Why Law Matters

When we introduce Legal Atlas, our passion for legal intelligence and creating better legal systems, we are often asked, why? Why spend so much time and effort on the law? Isn't it all about corruption? Doesn't it all just come down to bad implementation, or enforcement, or political will? 

​This is our short, non-academic response - not to be confused with Alon Harel's book of the same title as this little blog entry. Which is worth reading if you need a more academic approach to the topic.

The simple answer is, no. All of these things matter of course, but it's never really about just one thing or the other. Implementation, enforcement, and corruption have as much to do with legal content as they do with practices and attitudes disconnected from the law. Many times what we think of as corruption or a lack of implementation and enforcement is really coming from, or enabled by law - either directly or through conflicting and confusing legislation, and sometimes an empty legal environment. 

​The basic reality is that we do not implement when the law prevents it or we have no legal foundation to begin with. And we have difficulty implementing well when we have no clear mandate, or the tools that would help implementation are not legally supported - like finances, or training, or equipment. 

We don't spend so much time and energy assessing the law because the rest doesn't matter. We are dedicated to it because the law also matters.

At Legal Atlas, we don't spend so much time and energy compiling and assessing laws because the rest doesn't matter. We are dedicated to it because the law also matters.

And while we're at it, another, somewhat side reason, for our work is that the creation of law - a fundamental piece in the management of just about everything - is still the product of some of the most imperfect processes imaginable - more or less bad depending on where you are and, of course, your perspective. At a minimum, they suffer from the passage of time and the number of people involved. They tend to be written over long periods, by different people, with different information and expertise, conflicting interests, and in a changing landscape. What could possibly go wrong?!

The way we see it, the making of law can use all the help we can give. Your thoughts?

About the author(s):

​James Wingard, JD is the Co-Founder and Legal Director of Legal Atlas.  Legal Atlas and its legal intelligence platform were established in 2011 to support better access and understanding of law on a global scale. Smarter laws for a smarter planet. Join us!