Easy handling of optional fields and Laravel validation

SomeController.php

<?php

class SomeController extends Controller
{
    public function someMethod(Request $request)
    {
        $data = $request->intersect(array_keys(SomeModel::$rules));

        $validator = validator($data, SomeModel::$rules;

        if ($validator->fails()) {
            throw new ValidationException($validator);
        }

        // $data is now validated and only consists of the fields that were actually provided.
        // In case 'baz' wasn't provided, it won't be set as an empty string in the database.

        return SomeModel::create($data);
   }
}

SomeModel.php

<?php

class SomeModel extends Model
{
    public static $rules = [
        'foo' => 'required|in:a,b,c',
        'bar' => 'required|numeric',
        'baz' => 'email',
        'bob' => 'required|date',
    ];
}