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Stroink, Frits --- "The Relation between Private Law and Administrative Law in View of Globalization" [2010] ELECD 291; in Faure, Michael; van der Walt, André (eds), "Globalization and Private Law" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2010)

Book Title: Globalization and Private Law

Editor(s): Faure, Michael; van der Walt, André

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781848447608

Section: Chapter 5

Section Title: The Relation between Private Law and Administrative Law in View of Globalization

Author(s): Stroink, Frits

Number of pages: 6

Extract:

5. The relation between private law and
administrative law in view of
globalization
Frits Stroink

1 THE TRUE NATURE OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW
What is administrative law? In most manuals you find a definition such as:
administrative law is law governing the relation between administration and
citizen. That is true, but not the whole truth. Indeed, the administration deter-
mines unilaterally the legal position of a citizen when conferring licences,
subsidies and so on, but, for a large part, administrative law aims at regulat-
ing, directing and determining the legal relation between citizens.
Administrative law is an instrument of the administration to realize public
policies in society. Administrative law is the result of the policy making
process. The law (in fact the people via the parliament) gives the administra-
tion the tools, the power to intervene in society.
Let me give some examples. The conditions of an environmental licence are
of course meant to protect the environment (an aspect of the general interest)
but they are also meant to protect the legal position of neighbours (third inter-
ested parties). If a licence holder does not meet the conditions of a licence, he
can under Dutch law commit a tort against a neighbour. This is a clear example
that an administrative decision influences the private law relation between two
citizens (a licence holder and his neighbour). This is not only the case with
environmental licences but also with other licences like building licences.
Another example is to be found in the field ...