State Law under Post-Labour Conditions: Judgement, Legitimacy, and the Limits of Optimisation

This working paper examines the structural challenges facing state legal systems under post-labour conditions, including labour optimisation, declining contribution bases, and the increasing use of artificial intelligence in governance.

It introduces a descriptive framework for preserving legal legitimacy where traditional labour-based proxies for participation erode, with particular emphasis on human adjudication, care recognition, coercion prevention, institutional capacity, anti-capture governance, anti-gaming safeguards, and epistemic sovereignty.

The Engagement Credit Economy (ECE) is presented as a system adjacent to law, designed to render non-labour participation visible without assuming legal authority or creating entitlements.

This document is a policy-grade working paper intended to inform legislators, legal scholars, civil servants, and governance institutions. It is descriptive in nature and does not constitute a legal instrument or legislative proposal.

This research is produced independently under the Drive-In s.r.o. research programme.
Readers who wish to support its continuation may do so here: https://ko-fi.com/johnryder99892