Decentralize Autonomous Organizations
Decentralized Autonomous Organizations coordinate people, capital, and code across borders. The law does not follow them there. A DAO recognized in one jurisdiction may have no recognized legal effect in the next, leaving members exposed and counterparties without recourse.
BlackVogel works on that gap. Our research and drafting spans three levels: international instruments, European legal forms, and multistakeholder standards bodies. The through-line is an effects-based approach, coordinating the legal effects of a DAO’s acts across jurisdictions rather than prescribing how DAOs must be formed.
SUPPORTING UNCITRAL’S EXPLORATORY WORK ON DAOS
The UNCITRAL Secretariat is monitoring and conducting exploratory work on the legal treatment of DAOs. BlackVogel was engaged as expert consultant to support that work. Our contribution has two parts.
Contribution 01
Comparative Review
The first is a comparative review of how existing legal systems make DAOs legally operable within private law, covering the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Wyoming, the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah, and the COALA Model Law, and examining what those approaches imply for the design of a possible model instrument.
Contribution 02
Model Provisions Draft
The second is an initial draft of possible model provisions, built on an effects-based, functional-equivalence approach: coordinating the legal effects of a DAO’s acts across borders rather than prescribing how DAOs must be formed in any given jurisdiction.
Both were circulated as official documents for the fifty-ninth session of the Commission, held in New York from 29 June to 10 July 2026. The Commission decided to keep the topic under monitoring.
Exploratory work at UNCITRAL moves at the pace of consensus among member States, and monitoring is a normal stage rather than a conclusion. The analysis and the draft provisions remain on the record and available to any jurisdiction developing its own framework. We continue to work with governments and authorities who are doing exactly that.
Document links
A/CN.9/1267 — Review and possible model text
Do not name which delegations took which position. A public consultancy page commenting on member State positions would not be welcomed.
European: BlockStand
Under the BlockStand project, co-funded by the European Commission, we produced a comparative legal analysis of DAO frameworks across the Cayman Islands, the Marshall Islands, Switzerland, the United States (Wyoming), Abu Dhabi Global Market, Japan, and the United Kingdom, alongside interviews with DAO practitioners on the operational realities of governance and compliance under each. The work concluded with a policy position paper proposing a European framework for DAO legal recognition.
The findings continue to inform our work at European and international level, including the comparative review prepared to support UNCITRAL’s exploratory work.
01
Comparative Analysis Report
A comprehensive report reviewing DAO legal frameworks across various jurisdictions, including the Cayman Islands, Marshall Islands, Switzerland, the United States (Wyoming), Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), Japan, and the United Kingdom. This analysis will identify strengths, weaknesses, and differences to provide a foundational understanding of how each jurisdiction addresses DAO operations, setting the stage for informed discussions.
02
Interviews & Challenges Article
Based on the findings from the comparative analysis, this article will summarize insights gathered from interviews with DAO practitioners and decentralization experts. The focus will be on practical challenges DAOs face within different legal frameworks, providing real-world insights into governance, compliance, and operational issues. The article will propose actionable solutions based on expert recommendations.
03
Policy Position Paper
The final phase will involve engaging with policymakers, policy experts, and standardization bodies to discuss recommendations from industry experts. This position paper offers a concise proposal for a European DAO framework, drawing on global best practices and lessons learned. By aligning with the unique needs of the EU, this paper will aim to foster an environment that supports innovation while ensuring robust legal protections for DAOs operating within the region.
04
DC-BAS - Internet Governance Forum of the United Nations
We actively contributed to the first experimentation round of Dynamic Coalition for Blockchain Assurance Standardization – DC-BAS by supporting the development of its bylaws, helping to shape a collaborative governance model. Building on that experience, we are currently participating in the second round of experimentation, working alongside global stakeholders to advance assurance and standardization practices for blockchain-based systems, including DAOs.
Multistakeholder: DC-BAS
Dynamic Coalition on Blockchain Assurance and Standardization, UN Internet Governance Forum.
We contributed to the first experimentation round of DC-BAS by supporting the development of its bylaws, helping shape a collaborative governance model. We are now participating in the second round, working with global stakeholders on assurance and standardization practices for blockchain-based systems, including DAOs.
Outreach & Education
Legal frameworks are only useful if the people governed by them understand them. We run workshops, teach, and convene practitioners, researchers, and regulators around the practical questions DAOs face.
Devcon SEA, Bangkok, November 2024
Speaking at the Open Source Hub on DAOs and open source, and on what transparent governance frameworks demand of the organizations that adopt them. During Devcon Southeast Asia
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1aujX-plVddKRi_n0aa3OBkyXxoPKUTA1/view?usp=drive_link
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Zg27L3-_c8opZR227SeqMV3nJN88WkIg/view?usp=drive_link
H.E.R. CON Bangkok, November 2024
A short talk on advancing DAO standardization, at H.E.R. DAO’s Devcon side event bringing together builders across the technical Web3 ecosystem.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1DSc40URTY970J3bLcpY10TNhOcBpt8BK/view?usp=drive_link
European DAO Workshop (DAWO25), Zurich, June 2025
Moderating the DAO Legal & Regulation track across the two-day workshop, on governance structures and the legal wrappers DAOs use to hold them. BlackVogel was a partner of the second European DAO Workshop, convened by ZHAW School of Management and Law and the University of Zurich Blockchain Center.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/13mbX8OAB1UCENqNhSpwoUP4oV82pJ2es/view?usp=drive_link
European Commission, DG GROW — "Legal Forms for DAOs: an Assessment of the SCE", Brussels, June 2026
Invited to give an impulse statement at the Commission’s workshop on whether the Societas Cooperativa Europaea can be adapted as a legal form for DAOs, and what targeted clarifications on registration, liability and governance that would require.
