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Chapter 1 General Considerations Nature Administrative Law– that branch of modern law under which the executive department of the government, acting in a quasi-legislative or quasi-judicial capacity, interferes with the conduct of the individual for the purpose of promoting the well-being of the com...

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Chapter 1 General Considerations Nature Administrative Law– that branch of modern law under which the executive department of the government, acting in a quasi-legislative or quasi-judicial capacity, interferes with the conduct of the individual for the purpose of promoting the well-being of the community. Administrative law is a recent development , being a consequence of the ever increasing complexities of society and the proliferation of problems of government that cannot readily or effectively be addressed by the public agencies or solved by other disciplines of public law. It was felt that the legislative and judicial departments no longer had either the time or the needed expertise to attend to these new problems. Thus, the obvious solution was delegation of power. Two major powers of the administrative agency: Quasi-legislative authority– or rule making power Quasi-judicial power – or adjudicatory function Sources of Administrative Law Administrative law is derived from four sources or is of four (4) kinds: 1. Constitution or statutory enactments – e.g. Social Security Act which established the Social Security Commission. 2. Decisions of courts interpreting the charters of administrative bodies 3. Rules and regulations issued by the administrative bodies – e.g. Omnibus Rules Implementing the Labor Code. Determinations and orders of the administrative bodies in the settlement of controversies. Administration Administration is understood in two senses: institution– administration as the aggregate of individuals in whose hands the reins of government are for the time being. function– administration as the actual running of the government by the executive authorities through the enforcement of laws and implementation of policies. Government (as distinguished from administration) is the agency or instrumentality through which the will of the State is formulated, expressed and realized. Administration Distinguished from Law Law -is impersonal command provided with sanctions to be applied in case of violation, while Administration-is preventive rather punitive and is accepted to be more personal than law.Law maintains a watchful eye on those who would violate its order.While administration on the other hand seeks to spare individuals from punishments of the law by persuading him to observe its commands.

Chapter 2 Administrative Agencies Agency-any department, bureau, office, commission, authority of the National Government authorized by law/executive order to make rules, issue license/grant rights. Administrative agency– a body endowed with quasi-legislative and quasi-judicial powers for the purpose of enabling it to carry out the laws entrusted to it for enforcement or execution. Administrative agency may be regarded as an arm of the legislature insofar as it is authorize to promulgate rules. It may also be loosely considered a court because it performs functions of a particular judicial character, as when it decides factual and sometimes even legal questions as an incident of its general power of regulation. Creation and Abolition The administrative body may be created by the Constitution or by a Statute. If created by the Constitution itself, the administrative body can be altered or abolished only by Constitution. But where the body was created only by statute, the legislature that breathed life into it can amend or even repeal its charter, thereby resulting in its abolition which is justified if made in good faith.

