Cooperatives, and other mutual institutions, have guided societies through troubled times over the course of human history. Once again, global crisis calls for cooperative institutions within the social economy to rise up and lead where traditional institutions have failed. However, in order for cooperative institutions to deliver on their potential stabilizing benefits, they must have the support of strong, new public policy, as well as a flexible, yet rigorous, regulatory regime.

New public policy may take the form of direct funds and grants to support new cooperative development in industries that can create stable, local economies and ensure supportive family units. But dependence on government funding often erodes the self-sufficiency and sense of self-identity on which cooperatives thrive. Luckily, government intervention need not only arrive in the form of financial stimulus which may have harmful effects on the cooperative movement and cooperative identity in the long run.

New public policy towards cooperatives also ought to include a thorough review of the laws that govern cooperatives. Meaningful cooperative law reform will allow states to ensure their local cooperatives can function best and provide new options for emerging institutions to form and prosper. Reform can further the dissemination of lessons learned from countries where cooperative laws are progressive and in which the cooperative movement has thrived.

Currently, several national and supranational governments are engaged in, or have recently concluded, a review of their internal cooperative law. Ireland, for instance, is reviewing its cooperative laws with an eye towards overhauling an outdated and ill-fitting set of statutes. The choices the Irish government makes next concerning its cooperative laws could lead to an increase, or decline, in cooperatives and to the vibrancy of the social economy throughout Ireland.

This paper analyzes ways new public policies can address cooperative law reform as a way to boost the social economy’s contributions to climbing out of global economic decline. Ongoing efforts to reform laws in Ireland are reviewed and suggestions for reform are introduced and evaluated. Lessons learned from other jurisdictions, including the United States and the European Union, are also described and their benefits assessed and discussed. Conclusions are made about the role of cooperatives in the current global crisis, and the potential benefits that can be provided by new, cooperative institutions are explored and developed.