Certain types of actions against government institutions may only be taken through special courts assigned for this purpose.
The common denominator of these lawsuits is that they challenge governmental or institutional decisions in court with the aim of having such decisions reversed or modified.
Ordinary monetary, contractual or tort claims against government institutions are not dealt with in this context, but have to be lodged with the usual courts (local or district) like
other claims of this type.
The tribunal best known for this type of action is the High Court, which used to sit in judgement over all petitions against government bodies. Nowadays, due to the heavy work load,
the High Court deals mainly with human rights issues, and a so-called Court for Administrative Affairs was set up separately to specialise in various types of petitions and appeals
against the authorities.
The Court for Administrative Affairs is in fact a District Court sitting as a Court for Administrative Affairs handling various matters falling within the jurisdiction of the particular
authority that has made the decision being contested.
The Court for Administrative Affairs is authorised to consider petitions against local authority decisions on rates, education and the like, planning and development, public tendering
processes, permits, licensing etc.
Appeals can also be lodged against Appeals Committee decisions in a variety of areas such as local authority rates, the environment and driving licences.
Although monetary actions cannot as a rule be brought before the Court for Administrative Affairs, a small number of monetary claims (known as Administrative Actions) may be
lodged, such as claims for compensation over a public tendering process and class actions against the authority in question.
Our firm represents plaintiffs and defendants in all areas of Administrative Law. These include cases concerning local rates, planning and development, licensing, and public tendering
processes.