diff --git a/pkg/hold/pds/xrpc.go b/pkg/hold/pds/xrpc.go
index 2834bab..3f8da11 100644
--- a/pkg/hold/pds/xrpc.go
+++ b/pkg/hold/pds/xrpc.go
@@ -607,9 +607,9 @@ func (h *XRPCHandler) HandleListRecords(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request)
 		}
 	}
 
-	// Handle reverse order if requested
-	if reverse && len(records) > 0 {
-		// Reverse the slice
+	// Default order is newest-first (reverse chronological), which requires
+	// reversing the MST's lexicographic order. When reverse=true, keep MST order.
+	if !reverse && len(records) > 0 {
 		for i, j := 0, len(records)-1; i < j; i, j = i+1, j-1 {
 			records[i], records[j] = records[j], records[i]
 		}