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Administrative Law · Unit 2

Delegated Legislation and Natural Justice

Unit 2 of Administrative Law (syllabus: Module II — the reasons for the growth of delegated legislation, its constitutional validity, the doctrine of excessive delegation and permissible and impermissible delegation, its forms; judicial, legislative and other controls; and the principles of natural justice — the rule against bias, audi alteram partem, post-decisional hearing, reasoned decisions, the effect of failure and the exceptions). Below: what the unit covers, the provisions it turns on, and the cases an examiner expects you to name.

What this unit covers

  • What may the legislature not delegate?
  • When is a delegation excessive?
  • What are the limits on a delegated power of modification?
  • Is a statutory requirement mandatory or directory?
  • Does failure to lay a rule before Parliament invalidate it?
  • When is a decision-maker disqualified for bias?
  • What does a fair hearing require?
  • Must an administrative authority give reasons?
  • What follows from failure to supply the enquiry report?
  • Is a post-decisional hearing a valid substitute for a prior hearing?
  • Is an order made in breach of natural justice void or voidable?

Treat that list as a self-test: recite each topic's rule from memory before you open its cases.

Provisions

Leading cases

Full case summaries

Exam questions on this unit

In this paper