rulemaker

English

Etymology

rule +‎ maker

Noun

rulemaker (plural rulemakers)

1. A maker of rules: a person, deity, or other agent (usually a sentient one, in most contexts) who makes the rules.
   • 1958, U.S. Senate Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, quoting Mr. Sayen, “Federal Aviation Agency Act, S.3880”, in Hearings, 85th Congress, Second Session‎^[1], volume 4, U.S. Government Publishing Office, page 94:

     But if he can say, "This is my decision and if you don't like my decision you can have it reviewed" (and if the Board does its job properly and he is doing his job properly he will be supported in most of his decisions), and the decision will have been reviewed and will have been supported, we think he will act with greater courage and be a stronger rulemaker, a more decisive rulemaker than if there is no provision to support his position by review. This is a procedure adopted in many organizations including my own. / On this point, we think we will make him a stronger rulemaker, not a weaker rulemaker.

   • 1979, Hearings, Reports and Prints of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary‎^[2], U.S. Government Publishing Office, page 518:

     A rulemaker must typically make and coordinate many empirical conclusions dependent on raw material outside the conventional evidentiary categories of "testimony" and "exhibits." For example, the rulemaker must often draw upon prior experience, expert advice, the developing technical literature, ongoing experiments, or seasoned predictions.

   • 2019, Johan Lindholm, “7: CAS's normative contribution”, in The Court of Arbitration for Sport and Its Jurisprudence: An Empirical Inquiry Into Lex Sportiva‎^[3], T.M.C. Asser Press, →ISBN, page 192:

     It is important to distinguish between who has regulatory power and the consequences of one actor violating the regulatory power of another actor. CAS [the Court of Arbitration for Sport] has established that the superior rulemaker's rules are not directly applicable and cannot in case of conflict take precedent over an inferior rulemaker's rules. Even in the face of a blatant conflict, the inferior rulemaker's rules remain valid and binding in relation to governed clubs, individuals, and other members. The superior rulemaker's only recourse is to impose sanctions against the inferior rulemaker.

Hyponyms

• regulator

Related terms

• decision-maker, decision-making
• lawmaker, lawmaking
• rulemaking