Chapter 3 Powers of Administrative Agencies Quasi-Legislative Power – the authority delegated by the law-making body to the administrative body to adopt rules and regulations intended to carry out the provisions of a law and implement legislative policy. Permits the body to promulgate rules intended to carry out the provisions of particular laws. ᵜ [Rule of the Future]."little Laws"with same legal force. ᵜ Rules & Regulations issued by administrative/executive officers, statutes express policies, purposes, objectives, remedies & sanctions by legislature in general terms. ᵜ Administrative Rule=Administrative Code of 1987"Any agency statement of general applicability implements/interprets law, fixes &describes procedure including regulations. Can be delegated. Legislative Power-What the law maybe is exclusive &can't be delegated. Test of delegation-legislative power in general are the completeness test and sufficient standard test. Permissible delegation itself is valid when: (a)Complete in itself policy be executed, carried out/implemented by the delegate (b)Fixes a standard determinate/determinable conform functions. Quasi-Judicial Power– Power of adjudication/the power of the administrative authorities to make determinations of facts in the performance of their official duties and to apply the law as they construe it to the facts so found. To resolve judicial, factual, &sometimes legal questions.[Rule of the past] Main function -is the enforcement of law & Focuses on the question of law Enabling Power-permit the doing of an act w/c law undertakes to regulate & unlawful without government approval. ᵜ Example:issuance of license to engage in particular business/occupation, like operation of liquor. Directing Power-Doing/performance of particular acts to ensure compliance with law & corrective purposes ᵜ Example:Dept. of Transportation may call on common carriers to install specific safety devices to prevent accidents. Dispensing Power- allows admin to relax general operation of law/exempt from performance of general duty. Summary Power-the use by admin. authorities of force upon persons/things w/o necessity of judicial warrant. ᵜ Example:padlocking by the mayor's office of filthy restaurants/obscene movie houses.Shooting down mad dogs. Examining Power-enables to inspect records & premises/activities of the person Other powers:issuance of subpoena, swearing in witness, interrogation of witness, calling for books, papers & records, Requiring written answers, inspection of premises. Duties of Admin body -are generally considered Discretionary especially in the interpretation/construction & enforcement of the law. Merely Ministerial No judgment allowed in their exercise.

Chapter 4 The Quasi-Legislative Power It has already been remarked that the rule-making power of the administrative body is intended to enable it to implement the policy of the law and to provide for the more effective enforcement of its provisions. Through the exercise of this power of subordinate legislation, it is possible for the administrative body to transmit the “active power of the state from its source to the point of application,” that is, apply the law and so fulfill the mandate of the legislature. [2]Kinds of Administrative Regulations (a)Legislative – the administrative agency is acting in a legislative capacity, supplementing the statute, filling in the details, or “making the law”, and usually acting pursuant to a specific delegation of legislative power. (b)Interpretative– are those which purport to do no more than interpret the statute being administered, to say what it means. They constitute the administrator's construction of a statute. The interpretative regulation is issued by the administrative body as an incident to its power to enforce the law and is intended merely to clarify its provisions for proper observance by the people.It is an elementary rule in administrative law that Administrative regulations and policies enacted by administrative bodies to interpret which they are entrusted to enforce,have the force of law,are entitled to great respect, and have in their favor a presumption of legality.By contrast, the legislative regulation is issued by the administrative body pursuant to a valid delegation of legislative power and is intended to have the binding the force and effect of a law enacted by the legislature itself . [2]Classification of Legislative Regulation (a)Supplementary – intended to fill in the details of the law and “to make explicit what is only general.” (b)Contingent – issued upon the happening of a certain contingency which the administrative body is given the discretion to determine or to ascertain some circumstances and on the basis thereof may enforce or suspend the operation of a law. [4]Requisites of Administrative Regulation Its promulgation must be authorized by the legislature; (b) It must be within the scope of the authority given by the legislature; (c) It must be promulgated in accordance with the prescribed procedure; (d) It must be reasonable. First Requisite: Promulgation Must Be Authorized by the Legislature Authority to promulgate the regulation is usually conferred by the Charter itself of the administrative body or by the law it is supposed to enforce.When Congress authorizes promulgation of administrative rules and regulations to implement given legislation, all that is required is that the regulation be not in contravention with it, but to conform to the standards that the law prescribes. Second Requisite: Regulation Must Be Within the Scope of the Authority Given by the Legislature Assuming a valid authorization, it is still necessary that the regulation promulgated must not be ultra vires or beyond the authority conferred. Third Requisite: Regulation Must Be Promulgated in Accordance with the Prescribed Procedure

