Laravel Model Validation Rules Laravel Package

Product Decisions This Supports

• Feature Development: Accelerates implementation of model existence validation in forms, APIs, or admin panels (e.g., "Does this user/role exist?" without manual queries).
• Roadmap Prioritization: Justifies reducing technical debt for custom validation logic (e.g., replacing ad-hoc Model::where()->exists() calls with a reusable rule).
• Build vs. Buy: Buy—avoids reinventing validation rules for Eloquent models, saving dev time (~2–4 hours per use case).
• Use Cases:
  • Admin Panels: Validate related records (e.g., "Select a team member who exists").
  • APIs: Ensure foreign key constraints (e.g., POST /orders with user_id validation).
  • Forms: Prevent invalid submissions (e.g., "This category doesn’t exist").

When to Consider This Package

• Adopt if:
  • Your app uses Laravel/Eloquent and needs frequent model existence checks in validation.
  • You’re repeating Model::where()->exists() across forms/APIs (code smell).
  • Your team lacks time to build/maintain custom validation rules.
• Look elsewhere if:
  • You need advanced validation (e.g., nested model relationships, soft-deleted models).
  • Your stack isn’t Laravel (e.g., Symfony, Django).
  • You require real-time validation (e.g., live search-as-you-type)—this is for form/API submission.

How to Pitch It (Stakeholders)

For Executives: "This package cuts dev time for a common pain point—validating if a database record exists—by replacing manual queries with a reusable Laravel rule. For example, instead of writing custom logic to check if a user/role exists in every form, we can standardize it. This reduces bugs, speeds up feature delivery, and aligns with our tech stack. Low risk (MIT license), high ROI for validation-heavy apps."

For Engineering: *"This drops in as a ValidationRule for Eloquent models (e.g., exists:App\User,active=true). It’s lightweight, tested, and avoids reinventing the wheel for Model::where()->exists() checks. Ideal for:

• APIs: Validate foreign keys (e.g., POST /orders with user_id).
• Admin Panels: Ensure dropdown selections are valid (e.g., team members).
• Forms: Prevent invalid submissions early. Tradeoff: No support for soft deletes or complex queries, but we can extend it if needed."*