Graduate | Current Syllabi | Term002 |

University System of Maryland

Bowie State University

PUAD 535: Government Administrative Problems:

Administrative Law

David R. J. Kenyatta, JD, Ph.D- Lecturer

Syllabus for Term II, 2000-2001

(Tentative)

Course Description: This course is an introduction to the elements associated with administrative law. Because administrative law is basically procedural law, heavy emphasis will be placed on the source, use and restrictions of authority granted to administrative agencies. The role of constitutional due process on agency activities will also be a central focus.

Required Texts:

Cann, Steven J. Administrative Law 2nd Ed. Sage Publications Inc., Thousand Oaks, CA, 1998.

Oran, Daniel. Law Dictionary for Non-Lawyers. 3rd ed. West, 1991.

 

Internet Access- Familiarity with the following web sites is required:

UMUC (stateside): http://umuc.edu/

Web Basics: http://www.zdnet.com/

Legal Information Institute: http://www.law.cornell.edu/

WWW Virtual Library: http://www.law.indiana.edu/v-lib/

Law.Com: http://www.law.com/

CEO Express: http://www.ceoexpress.com/

Federal Web Locator: http://www.infoctr.edu/fwl/

Course Objectives:

Upon successful completion of this course, the student should:

1. be able to identify key terms and phases associated with the law in general and with administrative law in particular.

2. be able to discuss administrative law, its procedural nature, and its linkage with federal, state and local governments.

3. be able to recognize the interrelationship between the different branches of government and how issues concerning constitutional authority, separation of powers, and political consequences impact agency policies and decision-making.

4. be familiar with various governmental agencies that possess regulatory powers over different segments of our society, the source of said powers, and restrictions (if any) to the use of said powers.

Course Requirements:

Throughout this class, discussions and analysis will serve as the principle tools of education. It is essential for the participant to understand the nature and quality of views and orientations different from his/her own. Ergo, the original text of court decisions and administrative rulings will be examined. Original text, not secondary replications, is the best way of understanding how issues, which are handled by administrative agencies, are evaluated. To this end, this course will require the following:

1. Six small papers (minimum of two, maximum of three pages) will be required. Three of the papers will examine purely judicial decisions and three will examine judicial decisions that began as administrative actions. Each submission will be valued at 5% of your overall grade.

2. One large term paper (20 page minimum), which will examine as many aspects of a single administrative matter from start to finish as possible (additional information will be given at the commencement of the course). This paper will be valued at 40% of your overall grade.

3. There will be one exam on a date to be announced. The exam will be valued at 30% of your overall grade.

4. Participation and involvement will be valued at 10% of your final grade.

 

READING ASSIGNMENTS

The assigned text will serve only as an outline for the investigation of the area. The class will be assigned supplemental material, all available on the Internet. The text is divided into three parts. Each section will be explored quickly, with cases supplementing the text.

Part I: Politics, Democracy, and Bureaucracy

In this section, we will begin with an examination of the Constitution of the United States. As the foundation of all that follows, the Constitution serves as the source of all subsequent law. Therefore, certain key principles will be explored early in the course. Specifically, the following areas will be examined during this section:

Separation of Powers

Delegation of Legislative Power

Delegation of Adjudicative Power

Due Process, both Procedural and Substantive

Administrative Procedure Act (APA)

Various cases will be briefed and submitted for grading within this and the subsequent sections.

Part II: The Administrative Process

This section will focus on the government and their relationship to the citizenship. How the government acquires and use information, how the information may be dispersed and when (under what circumstances) may the government take action against private entities, etc., all are addressed in this section. Particular attention will be paid to constitutional protection against agency information gathering and freedom of information provisions at both state and federal level.

 

Part III: Substantive Issues in Administrative Law

The "meat and potatoes" of the course, this section addresses several key issues such as the scope of judicial review, reviewability of agency decisions, remedies, and standing to seek judicial review.

 

GRADES

86-100 A

76-85 B

70-75 C

Below 69 F

 

Communications

The instructor can be reached by traditional mail at the following addresses:

University of Maryland- Europe Unit 29216 APO AE 09102

International Mail: Im Bosseldorn 30 69126 Heidelberg, Germany

Email:

DrKenyatta@compuserve.com (emergency)

Dkenyatt@faculty.umuc.edu (class related activities)

Dkenyatt@ed.umuc.edu (read every workday)

Drkenyatta@hotmail.com

Phone: Work: +49-6221-378-208

Home: +49-6223-970-529

QUOTES

Sir Edward Coke (1552-1634)

Reason is the life of the law; nay, the common law itself is nothing else but reason.

 

Aristotle (384-322 B.C.)

Law is order and good law is good order.

I have gained this by philosophy- that I do without being commanded what others do only from fear of the law.

 

Northern Securities Co. v. United States, 193 U.S.197, 400 [1904]

Great cases like hard cases make bad law.

Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 B.C.)

Salus populi suprema est lex.

[The people's good is the highest law.]

 

The Holy Bible: Acts- Romans

These, having not the law, are a law unto themselves.

Where no law is, there is no transgression.

 

John Adams- "Novanglus" papers, Boston Gazette (1977)

A government of laws, and not of men.