As in the enactment of laws, the promulgation of administrative regulations of general application does not require previous notice and hearing, the only exception being where the legislature itself requires it .In the absence of such a requirement, the administrative body can promulgate the regulation in its exclusive discretion. But where the regulation is in effect a settlement of a controversy between specific parties, it is considered an administrative adjudication and so will require notice and hearing. As for publication, the applicable rule is now found in Executive Order No. 200 which provides that laws “shall take effect after fifteen (15) days following the completion of their publication either in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation in the Philippines, unless it is otherwise provided.” Interpretative regulations and those merely internal in nature, that is, regulating only the personnel of the administrative agency and not the public, need not be published. Publication must be in full or it is no publication at all since its purpose is to inform the public of the contents of the law. The Supreme Court, it would seem, requires publication of the administrative regulation only if it is of general application and penal in nature. Fourth Requisite: Regulation Must Be Reasonable Like statutes, administrative regulations promulgated there under must not be unreasonable or arbitrary as to violate due process. Penal Regulations The power to define and punish crime is exclusively legislative and may not be delegated to the administrative authorities. While administrative regulations may have the force and effect of law, their violation cannot give rise to criminal prosecution unless the legislature makes such violation punishable and imposes the corresponding sanctions. [3]Special requisites of a valid administrative regulation with a penal sanction: The law itself must make violation of the administrative regulation punishable; The law itself must impose and specify the penalty for the violation of the regulation; The regulation must be published. Construction and Interpretation-Regulation should be read in harmony with the statute and not in violation of the authority conferred on the administrative authorities. The administrative regulation that contravenes the statute is, of course, invalid. Enforcement-It is established that the power to promulgate administrative regulations carries with it the implied power to enforce them. This may be effected through judicial action or through sanctions that the statute itself may allow the administrative body to impose. Amendment or Repeal-Like the statute, the administrative regulation promulgated there under is subject to amendment or repeal by the authorities that promulgated them in the first place. Of course, it may be changed directly by the legislature.

Chapter 5 The Quasi-Judicial Power Quasi-judicial power – is the power of the administrative agency to determine questions of fact to which the legislative policy is to apply, in accordance with the standards laid down by the law itself. The proper exercise of the quasi-judicial power requires compliance with two conditions, to wit: Jurisdiction must be properly acquired by the administrative body Due process must be observed in the conduct of the proceedings A. Jurisdiction Jurisdiction – may be simply defined as the competence of an office or body to act on a given matter or decide a certain question.Without jurisdiction, the determination made by the administrative bodies are absolutely null and without any legal effect whatsoever.It is the legislature that has the power to confer jurisdiction upon the administrative body and so limit or expand its authority.It can be said that each administrative body has its own peculiar jurisdiction as conferred upon it by the specific provisions of its charter. The law may allow some administrative bodies to award certain kinds of damages while denying the same power, for no apparent reason, to other administrative bodies. For example, the SEC and NLRC are allowed to award damages virtually to the same extent as a court of justice. Yet similar authority has not been conferred by its charter to NTC. It is a well-settled principle that unless expressly empowered, administrative agencies are bereft of quasi-judicial power. 1. Rules of Procedure Where an administrative body is expressly granted the power of adjudication, it is deemed also vested with the implied power to prescribe the rules to be observed in the conduct of its proceedings. But to be valid, the rules must not violate fundamental rights or encroach upon constitutional prerogatives. 2. The Subpoena Power The power to issue subpoena and subpoena duces tecum is not inherent in administrative bodies. It is settled that administrative bodies may summon witnesses and require the production of evidence only when duly allowed by law, and always only in connection with the matter they are authorized to investigate. Unless otherwise provided by law, the agency may, in case of disobedience, invoke the aid or Regional Trial Court within whose jurisdiction the contested case falls. The Court may punish customary or refusal as contempt. The Supreme Court distinguished between the power to “investigate” and the power to “adjudicate: “The purpose of investigation, of course, is to discover, to find out, to learn, obtain information. Nowhere included or intimated is the notion of settling, deciding or resolving a controversy involve in the facts inquired into by application of the law x x. In the legal sense, “adjudicate” means to settle in the exercise of judicial authority x x. “Adjudge” x x implies a judicial determination of a fact, and the entry of judgment.” 3. The Contempt Power Like the subpoena power, the power to punish for contempt is essentially judicial and cannot be claimed as an inherent right by the administrative body. To be validly exercised, it must be expressly conferred upon the body and, additionally, must be used only in connection with its quasi-judicial as distinguished from its purely administrative or routinary functions. As a rule, where, say, a subpoena of the administrative body is disregarded, the person summoned may not be directly discipline by that body. The proper remedy id for the administrative body to seek assistance of the courts of justice for the enforcement of its order. The power to hold in contempt must be exercised not on the vindictive, but on the preservative principle. B. Notice and Hearing The right to notice and hearing is essential to due process and its non-observance will as a rule invalidate the administrative proceedings. Persons are entitled to be notified of any pending case affecting their interests so that, if they are minded, they may claim the right to appear therein and present their side or refute the position of opposing parties. Nevertheless, there are instances when notice and hearing can validly be

