The Importance of Administrative Law

Over the past decade it appears thathen house.'
administrative law, which is the body of lawUnder The New Deal legislative plan, President
governing the activities of administrative agenciesFranklin D. Roosevelt and the Democratic
of government, has been minimized, allowing aCongress enacted several statutes that created
number of governmental agencies to runnew federal agencies to assist the United States
ineffectually. Ultimately this has resulted infrom the economic dearth of the Great
numerous economic and environmental calamitiesDepression. During this time, the opponents to
within the United States, i.e.; British Petroleum,The New Deal were concerned with the nation
Enron, Wall Street, and the auto industry. Theallowing extensive government, placing the United
majority of governmental agencies within theStates into a position of a possible dictatorship. By
United States are underneath the executive1946, after ten years of detailed study of
branch, with few being a part of the judicial andadministrative regulation, the Administrative
legislative branches.Procedure Act (APA) became law.
When this body of law, which is considered also aTo provide constitutional safeguards, the APA
branch of public law, is not regulated closely, it candevelops an outline to regulating agencies and their
upset the balance in areas such as police law,roles. The basic purposes of the APA are:
international trade, manufacturing, environmental,(1) to require agencies to keep the public informed
taxation, broadcasting, immigration, andof their organization, procedures and rules;
transportation. One of the main responsibilities of(2) to provide for public participation in the
administrative law is the enforcement of specificrulemaking process;
regulatory agenda. When rulemaking and(3) to establish uniform standards for the conduct
adjudication are not followed as previously set, itof formal rulemaking and adjudication;
is similar to allowing the 'fox to watch over the(4) to define the scope of judicial review.