Leveraging Law and Regulation for Sustainable Economic Development
The New Markets Lab (NML) is a center for innovation in law and economic development that applies a systems approach to the design and implementation of market rules. NML was established to leverage law and regulation as a tool for sustainable economic development and build legal capacity in an evolving global market.
NML's international team of lawyers specializes in areas that hold significant potential for economic development but are also heavily regulated, such as trade, agricultural markets, services, standards, and the digital economy.
Scaling an Innovative Model for Legal and Regulatory Change
that uses scenario-based training and information-sharing tools (such as Legal and Regulatory Guides) to engage stakeholders from across the public and private sectors in developing and applying legal and regulatory systems to generate inclusive market growth.
Building Capacity in Law and Development
for policymakers and regulators, negotiators, lawyers, enterprises, NGOs, and industry associations through interactive legal tools, stakeholder consultation, ongoing partnerships, and scenario-based regulatory modules. NML’s president, Professor Katrin Kuhlmann, teaches courses at Georgetown University Law Center (and has also taught at Harvard Law School) that are designed to give students exposure to the substance and practice of law and development.
Rethinking Trade Policy for Resilient, Inclusive, and Sustainable Development
In collaboration with the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), NML is reframing the discussion on international trade law to adapt to shifting dynamics in the global economic order, highlighting the need for an improved model for trade in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
As part of NML's ongoing Trade and Sustainable Development Program, a group of Legal Fellows within our summer class contributed to a report entitled "Reconceptualizing Free Trade Agreements Through a Sustainable Development Lens" which was delivered to the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) Policy Hackathon on Model Provisions for Trade in Times of Crisis and Pandemic in Regional and Other Trade Agreements. The report has been recognized as an excellent contribution and is featured in UNESCAP's online repository as part of an emerging area of study.
Improving the Implementation of Economic Law
NML’s approach focuses on the design and implementation of economic law and regulation, highlighting regulatory tradeoffs and good practices. In order to improve the implementation of economic law, NML has developed a set of Regulatory Systems Maps, which have become a useful tool for governments, businesses, and institutional partners to prioritize options for regulatory reform and weigh appropriate interventions.