omitted. Among the justifications for such omissions are the urgency of immediate action (which does not preclude the enjoyment of the right at a later time without prejudice to the person affected) and the fact that the right had previously been offered but not claimed. 1. Administrative Due Process While administrative determinations of contested case are by their nature judicial, there is no requirement for strict adherence to technical rules as are observed in truly judicial proceedings. It is a general rule that they are unrestricted by the technical or formal rules of procedure which govern trials before a court. This rule is applied to questions of evidence, pleading and other matters. Nevertheless, it is essential that due process must be observed, for the requirements of fair play are not applicable to judicial proceedings only. [7]Cardinal rights or principles to be observed in administrative proceedings: the first of these rights is the right to a hearing; b. the tribunal must consider the evidence presented; c. the tribunal must have something to support its decision; evidence must be substantial evidence–relevant evidence that a reasonable mind may accept as adequate to support a conclusion e. the decision must be rendered on the evidence presented at the hearing, or at least contained in the record and disclosed to the parties; f. the court must act on its or their own independent consideration of the law and facts of controversy, and not simply accept the views of a subordinate in arriving at a decision; g. the court should render its decision in such a manner that the parties to the proceeding can know the various issues involved, and the reasons for the decisions rendered It is basic to due process that the tribunal considering the administrative question be impartial, to ensure a fair decision. The law does not require another notice and hearing for a review of the decision of the board. In M.F. Violago Oiler Tank Trucks vs. NLRC, there was no denial of due process where the petitioners received notice of the scheduled investigation the day before said date of the hearing or investigation but failed to present evidence. On the other hand, there was clearly such a denial where it appears that a decision rendered against a person who was not a party to or even notified of the proceedings taken before a labor arbiter. C. Administrative Appeals and review Unless otherwise provided by law or executive order, an appeal from a final decision of the administrative agency may be taken to the department head, whose decision may further be brought to the regular courts of justice, in accordance with the procedure specified by law. D. Enforcement of Decision In the absence of any statute providing for the enforcement of an administrative determination, the same cannot be enforced except possibly by appeal to the force of public opinion. Usually, however, the administrative body is allowed certain sanctions that it may impose directly for the enforcement of its own decisions, i.e. Revocation of or refusal to renew licenses, destruction of unlawful articles, summary closure of stores, refusal to grant clearances, issuance of cease and desist orders, detention and deportation of aliens, and imposition of fines. Significantly, many administrative bodies, such as the SEC and the NLRC, have been vested with authority to grant provisional reliefs, such as writs of preliminary attachment or injunction, intended to ensure the enforcement of their adjudications. It is established that administrative agencies who have not been conferred the power to enforce their quasi-judicial decisions may invoke court action for the purpose. E. Res Judicata The general rule is that an administrative decision is not considered res judicata so as to preclude its subsequent reconsideration or revocation. Decisions of the previous incumbents of the administrative body may be modified or reversed by their successors in the exercise of their own powers of adjudication. Where the administrative decision ...