The Law To Know

Free tool · Regulatory Compliance

How to Extract Obligations From a Regulation: An Obligation Extractor

To extract obligations from a regulation, read it sentence by sentence and write down, for each, six things: who must act (the actor), how strong the sentence is (must, must not, may, should), what the action is, any condition that triggers it, the timing and any exception. A duty uses words such as ‘must’ or ‘shall’; a prohibition uses ‘must not’ or ‘may not’; a permission uses ‘may’; a recommendation uses ‘should’ and is not binding in the text, though a regulator may still expect it. Split sentences with two actions or two actors into two obligations, and record where the text names no actor (a passive sentence), no timing or a standard that it leaves undefined, such as ‘appropriate’ or ‘without undue delay’. Penalty sentences belong in the severity ranking, not in the list of duties. A tool can give a first pass; a lawyer must check it against the text.

Tool · Obligation Extractor

5 binding obligations (4 duties, 1 prohibition), 1 permission, 1 recommendation.

duty

Who
A provider of an online platform
What
appoint a safety officer
When
within 60 days of registration
If
no condition

duty

Who
The safety officer
What
report to the board
When
at least once a year
If
no condition

duty

Who
it
What
remove the content
When
without undue delay
If
If a provider receives a notice of illegal content

Undefined standard: without undue delay

prohibition

Who
A provider
What
use the personal data of children for targeted advertising
When
not stated
If
no condition

permission

Who
Providers
What
publish transparency reports
When
not stated
If
no condition

recommendation

Who
Providers
What
consider appropriate measures to protect users from harm
When
not stated
If
no condition

Undefined standard: appropriate

duty

Who
(not stated: passive)
What
A serious incident be reported to the Authority
When
within 72 hours of the provider becoming aware of it
If
unless the incident has already been reported

Undefined standard: serious

Penalty wording

  • Failure to comply is punishable by a fine of up to 2 per cent of annual turnover.
  • 1 sentence has no clear actor (often a passive sentence). Decide who must act before assigning it to anyone.
  • 3 obligations use a standard that the text does not define (such as appropriate, reasonable or without undue delay). Record your interpretation and its source.
  • 1 sentence is a recommendation (should). Decide whether your organisation treats these as binding, as good practice or as optional, and say so.
  • 1 sentence has no duty, prohibition or permission wording (definitions, headings or statements of fact). They may still affect meaning: read them.
  • Penalty wording was found; it belongs in the risk ranking, not in the list of duties.

Paste a few sentences of a regulation (the sample is an invented ‘Marlen Digital Safety Act’) and see each sentence broken into its parts: who must act, what they must do, the condition that triggers it and the timing, and whether it is a duty, a prohibition, a permission or only a recommendation. It also flags words that the text leaves undefined, such as ‘appropriate’ or ‘without undue delay’. It reads wording, so it will mis-sort an unusual sentence: it saves you typing, not reading. Runs in your browser; nothing is stored or sent.

How to use it

  1. Paste a few sentences of a regulation, or use the invented sample.
  2. Read each sentence broken into actor, action, condition and timing.
  3. Look at the notes about passive sentences, missing timing and undefined standards.
  4. Check the result against the original text and fix what it got wrong before using it in a register.

Common questions

What is the difference between ‘must not’ and ‘may not’?

Both usually create a prohibition. ‘May’ alone is a permission, so the full phrase matters. Read the interpretation provisions of the regulation, since drafting styles differ.

Is a ‘should’ sentence binding?

Not in the text, but a regulator may treat it as an expectation. Decide your position, record the reason and link it to a control if you follow it.

Does the tool understand the law?

No. It reads wording and saves you typing. It will mis-sort unusual sentences, so every output needs checking against the text by someone who understands the regulation.

Learn the law behind the tool

This tool is part of our Regulatory Compliance course, with lectures, concept maps, flashcards, interactive exercises and a capstone case. Regulatory Mapping and Compliance Analytics: Finding and Reading Obligations.

More free law tools

General information, simplified, mainly on American law, not legal advice. States and countries differ, and real cases turn on facts that a tool cannot capture.