ABSTRACT
Regulators need to understand that compromising the commons is always the worst-case scenario. Alongside such a default, a technocratic approach might well be appropriate. Accordingly, an essential element in living with Law 3.0 is the articulation of a ‘new coherentism,’ reminding regulators of two things: first, that their most urgent regulatory focus should be on the commons’ conditions, and second, that whatever their interventions, and particularly where they take a technocratic approach, their acts must always be compatible with the preservation of the commons. With a new coherentist mindset, it is not a matter of checking for internal doctrinal consistency, nor checking that a measure is fit for its particular regulatory purpose. All regulatory interventions should cohere with that responsibility. This means that the conditions for both human existence and the context for flourishing agency should be respected.
