“ With the growing importance of regulation in business today, it is essential for students to learn how to align their market strategies with nonmarket activities such as self-regulation, without which they will be severely disadvantaged. ”
For Educators
The Center for Industry Self-Regulation (CISR) has developed a first-of-its-kind multidisciplinary curriculum on industry self-regulation to help graduate programs in law, business, and public policy incorporate this increasingly important field into existing coursework.
The Need
For decades, industry self-regulation has complemented government oversight by setting standards, promoting responsible business practices, and addressing emerging challenges. Yet despite its growing influence, it remains largely absent from graduate education, with no ABA-accredited law school currently offering a dedicated course on the subject.
CISR's curriculum closes that gap, preparing future lawyers, business leaders, policymakers, and regulators to understand, evaluate, and design effective self-regulatory systems.
About the Curriculum
The CISR industry self-regulation curriculum provides a comprehensive introduction to industry-led governance systems that address legal, ethical, and societal challenges. Designed for graduate programs in law, business, and public policy, the curriculum examines how self-regulation works, where it succeeds, where it falls short, and how it can help address emerging challenges across industries.
Students will explore:
The spectrum of self-regulatory models, including co-regulation and other collaborative governance approaches.
How industries develop standards that shape behavior, influence markets, and sometimes become legal norms.
The conditions under which self-regulation succeeds and how it differs from corporate compliance programs and government regulation.
The relationship between self-regulatory organizations and government agencies acting as backstop regulators.
Real-world case studies from diverse industries and regulatory environments.
The opportunities, limitations, and future applications of soft law in rapidly evolving markets and technologies.
To ensure academic rigor and practical relevance, eleven graduate programs in law, business, and public policy from across the United States will participate in reviewing, evaluating, and refining the curriculum.
Curriculum Materials
Law School Curriculum Materials
The law school course contains 12 flexible modules that can be seamlessly integrated into existing law classes, providing students with essential insights into alternative forms of governance that shape modern legal practice.
All modules provide a slide deck (PPT) and reading assignments (PDF).
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Module 1 - Introduction & Conceptual Overview: An introduction to soft law and various types of soft law programs.
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Module 2 - When to Adopt Soft Law: The pros and cons of soft law vs hard law and describes contexts in which soft law has been found to be most appropriate.
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Module 3 - Private Standards: Discussion of SSOs and consortia models.
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Module 4 - Standards, IP, and Anti-Trust: Legal issues with private standards.
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Module 5 - Case Studies: Explores the rationale and practical implications of self-regulation through real-world case studies.
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Module 6 - Trade Associations and Societies: The role trade associations and professional societies play in bolstering soft law.
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Module 7 – Role of the FTC: Outlines the longstanding role of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in consumer protection, exploring its cases and motivations.
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Module 8 – International Soft Law: A case study on neurotechnologies explores global emerging tech challenges, international agreements, and more.
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Module 9 – Multi-Stakeholder Governance: Outlines the structure and benefit of multi-stakeholder governance using organizational examples and case studies.
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Module 10 – Soft Law & Liability: Litigation implications of participation in soft law programs using an autonomous vehicle case study.
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Module 11 – Government Voluntary Programs: An overview of government-run voluntary programs, negotiated agreements, delegated regulation, and more.
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Module 12 – AI, Indirect Enforcement, & Hard vs Soft Law: Unique AI concerns, the indirect enforcement of soft law, and interactions between hard and soft law.
Business School Materials
Original business and public policy case studies can be added into existing business and public policy coursework, such as non-market strategy, business ethics, and legal or regulatory strategy classes.
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Entertainment Software Rating Board Case Study: This case study examines the creation of the ESRB and how industry self-regulation helped address concerns about video game content while avoiding government regulation.
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McDonald’s Case Study: This case study examines how McDonald’s used voluntary sustainability initiatives to address environmental concerns and the limits of self-regulation in achieving climate goals.
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Neora and the Direct Selling Self-Regulatory Council: This case study uses the Neora litigation to explore FTC oversight of MLM practices and the role of self-regulation in the direct selling industry.
Public Policy School Materials
Coming soon!
Need Testimonials
“ Soft law bridges a company’s compliance efforts with government regulations, promoting transparency and accountability. This new coursework in law schools will prepare future leaders to navigate the complex terrain of compliance and innovation. ”
“ While traditional regulation has been extensively taught, self-regulation has essentially been ignored. CISR seeks to remedy that deficiency and help address emerging areas that are too complex for traditional regulation to effectively govern. ”
“ Business is constrained by regulation, markets, contracts and industry self-regulation – the subject of the least scholarly attention. I am excited to work with CISR to change this and create a dynamic new curriculum in this growing field. ”
Why Offer this Course?
The curriculum is designed to be flexible, practical, and easy to implement.
Plug-and-play materials: Lecture slides, case studies, readings, and assignments are ready for classroom use.
Expert engagement: Opportunities for guest lectures from leading practitioners, regulators, and industry experts.
Career relevance: Prepares students for a growing range of roles that require navigating complex regulatory, governance, and public policy challenges.
Modular design: Content can be offered as a standalone course or integrated into existing courses, including administrative law, corporate governance, compliance, legal ethics, antitrust, insurance, intellectual property, and public policy.
To discuss implementation options or request a consultation, contact CISR at programs@industryselfregulation.org.
Curriculum Advisory Council
Advisory council members in law, business, and public policy programs from across the United States will participate in the review and evaluation of the curriculum, adapting it as necessary. Initial members include:
- Jeffery Atik - Professor of Law, Jacob Becker Fellow, Loyola Marymount University, Loyola Law School
- Brad Biddle - Founder, Biddle Law PC
- Young Hou - Assistant Professor of Business Administration, University of Virginia, Darden School of Business
- Tracy Hresko Pearl - William J. Alley Professor of Law, The University of Oklahoma College of Law
- Dennis A. Yao - Lawrence E. Fouraker Professor of Business Administration and Chair, Doctoral Programs, Harvard Business School
