The Laws of Rugby Union are set down by the International Rugby Board in accordance with the guiding principles of the game.

The main IRB website provides a full listing of all the laws and regulations of the game as well as updates on ammendments and rulings - click here.

The principles upon which the Laws of the Game are based are:

A Sport For All

The Laws provide players of different physiques, skills, genders and ages with the opportunity to participate at their levels of ability in a controlled, competitive and enjoyable environment.

 It is incumbent upon all who play Rugby to have a thorough knowledge and understanding of the Laws of the Game.

Maintaining the Identity

The Laws ensure that Rugby’s distinctive features are maintained through scrums, lineouts, mauls, rucks, kick-offs and re-starts. Also the key features relating to contest and continuity - the backward pass, the offensive tackle.

Enjoyment and Entertainment

The Laws provide the framework for a Game that is both enjoyable to play and entertaining to watch. If, on occasions, these objectives appear to be incompatible, enjoyment and entertainment are enhanced by enabling the players to give full rein to their skills. To achieve the correct balance, the Laws are constantly under review.

Application

There is an over-riding obligation on the players to observe the Laws and to respect the principles of fair play.

The Laws must be applied in such a way as to ensure that the Game is played according to the principles of play.

The referee and touch judges can achieve this through fairness, consistency, sensitivity and, at the highest levels, management. In return, it is the responsibility of coaches, captains and players to respect the authority of the match officials.

Law Education Link

The IRB provides an overview website where you can read the Laws, watch video examples and animations to build your understanding of how the Laws are applied on the field of play, and take a self-test exam to check your knowledge - click here. 

The Maul - Law Application

Following the establishment of an International Working Group to review Law application/ refereeing in relation to the maul, the outcomes – including video clips – can be viewed on:
http://www.irblaws.com/EN/guidelines/
 
It is important that all stakeholders, particularly coaches, referees and players study the content which demonstrates clearly how this phase is to be refereed.
 
The members of the Group were: Rob Andrew/ Phil Davies/ Owen Doyle/ Steve Hansen/ Graham Mourie/ Bill Nolan/ David Nucifora/ Paddy O’Brien and Steve Griffiths (IRB

New Laws

Following a year long global trial of Experimental Law Variations, The International Rugby Board incorporated the following into Law as and from May 2009:

Law 6 - Assistant referees able to assist referees in any way the Referee requires
Law 19 - If a team puts the ball back in their own 22 and the ball is subsequently kicked directly into touch there is no gain in ground
Law 19 - A quick throw may be thrown in straight or towards the throwing team's goal line
Law 19 - The receiver at the lineout must be two metres back away from the lineout
Law 19 - The player who is in opposition to the player throwing in the ball must stand in the area between the five metre line and touch line and must be two metres from the line of touch and at least two metres from the lineout
Law 19 - Lineout players may pre-grip a jumper before the ball is thrown in
Law 19 - The lifting of lineout jumpers is permitted
Law 20 - Introduction of an offside line five metres behind the hindmost feet of the Scrum
Law 20 - Scrum half offside line at the Scrum
Law 20 - The corner posts are no longer considered to be touch in goal except when the ball is grounded against the post.

ELVs Not Adopted into Law

The following ELVs were NOT adopted:
Law 17 - Maul - Head and shoulders to be lower than hips. (The Law is - Players joining a maul must have their heads and shoulders no lower than their hips.) 
Law 17 - Maul - Pulling down the maul. (The Law is - A player must not intentionally collapse a maul.)                                                                                  
Law 19 - Lineout - Each team to determine lineout numbers. (The Law is - The opposing team may have fewer lineout players but they must not have more)

Union-specific ELVs approved by Council

- Unions may implement rolling substitutions at defined levels of the game

- A Union having jurisdiction over a game may implement a half-time interval of not more than 15 minutes, but not at international level