The Role of Legal Institutions in Encouraging Social Innovation

Abstract

Social innovation refers to the process of generating novel and effective solutions to address multidimensional and complex social challenges. Legal institutions play a strategic role not only in creating a conducive and predictable regulatory environment, but also in ensuring legal certainty, safeguarding public trust, and supporting the long-term sustainability of innovations initiated by diverse social actors, including government bodies, the private sector, academic institutions, and civil society organizations. This literature-based study seeks to identify, categorize, and analyze the specific contributions of legal institutions in fostering social innovation within Indonesia and in comparative international contexts. The review covers peer-reviewed national and international journal articles published in the last five years, with analytical emphasis on regulation, public policy, intellectual property rights protection, and cross-sector collaboration frameworks. The findings indicate that a proactive legal framework can accelerate innovation diffusion, enhance community engagement, and reinforce institutional capacity. The derived policy implications provide guidance for policymakers, scholars, and practitioners to maximize synergies between legal frameworks and social innovation initiatives.