Experiences of SGML standardization: the case of the Finnish legislative documents

The SGML standardization in the Finnish Parliament was activated in 1994 when a project called RASKE was commenced in cooperation with the University of Jyvaskyla. The project carried out a careful analysis of document management and designed 15 preliminary SGML Document Type Definitions for legislative documents. The work has been followed by implementation projects where selected companies have developed and implemented SGML solutions for a specific subset of documents, and the Parliament and ministries have redesigned their work processes. The effects of the standardization have concerned documents, document production, archiving practices, information distribution, and inter-organizational collaboration. From the point of view of a citizen the major effect of the new solutions is in the improved accessibility to legislative information through the Internet. The capabilities offered by the structured form have motivated the Ministry of Justice initiating the design of a database for consolidated legal text.