JUDICIAL AND QUASI-JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS OF AN ADMINISTRATIVE BODY

• Date: 06 February 2019

"In matters of this nature, the earlier view of the law is that an administrative body, in ascertaining facts, may be under a duty to act judicially notwithstanding that its proceedings have none of the formalities of, and are not conducted in accordance with, the practice and procedure of a Court of law. It is enough if it is exercising judicial functions in the sense that it has to decide, on the materials before it, between an allegation and a defence. (See R. v. Manchester Legal Aid Committee Ex parte R. v. Brandy & Co. Ltd. (1952) 1 All E.R. 480 at p. 489; Board of Education v. Rice (1911) A.C. 179 (H.L.) at 182; Local Government Board v. Arlidge (1915) A.C. 120 (H.L.) 120 at 132). The modern concept which, however, commends itself to us, is that the duty placed on such a body is to act fairly in all such cases. No labels such as "judicially" or "quasi judicially" are necessary, as they only tend to confuse. As Lord Parker, Lord Chief Justice of England, has aptly put it in Re H.K. (In Infant) (1967) 2 Q.B. 617 at 630, a case involving the immigration authorities: - "...that is not, as I see it, a question of acting or being required to act judicially, but of being required to act fairly". Thus, in Re Pergamon Press Ltd. (1971) Ch. 388 (C.A.) Lord Denning, M.R., said at p. 399 that the duty of the inspectors conducting an enquiry under section 165(b) of the Companies Act, 1948, to act fairly - "rests on them, as on many other bodies, even although they are not judicial nor quasi judicial but only administrative: see Reg. v. Gaming Board for Great Britain, Ex parte Benaim and Khaida (1970) 2 Q.B. 417." Again, as Sachs, L.J., pointed out at p. 402 of the same judgment: "It is not necessary to label the proceedingsjudicial,quasi judicial,administrative,investigatory, it is the characteristics of the proceeding that matter, not the precise compartments into which it falls". Moreover, wherever any body of persons having legal authority to determine questions affecting the rights of subjects, and having the duty to act judicially or fairly acts in excess of their legal...