Administrative Law
...tribunals are the most common and are usually interchangeable. They have been created in every jurisdiction without any overall organizational or conceptual plan and contain some important likenesses and differences. These independent agencies have at least four common features. Firstly, they have a certain degree of independence from the government department holding the overall responsibility for the policy area they control. The minister can not guide them in their decisions they must make on a matter and the minister can not be held accountable to the legislature for the decisions. Members are appointed by the responsible minister for a short office term and the appointment may or may not be renewed. Civil servants in government departments are subject to the instructions of their superiors and to the policies of the department for which the minister is responsible. The members of an independent agency are not subject to these directions. A second common feature is that those affected by a decision are given the opportunity to participate in the decision making process at a hearing, formal or informal whereby they can submit evidence. Thirdly, independent agencies operate at the point where the program is actually applied to the individual, which may include the denial of a license, or a refusal to rezone. Fourthly, all administrative agencies are specialized and deliver a particular public program or a part of one, and include labour relations boards, agricultural marketing boards, etc. Some work with one statute only while others obtain their jurisdiction from several while courts of law decide cases across a wider range of criminal and civil law. The differences among the agencies are much more difficult to summarize, but include the following. Decisions made by agencies range from those resembling courts to those made through a political process. Some agencies have a larger policy-making authority which is guided by the public interest, rather than by the impact of the decision on individuals. Some agencies resemble the court structure, holding a hearing and the decision is made by those who conducted the hearing . Some agencies have a very high caseload such as the Unemployment Insurance Commission , while others will concentrate on one or two large rate-making utility decisions . Independent agencies also vary in the place they occupy in the decision-making process and will only make recommendations to those who have the final decision making authority while others make the first and sometimes final decisions. Independent agencies have certain advantages over government departments as makers of administrative decisions. They are not under the pressure of day-to-day politics and are able to maintain an open process and develop long term and consistent policies. It is also convenient for ministers to discard the political responsibility for individual decisions, especially when the area in question is sensitive. An independent agency may be preferred over a court to resolve disputes since many of the nature of the decisions made by the agencies are inappropriate for the courts, and it may be more desirable that a decision be made by someone other than a judge as experience in areas other than law may be required. The courts tend to be more costly and take longer to finalize decisions. Administrative remedies deal with the legal remedies available to a person who has been affected by an administrative decision. Administrative agencies have internal means for dealing with grievances, wither it be speaking with someone internally or complaining to an outside body who is independent of the decision-maker. Statutory rights of appeal are commonly provided to an independent appeal tribunal from decisions made by government departments. Administrative appeal tribunals are usually able to reconsider the whole case after hearing from the parties and change the decision to one that they feel should have been made. When the legislature has not created a system specifically for the purpose, a person can take their claim against the government to the courts. This may occur when the administrative action in question breaches an individuals private legal rights. Since the early 1970’s, statutory rights of appeal to the courts from administrative decisions have become very common, and it is important to note that the right of appeal comes from the creation of the statute. Rights of appeal may be based on questions of law, fact and discretion, and authorize the appellate court to substitute its opinion for that of the agency. Others will limit the appeal to questions of fact and law while others are confined to law and jurisdiction. If the court does confirm the agency made a mistake, they may reverse the decision or refer the matter back to the agency. In the absence of a statutory right of appeal, the provincial superior courts hold a supervisory jurisdiction over the institutions and officials with responsibility for administering public prog...