One of my favourite topics for dinner parties — which may be why I receive so few dinner party invitations — is the distinction between mandatory and directory considerations. Difficulties arise because while legislation often stipulates that certain formal and procedural requirements must be observed before an administrative decision is arrived at, it rarely states […] Read more

In my paper celebrating Vavilov’s fifth anniversary, I argued that the legal and factual constraints central to the application of the reasonableness standard of review have an objective character: it is up to reviewing courts to determine whether, in any given case, a particular legal or factual consideration constrains an administrative decision-maker. If the decision-maker has given […] Read more

This is going to be the first of three posts. I thought this would be a case note on a recent decision but it turns out there is quite a bit of throat clearing to do before I get there: Traditionally, the functus officio rule applies to administrative tribunals. Once a decision-maker has made a […] Read more

I have posted my paper “Remoulding Administrative Law” in honour of Justice Gerard Hogan of the Irish Supreme Court to SSRN: This is an essay celebrating the contributions of Justice Gerard Hogan of the Irish Supreme Court to the development of the law of judicial review. Comparing his early academic writings in the 1980s with […] Read more