Laravel Validation - Best practices with Request classes
<p>Laravel (currently 5.2) says</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>For more complex validation scenarios, you may wish to create a "form request". Form requests are custom request classes that contain validation logic.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>I have this all implemented, but now I need to import some data that is not coming through HTTP, but from an uploaded document.</p>

<p>Is there an easy way to manually validate data using the rules set in the Request classes, or is there a standardised Laravel way of separating the rules so that they can be used in multiple places?</p>

<p>Note: I have different rules for storing and updating etc</p>

<p>One approach I thought of was to create some static properties on my models, eg. User::$storeRules, and then I can return this array in my Request classes, and them manually using the <code>Validator</code> class elsewhere.</p>

<p>Thanks.</p>