Submitted By : Submitted To:

HENLYNN DSOUZA PROF. SNEHA ANILKUMAR

S.Y. LL.B. C-139

SOURCES OF
ADMINISTRATIVE LAW
ADMINISTRATIVE LAW
What is Administrative
Law?

Administrative is a branch of public law, it deals

with
• The structure, powers and functions of the
organs of administration,
• The limits of their powers,
• The methods and procedures followed by
them in exercising their powers and
functions
• The methods by which their powers are
controlled, including the legal remedies
available to a person against them when his
rights are infringed by the operation.
Different Approaches
Of Administrative Law
• English Law: Administrative Law is always
clubbed with the Constitutional Law.
Parliament is Paramount
• American Law: Administrative Law as a
separate branch of Law
• Indian Law: The Constitution is paramount
in India. If any statute enacted by
Parliament is unconstitutional, it can be
challenged by a court of law. Administrative
action is also open to judicial review. Thus,
administrative law also puts a limit on the
powers of the authorities.
Reasons For Development
And Growth
• Laiseez faire
• Urbanization
• Over-Burdened Courts
• Delegation of Powers
• Inefficient Judiciary
• Scope of experimentation and modification
• Effective Regulation by Authorities
SOURCES OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW

1) The Constitution

The Constitution can be considered as the Primary Source of Administrative Law.

• India has the longest written constitution and is the supreme law of the land.
The Constitution is deemed to be paramount in India.
• The laws of the legislation must follow the provisions of the Constitution and all
the powers of the regulatory authority must be by the rules of law.
• The Constitution also provides for an elaborate monitoring system.
• It also states the doctrine of Separation of Power. Administrative law primarily
concerns to the Executives.
• The Constitution sets out the executive and legislative authority of the Union
and the Member States.
• Control mechanism provided in the constitution for the control of administrative
authorities i.e. Article 32, 267, 227, etc. as well as Union Public Service
Commission and the Public Service Commissions of the State.
2)
Judicial Decisions/Case
Laws/ Precedents
• Administrative law is an uncodified judge-made law.
• Stare decisis—a Latin phrase meaning "let the
decision stand"—is the principle by which judges
are bound to such past decisions.
• Article 141 of the Constitution of India makes the
law declared by the Supreme Court binding on all
courts within the territory of India.
• Thus, administrative decisions are bound by
precedents. Act of the Government of India, the
rulings of the Federal Court and the Privy Council
were expressly binding on all Courts in British India,
thereby granting statutory sanction to the doctrine
of stare decisis.
 3)Statutes
• A statute is a formal written enactment of
a legislative authority that governs the
legal entities of a city, state, or country by
way of consent. Typically, statutes
command or prohibit something, or
declare policy.
• Statutes are rules made by legislative
bodies; they are distinguished from case
law or precedent, which is decided by
courts, and regulations issued by
government agencies.
• The Statute is the primary source of
administrative powers. The Statute stems
from the Constitution.
4) Delegated Legislation

•When the functions of the Legislature are entrusted to organs

other than the legislature by the legislature itself the legislation
made up by such an organ is called Delegated Legislation.
•Such authority is assigned to executives/administrators to
address the practical issues they face on a regular basis.
•This saves the parliaments time as with the technical expertise
of the authorities, administrative laws come into existence to
solve common issues.
•The practice of delegated legislation is not negative, but the
possibility of misuse of authority is incidental and therefore
safeguards are required.
5) Ordinance
• Ordinances are laws that are promulgated by the
President of India on the recommendation of the Union
Cabinet, which will have the same effect as an Act of
Parliament.
• They can only be issued when Parliament is not in
session. They enable the Indian government to take
immediate legislative action.
• Powers are given by Article 123 for President and
Article 213 for the governor.
• Ordinances are subjected to judicial review.
Important cases

• Rustom Cavasjee Cooper v Union of India AIR 1970 SC

564; 1970 SCR (3) 530
• S.R. Bommaii v Union of India ([1994] 2 SCR 644 : AIR
1994 SC 1918 : (1994)
6) Reports By Various Committees
• Multidimensional challenges, of various societal,
economic and political implications, called for an
expansion in administration and governance
legislation. In such a socio-economic background, the
rising forces of administration have drawn the interest
of jurists.
• “Committee on Ministers’ Powers” which is commonly
known as Donoughmore Committee dealt primarily
with the problems of subordinate legislation and
formal administrative adjudication.
• The Subordinate Legislation Committee of Lok Sabha
and the Subordinate Legislation Committee of Rajya
Sabha track and carefully review the delegated laws
enacted by the Executive. Many valuable studies have
been submitted by these committees, which play an
important role in the growth of Indian Administrative
Law.
7) Administrative
Quasi-Legislation
• A quasi-legislative capacity is that in which a
public administrative agency or body acts
when it makes rules and regulations.
• When an administrative agency exercises its
rule-making authority, it is said to act in a
quasi-legislative manner.
• "Administrative Direction" is the most effective
strategy for ensuring a kind of uniformity in
the exercise of administrative discretion and
the determination of policy and its uniform
implementation.
• These guidelines often have the function of
giving flexibility to the government, which is
devoid of the technicalities encountered in the
regulatory process.