Paper I, Unit 6: Administrative Law
Modern government needs discretion to act; constitutional government needs safeguards against arbitrariness.
Modern government needs discretion to act; constitutional government needs safeguards against arbitrariness. This unit concerns how legal authority, procedure and review make administrative power legitimate.
Official wording of this unit: see the Paper I syllabus (unit 6).
Syllabus phrases and how to read them
| Syllabus phrase | Meaning and preparation focus |
|---|---|
| Meaning, scope, significance | Study the law governing administrative powers, processes and remedies. Include natural justice, reasoned decisions and judicial review as necessary interpretive extensions. |
| Dicey | Explain supremacy of regular law, equality before law and the role of ordinary courts in his English constitutional account. Place his criticism of French administrative arrangements in historical context. |
| Development beyond Dicey | Welfare administration, specialised institutions and positive obligations complicate the original formulation. Distinguish rule of law from the mere existence of rules. |
| Delegated legislation | Explain why legislatures delegate technical detail and flexibility. Examine the scope of enabling law, publication, consultation, legislative scrutiny and review for excess of power. |
| Administrative Tribunals | Assess specialisation, access and speed alongside independence, appointments, procedure and review. Do not assume that a tribunal is simply an executive department deciding its own dispute. |
Delegation is not inherently undemocratic, but broad discretion without purpose, procedure and review can become arbitrary. The better answer designs safeguards around a necessary administrative function rather than demanding either unlimited discretion or no discretion at all.
Paper II: civil service disputes, regulators and constitutional government. Careful distinction: a lawful order may still be poorly designed; a desirable policy still requires lawful authority. Legal validity and administrative wisdom overlap without being identical.
How can delegated legislation preserve flexibility without hollowing out legislative responsibility?
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