What is Administrative law?

Administrative law is the most growing and complex subject. Because it is basically a judge made law and the judges are changing their portion very often. This make an understanding on the subject very much difficult. Further more, recent economic have added new dimension to the subject.

The growth of welfare state made it necessary for the state to enact new legislation and this resulted in granting more powers to the executive and the administrative agencies of the state. But more power to the executive resulted in injustice and breach of fundamental rights of citizens. So a check and a judicial review of the unrestrained actions of these organs of the government were necessary and it was administrative law that could do this.

Definition of Administrative law.

            Professor Ivor Jennings says “ Administrative law is the law relating to the administration. It determines the organization, power and duties of administrative authorities.

            Sir A.V. Dicey says- Administrative law is that portion of the national legal system which determines legal status and liabilities of all state officials, which defines the rights and liabilities of private individuals in their dealings with public officials which specifies the procedure by which those rights and liabilities are enforced.

            According to Sir K.C. Davis “Administrative law is the law concerning the powers and procedures of administrative agencies including especially the law governing judicial review of administrative action.

            Sir Griffith and Street says – The main object of administrative law is the operation and control of administrative authorities. It must deal with the following aspects:

(i)     What sort of power does the administration exercise?

(ii)    What are the limits of those powers?

(iii)  What are the ways in which the administration is kept within those limits?

So, administrative law is the law relating to administration. It determines the organization, powers and the duties of administrative authorities.

            In other words, administrative law is a branch of public law, deals with organizations and powers of administrative and quasi-administrative agencies and prescribes principles and rules by which an official actions is reached and reviewed in relation to individual liberty and freedom.

Administrative law stands on two basic principles of natural justice  - 

(i) that one should not be judge of his own case 

(ii) that no man shall be condemned unheared.

Administrative law deals with the concepts of due process of litigation, separation of power, delegated legislation and judicial review of administrative action.