“Without Which Nothing”: Public Law As the Sine Qua Non of Public Administration

Abstract

Without public law, there is and can be no public administration in a nation that is a constitutional republic founded on the rule and supremacy of law. Public law is the basis for authority and a foundation for discretion. It is also a basis for creativity and innovation. This article considers how public law empowers administration, why public service professionals cannot assume authority and discretion, and why they need to be alert to public law if they wish to build an innovative public administration for the future particularly in the contemporary context.