Law is order， and good law is good order.—Aristotle （Ancient Greek philosopher）
行政法是管理政府行政活动的部门法，即涉及政府部门执行职务时所适用的各项法律。它规定行政机关可以行使的权力，确定行使这些权力的原则，以及对受到行政行为侵害的人给予法律上的补救。
行政法一般被认为是属于公法的范畴，但是在美国，公法和私法之间的区别不像在大陆法系国家中那么严格，因此，美国的行政法案件也由受理私法案件的普通法院审判。行政法包括实体法和程序法（ Procedural Law）的内容。美国行政法研究的主要对象是后者。就联邦一级而言，美国的行政程序法可以追溯至1789年的联邦宪法修正案，但是在实质意义上的行政程序法则始于1887年为处理铁路工业问题而成立的州际商业委员会。该委员会是美国联邦行政部门中最早的独立规制机构（ Independent Regulatory Agency）。20世纪30年代，在罗斯福总统推行的“新政”（ theNew Deal）时期，各种联邦行政机关如雨后春笋般建立，美国的行政程序法也得到长足的发展。美国的行政法是由宪法、法律、判例、行政规章等组成的。其中，最为重要的是《联邦宪法第五修正案》中的正当程序（ Due Process）条款和1946年的《联邦行政程序法》（ Federal Adm inistrative Procedure Act）。诚然，判例法的作用亦十分重要。
Overview of Administrative Law
Administrative law is the body of law that governs the activities of administrative agencies of government.Government agencyaction can include rulemaking， adjudication， or the enforcement of a specific regulatory agenda. Administrative law is considered a branch of public law. As a body of law， administrative law deals with the decision-making of administrative units of government that are part of a national regulatory scheme in such areas as police law， international trade， manufacturing， the environment， taxation， broadcasting， immigration and transport. Administrative law expanded greatly during the20th century， as legislative bodies worldwide created more government agencies to regulate the increasingly complex social， economic and political spheres of human interaction.
Administrative law in common law countries
Generally speaking， most countries that follow the principles of common law have developed procedures for judicial review thatlimitthe reviewability of decisions made by administrative law bodies. Often these procedures are coupled with legislation or other common law doctrines thatestablish standards for proper rulemaking. Administrative law may also apply to review of decisions of so-called semi-public bodies， such as non-profit corporations， disciplinary boards， and other decision-making bodies that affect the legal rights of members of a particular group or entity.
While administrative decision-making bodies are often controlled bylarger governmental units， their decisions could be reviewed by a court of general jurisdiction under some principle of judicial review based upon due process （ United States） or fundamental justice （ Canada） . Judicial review of administrative decisions， it must be noted， is different from an appeal. When sitting in review of a decision， the court will only look at the method in which the decision was arrived at， whereas in appeal the correctness of the decision itself will be under question. This difference is vital in appreciating administrative law in common law countries.
The scope of judicial review may be limited to certain questions of fairness， or whether the administrative action is ultra vires. The powers to review administrative decisions are usually established by statute， but were originally developed from the royal prerogative writs of English law， such as the writ of mandamus and the writof certiorari. In certain Common Law jurisdictions， such as India or Pakistan， the power to pass such writs is a constitutionally guaranteed power. This power is seen as fundamental to the power of judicial review and an aspect of the independent judiciary.
United States
In the United States， many government agencies are organized under the executive branch of government， although a few are part of the judicial or legislative branches.
In the federal government， the executive branch， led by the President， controls the federal executive departments， which are led by secretaries who are members of the United States Cabinet. The many important independent agencies of the United States government created by statutes enacted by the Congress that are exist outside of the federal executive departments but are still part of the executive branch. Congress has also created some special judicial bodies known as Article I tribunals to handle some areas of administrative law.
United States administrative law encompasses a number of statutes and cases which define the extent of the powers and responsibilities held by administrative agencies of the United States Government. Justice Breyer defines administrative law in four parts. Namely， the legal rules and principles that：①define the authority and structure of administrative agencies；②specify the procedural formalities employed by agencies；③determine the validity of agency decisions； and④define the role of reviewing courts and other governmental entities in relation to administrative agencies.
The actions of executive agencies and independent agencies are the main focus of American administrative law. In response to the rapid creation of new independent agencies in the early 20th century， Congress enacted the Administrative Procedure Act（ APA） in 1946. Many of the independent agencies operate as miniature versions of the tripartite federal government，with the authority to“legislate”（ through rulemaking） ，“adjudicate”（ through administrative hearings） ， and to“execute”administrative goals （ through agency enforcement personnel） . Because the United States Constitution sets no limits on this tripartite authority of administrative agencies， Congress enacted the APA to establish fair administrative law procedures to comply with the constitutional requirements of due process.
The American Bar Association s official journal concerning administrative law is Administrative Law Review.
adjudicate / d u dikeit/vt. &；； vi. 宣判；裁定
adjudication / d u di kei n/n.判决，裁定，破产之宣告
reviewability /ri vjubil ti/n.复议
writ /rit/n.令状；文书；法院命令
validity /v liditi/n.有效性；正确性；正确
due process of l aw 正当法律程序
prerogati ve wri ts紧急令； （英国国王的）特权令