Perforce - checking things out from script?

Is there any way from script to check files out? There are a bunch of tools we have that modify various files for project configuration and build management reasons. I’d like a way for the in editor scripted tools we have to check a file out if it needs to be. I can’t find a documented way to ask the src control system to check things out. Is there one? If not, is there some way i can do this?

nobody? somebody at unity? help?
it’s becoming a workflow problem in some cases… lots of human error…