Administrative law

Administrative law is the body of law which regulates the actions of administrative agencies.

United States

In the United States legal system it is organized under the executive branch of government; rather than the judicial or legislative branches, though administrative bodies are creatures of statute created by the legislature. Administrative law as a body of law deals with administrative tribunals or boards that are part of a state regulatory scheme in the areas of international trade, manufacturing, the environment, taxation, broadcasting and transportation to name a few areas of regulation.

While administrative tribunals are often governed by governmental bodies, their decisions are often reviewable by a court of general jurisdiction under some principle of judicial review based upon due process or fundamental justice. The basis of this review may be limited to certain questions of fairness or the procedures that insure that both sides of a dispute are treated equally before any decision making occurs or that the decision is not patently unreasonable.

France

In France, most claims against the national or local governments are handled by administrative courts, which use the Conseil d'État as a court of last resort.