, PUB3707
OCTOBER/NOVEMBER
(PORTFOLIO) 2026
DUE OCTOBER 2026
Portfolio Introduction
This portfolio examines two interrelated phenomena that lie at the heart of contemporary public
law: administrative adjudication and administrative discretion. Both concepts emerge from the
same constitutional tension. The trias politica doctrine, classically associated with Montesquieu,
envisions a strict separation between the legislature, the executive and the judiciary. Yet the
operational requirements of the modern state have rendered such inflexible separation impossible.
As the regulatory and welfare functions of government have expanded, legislative and judicial
authority has increasingly been transferred to executive institutions, giving rise to what is
commonly termed the administrative state. Within this state, public officials are entrusted not only
with the implementation of policy but also with the adjudication of disputes and the exercise of
choice in the application of legal norms to concrete facts. This portfolio explores these
developments in two parts.
The first part examines administrative adjudication, considering its meaning, nature and extent, the
institutions entrusted with it, the requirements for quasi-judicial decisions, and the advantages and
disadvantages of adjudication by way of administrative tribunals. The second part examines
administrative discretion, analysing administrative decision-making, the nature of discretion, its
exercise, its various kinds, the distinction between its use and abuse, and the requirements for
valid administrative discretion. Throughout, the discussion is grounded in South African
constitutional and administrative law, with reference to the Constitution, the Promotion of
Administrative Justice Act 3 of 2000, and leading case law. The portfolio argues that while
administrative adjudication and discretion are indispensable features of modern governance, they
must be constrained by the principles of legality, reasonableness and procedural fairness if the rule
of law is to be preserved. In this sense, the portfolio reflects the enduring challenge of reconciling
administrative efficiency with constitutional accountability.
OCTOBER/NOVEMBER
(PORTFOLIO) 2026
DUE OCTOBER 2026
Portfolio Introduction
This portfolio examines two interrelated phenomena that lie at the heart of contemporary public
law: administrative adjudication and administrative discretion. Both concepts emerge from the
same constitutional tension. The trias politica doctrine, classically associated with Montesquieu,
envisions a strict separation between the legislature, the executive and the judiciary. Yet the
operational requirements of the modern state have rendered such inflexible separation impossible.
As the regulatory and welfare functions of government have expanded, legislative and judicial
authority has increasingly been transferred to executive institutions, giving rise to what is
commonly termed the administrative state. Within this state, public officials are entrusted not only
with the implementation of policy but also with the adjudication of disputes and the exercise of
choice in the application of legal norms to concrete facts. This portfolio explores these
developments in two parts.
The first part examines administrative adjudication, considering its meaning, nature and extent, the
institutions entrusted with it, the requirements for quasi-judicial decisions, and the advantages and
disadvantages of adjudication by way of administrative tribunals. The second part examines
administrative discretion, analysing administrative decision-making, the nature of discretion, its
exercise, its various kinds, the distinction between its use and abuse, and the requirements for
valid administrative discretion. Throughout, the discussion is grounded in South African
constitutional and administrative law, with reference to the Constitution, the Promotion of
Administrative Justice Act 3 of 2000, and leading case law. The portfolio argues that while
administrative adjudication and discretion are indispensable features of modern governance, they
must be constrained by the principles of legality, reasonableness and procedural fairness if the rule
of law is to be preserved. In this sense, the portfolio reflects the enduring challenge of reconciling
administrative efficiency with constitutional accountability.
