Legal assistance thus takes many forms and must be designed to fit a country's circumstances. The variety of country circumstances can also have an impact on proposals for regional legal cooperation, as have been made in the former Soviet republics, parts of Africa and Eastern Europe, by affecting how to reconcile regional and uniform laws with national sovereignty and the desire to tailor laws and institutions to fit local conditions. How the legal system is implemented is absolutely critical. Too much attention is often paid to passing new laws and not enough attention is given to implementing the laws, through creation of agencies, funding of their operation, training of officials, educating the public and daytoday actions, such as the publication of official gazettes, issuance of court decisions, funding salaries of judges or operation of registries. The unfortunate reality is that many countries are passing voluminous laws which simply never get implemented because the laws are not accessible to the public, a budget to implement them is not provided, judges are not trained in the new laws or lawyers are not familiar with details or concepts of the laws.
Legal reform is a longterm process, involving changes in laws, institutions and attitudes.
Neither the mere passage of laws nor creation of new institutions will establish the rule of lawattitudes, including among the public, must change as well. It can take a long time to get the changes in the legal system and institutions in place and functioning. In the meantime, while economic development can take place in an undeveloped legal environment, costs will be high due to uncertainties and inefficiencies and ultimately economic activities will be constrained by a nonfunctioning legal system. When legal reform occurs, however, it should not be seen as a onetime change or updating of laws, but a continuous process. World Bank Roundup Benin.