The purpose of the lineout is to restart play, quickly, safely and fairly, after the ball has gone into touch, with a throw-in between two lines of players.

Players taking part in the lineout known as participating players. Players taking part in the lineout are the player who throws-in and an immediate
opponent, the two players waiting to receive the ball from the lineout and the lineout players.

At least two players from each team must form a lineout. Lineout players are the players who form the two lines that make a lineout.

The team throwing in the ball decides the maximum number of players in the lineout.
The opposing team may have fewer lineout players but they must not have more.
If the team throwing in the ball put fewer than the usual number of players in the lineout, their opponents must be given a reasonable time to move enough players out of the lineout to satisfy this Law.

The front of the lineout is not less than 5 metres from the touchline. The back of the lineout is not more than 15 metres from the touchline. All lineout players must stand between these two points.

The receiver must stand at least two metres towards that player’s goal line from that player’s team-mates who are lineout players and between five and fifteen metres from the touchline until the lineout begins.
The receiver is the player in position to catch the ball when lineout players pass or knock the ball back from the lineout. Any player may be the receiver but each team may have only one receiver at a lineout.

Player between touch and five metres. The team not throwing in must have a player standing between the touchline and the 5-metre line on that team’s side of the line of touch when the lineout is formed. That player must stand two metres from the line of touch and two metres from the five metres line.

Participating players in a lineout may change places before the ball is thrown.

The lineout players of both teams form two single parallel lines each at right angles to the touchline.

Opposing players forming a lineout must keep a clear space between their inside shoulders. This space is determined when players are in an upright stance.

One metre should separate the two lines of players.

The line of touch must not be within 5 metres of the goal line.

After the lineout has formed, but before the ball has been thrown in, a player must not hold, push, charge into, or obstruct an opponent.

Players may assist a team-mate in jumping for the ball by lifting and supporting that player providing that the lifting and/or supporting players do not support
the jumping team-mate below the shorts from behind or below the thighs from the front.