/review/cla-check.ts
index 63902c1a23..c1780d1f93 100644
--- a/src/review/cla-check.ts
+++ b/src/review/cla-check.ts
@@ -50,8 +50,12 @@ export function evaluateClaCheck(
   config: ClaCheckConfig,
   ctx: { body?: string | null | undefined; checkRunConclusion?: string | null | undefined },
 ): AdvisoryFinding[] {
-  if (config.consentPhrase === null && config.checkRunName === null) return []; // nothing configured ⇒ no finding
-  const phraseSatisfied = config.consentPhrase !== null && (ctx.body ?? "").toLowerCase().includes(config.consentPhrase.toLowerCase());
+  // A blank/whitespace-only consentPhrase is treated as unset (null), the same as the config-as-code path
+  // (focus-manifest normalizeOptionalString) already does — otherwise `"".includes("")` would make phrase
+  // detection unconditionally satisfied and silently bypass the CLA gate for every PR.
+  const consentPhrase = config.consentPhrase !== null && config.consentPhrase.trim() !== "" ? config.consentPhrase : null;
+  if (consentPhrase === null && config.checkRunName === null) return []; // nothing configured ⇒ no finding
+  const phraseSatisfied = consentPhrase !== null && (ctx.body ?? "").toLowerCase().includes(consentPhrase.toLowerCase());
   const checkRunSatisfied = config.checkRunName !== null && (ctx.checkRunConclusion === "success" || ctx.checkRunConclusion === "neutral");
   if (phraseSatisfied || checkRunSatisfied) return [];
   // A configured check-run whose conclusion is unresolved: cannot confirm OR deny consent via that method, so
@@ -69,7 +73,7 @@ export function evaluateClaCheck(
     ];
   }
   const missing: string[] = [];
-  if (config.consentPhrase !== null) missing.push(`the PR description must contain "${config.consentPhrase}"`);
+  if (consentPhrase !== null) missing.push(`the PR description must contain "${consentPhrase}"`);
   if (config.checkRunName !== null) missing.push(`the "${config.checkRunName}" check must pass`);
   return [
     {
diff --git a/test/unit/cla-check.test.ts b/test/unit/cla-check.test.ts
index 92fa7fae07..019aa17748 100644
--- a/test/unit/cla-check.test.ts
+++ b/test/unit/cla-check.test.ts
@@ -113,4 +113,28 @@ describe("evaluateClaCheck (#2564)", () => {
       expect(out[0]?.code).toBe(CLA_CHECK_UNRESOLVED_CODE);
     });
   });
+
+  // #5838: a blank/whitespace-only consentPhrase must be treated as unset, not as an always-matching "" that
+  // silently satisfies CLA consent for every PR (`"".includes("")` is unconditionally true).
+  describe("empty/whitespace-only consentPhrase normalization (#5838)", () => {
+    it("an empty-string consentPhrase does NOT unconditionally satisfy consent — it behaves as if unset", () => {
+      const out = evaluateClaCheck(config({ consentPhrase: "", checkRunName: "CLA Assistant Lite" }), {
+        body: "no consent statement here",
+        checkRunConclusion: "failure",
+      });
+      expect(out).toHaveLength(1);
+      expect(out[0]?.code).toBe(CLA_CONSENT_MISSING_CODE);
+      expect(out[0]?.detail).toContain('the "CLA Assistant Lite" check must pass');
+      expect(out[0]?.detail).not.toContain("PR description must contain");
+    });
+
+    it("a whitespace-only consentPhrase with no other method configured yields no finding, exactly like null", () => {
+      expect(evaluateClaCheck(config({ consentPhrase: "   " }), { body: "anything at all" })).toEqual([]);
+    });
+
+    it("REGRESSION: a real non-empty consentPhrase still decides consent (either-method contract unchanged)", () => {
+      expect(evaluateClaCheck(config({ consentPhrase: "I agree" }), { body: "... I AGREE ..." })).toEqual([]);
+      expect(evaluateClaCheck(config({ consentPhrase: "I agree" }), { body: "nope" })).toHaveLength(1);
+    });
+  });
 });
diff --git a/test/unit/predicted-gate-engine-coverage.test.ts b/test/unit/predicted-gate-engine-coverage.test.ts
index f2aa5ad999..af873c754b 100644
--- a/test/unit/predicted-gate-engine-coverage.test.ts
+++ b/test/unit/predicted-gate-engine-coverage.test.ts
@@ -615,6 +615,12 @@ describe("predicted-gate engine module coverage (#2283)", () => {
     expect(evaluateClaCheck(claConfig({ consentPhrase: "agree", checkRunName: "CLA Assistant Lite" }), { body: "no", checkRunConclusion: "failure" })[0]?.code).toBe(
       CLA_CONSENT_MISSING_CODE,
     );
+    // #5838: a blank/whitespace-only consentPhrase normalizes to unset, so it never unconditionally satisfies.
+    expect(evaluateClaCheck(claConfig({ consentPhrase: "", checkRunName: "CLA Assistant Lite" }), { body: "no", checkRunConclusion: "failure" })[0]?.code).toBe(
+      CLA_CONSENT_MISSING_CODE,
+    );
+    expect(evaluateClaCheck(claConfig({ consentPhrase: "   " }), { body: "anything" })).toEqual([]);
+    expect(evaluateClaCheck(claConfig({ consentPhrase: "agree" }), {})[0]?.code).toBe(CLA_CONSENT_MISSING_CODE);
 
     expect(evaluatePreMergeChecks([], { title: "t", body: "b", labels: [], changedPaths: [] })).toEqual([]);
     expect(