Global administrative law through the Polish lens: From practice to theory

Abstract

Polish interest in global administrative law was a result of practical factors: cases of interference between national law and lex sportiva, quality standards and wood certification. Polish academia opted for a utilitarian explanation of those cases based on prior legal theories stemming from national and international law as well as from the economic power of sport bodies and private standard setters. As global administrative law is deeply fragmented and straddles national/international legal orders, its unity as a system is doubtful. Global administrative law should not be perceived as a body of law but as an alternative theory explaining legal phenomena resulting from globalization. As a doctrinal idea, it derives from the traditions of common law, which need to be translated into Continental/positivistic language. Given the American understanding of “administration,” “accountability,” and “sources of law” global administrative law can be read correctly only in a given legal tradition. The article serves as a counterpoint to voices calling for the abandonment of present legal concepts and proposes the adaptation of the existing terminology of international/national law to changing circumstances.