Since late 2015, the Regulatory Institute has focused on a particular aspect of lawmaking that receives little attention but matters enormously: how to design laws and regulations that actually work. Rather than engaging with political choices or policy outcomes or the drafting approach, our work has concentrated on the methods, tools, concepts and structures that shape laws long before they are adopted; and ultimately determine whether they will achieve their intended purpose.

This article looks back at the Regulatory Institute’s journey over the past decade: a journey dedicated to helping lawmakers and regulators worldwide create better laws.

Building and sharing regulatory methodology

One of the Institute’s core contributions has been developing and sharing practical regulatory methodology. From the outset, we observed something troubling: many lawmakers and regulators are expected to draft complex laws without access to systematic guidance on how laws and other regulations should be developed.

To address this gap, we made available the Handbook “How to regulate?”. The Handbook guides regulators through the essential stages of the regulatory process, from selecting regulatory techniques that genuinely serve policy objectives to ensuring coherence and enforceability. Over the years, it has been made freely available to lawmakers and regulators across different jurisdictions as a practical reference both for training purposes and for everyday drafting work. In particular, it has helped to enhance several dozen acts of the European Union, some of which have a worldwide effect. Various approaches and tools suggested by our Handbook have even proliferated in EU legislation without our further active contribution.

In 2025, we took this effort further with the release of a short training video introducing the Handbook’s methodology. Designed as a self-contained and accessible resource, the video supports regulators who often work under significant time and resource constraints.

Developing concrete regulatory tools

Beyond methodological guidance, we have worked on identifying, systematising and developing regulatory techniques that can be directly applied in legislative drafting. The aim has been to equip regulators with practical tools that support complete and effective regulation. The tools have been presented in various formats and collections.

Besides the Handbook “How to regulate?” that contains already more than 200 such tools, a central output has been our Model Laws. These are not templates to be copied wholesale, but structured reference instruments demonstrating how regulatory techniques and other tools can be combined coherently. We have developed model laws for areas where legislative choices have significant implications for citizens: public health, emergency management, internet issues, artificial intelligence and other technologies.

Our model laws are deliberately designed to offer choices rather than prescriptions. They present alternatives and modular elements that drafters can select, adapt and contextualise according to their regulatory objectives, legal traditions and institutional settings.

At the end of 2024, we published the Cross-sectoral Standard Model Provisions for Regulation and two supplementary lists, the List of Powers and Obligations and theList of Sanctions and Collateral Measures. These provisions help identify and structure the full range of regulatory aspects typically needed when regulating any field: institutional arrangements, enforcement mechanisms, sanctions, transitional provisions and more.

Again, the objective was not to create a universal template; regulatory contexts differ too much for that to be useful; but to assist regulators in drafting complete and coherent regulation by offering choices, particularly where no sector-specific model law exists. 

In 2025, we published additional model provisions addressing specific regulatory fields, including the protection of vulnerable persons, food and drinks legislation, and the online protection of minors.

We have also maintained complementary resources: curated collections of high-quality reference legislation from various jurisdictions and a model laws library. Together, these resources facilitate drafting work, support informed regulatory choices and help regulators avoid starting from scratch.

Contributing to legislative processes

Alongside research and tool-building, the Regulatory Institute has regularly provided targeted contributions to around 200 concrete legislative processes in more than 40 jurisdictions on six continents. These contributions typically take the form of comments, amendment proposals or technical notes focusing on making the laws more complete so that they can be more effective. Additionally, we comment on regulatory structure, enforceability and internal coherence.

We have been fortunate to contribute to collective regulatory efforts at the regional and international level. This includes collaboration with the Southern African Development Community Parliamentary Forum in developing the world’s first Model Law on Public Financial Management, a framework now being considered for adoption across multiple jurisdictions.

We have also engaged in work related to some international agreements. In particular, we contributed to the WHO Pandemics Agreement and supported the transposition of that agreement by a model law.

In recent years, we significantly increased our direct contributions to legislative processes worldwide. Over the course of 2025, we provided technical input on more than 40 legislative proposals and consultations across jurisdictions spanning six continents.

What we have learnt

Ten years of work have confirmed: improving regulation requires patience, consistency and close attention to detail, particularly at the early stages of lawmaking, where many crucial choices are made quietly and out of public view.

The work is, by its nature, behind the scenes. Good regulatory design does not make headlines. But when regulation is well designed, laws function better. And when laws function better, they serve people more effectively.

After a decade of practice, one lesson stands out: better laws become far more likely when lawmakers and regulators are equipped not only with policy goals, but also with the methods and tools needed to translate those goals into effective regulation. The broader their choice, the better the laws and other regulations they produce.

Looking ahead

The need for sound regulatory design has never been more pressing. Emerging technologies, global health threats and complex social challenges require sophisticated legal frameworks; frameworks that must work across borders, adapt to rapid change and genuinely protect people.

The Regulatory Institute will continue its focus on this work: developing regulatory methodology, sharing practical tools and supporting lawmakers who seek to improve how laws are made. In 2026 and 2027, we intend making available dedicated toolboxes for certain jurisdictions or regions (EU, Commonwealth, South America). Moreover, we might be able to present an artificial intelligence instrument to check the completeness of drafts.

We have spent ten years building strong foundations. The next decade will focus more on reaching more jurisdictions, addressing more regulatory challenges and helping to ensure that good regulatory design becomes standard practice rather than the exception.

When laws are better designed, they work better. And when laws work better, people’s lives improve. That remains our purpose.

Working on challenging regulatory issues?

If you are drafting legislation or other regulation, reviewing existing frameworks or navigating complex regulatory challenges, we would welcome the opportunity to support your work. Our technical input is provided on a pro bono basis, and we work confidentially with legislative teams across jurisdictions.

Please contact us at manager@regulatoryinstitute.org to discuss how we might assist with your specific regulatory needs.