Gällande

Gällande is a Swedish adjective and the present participle of the verb gälla, meaning to be valid, to apply, or to be in force. In everyday and formal Swedish, gällande is used to indicate that something is currently in effect or relevant to a matter. It is common in legal, administrative, and official language, helping distinguish what applies now from what has previously been applicable.

Gällande typically precedes the noun it describes, producing phrases such as gällande lagstiftning (the current applicable legislation), gällande regler (the current rules), gällande rätt (the applicable law), or gällande bestämmelser (the current provisions). It can also appear in longer expressions like i enlighet med gällande regler or enligt gällande lag. In legal and bureaucratic texts, the contrast is often between gällande och tidigare eller framtida bestämmelser.

Etymology and usage notes: The term derives from the verb gälla, meaning to apply or to be valid. The form gällande is the present participle used as an adjective to denote authority or currency.

Translations and nuance: In English, gällande is usually rendered as current, applicable, in force, or pertaining to. The choice depends on context; gällande lag refers to the law that currently applies, while gällande regler refer to regulations in force at a given time.

See also: gälla, lagen, rätt, regler, lagstiftning.