Droit administratif
From French law
Constitutional and public law
What it means
A separate body of law that governs the state and its dealings with citizens, applied by separate administrative courts headed by the Conseil d'État.
Why it travels badly
'Administrative law' in English usually means the rules on how public bodies act, enforced by the ordinary courts. In the French model, it is a distinct branch of law with its own courts, its own principles and its own history. The old English tradition, in Dicey's account, viewed it with suspicion, since it held that officials and citizens should be treated alike before the same courts.
How other systems say it
droit administratif
Built by the Conseil d'État case by case, beginning with decisions such as Blanco (1873).
Verwaltungsrecht with Verwaltungsgerichte
Separate administrative courts, with a Federal Administrative Court at the top.
administrative law (judicial review)
The ordinary courts review the actions of public bodies. There are specialist tribunals, but no separate court system.
administrative law
Governed largely by the Administrative Procedure Act of 1946 and reviewed by ordinary federal courts.
Tip for translators and students
Translate 'droit administratif' as 'French administrative law' and add that it has its own courts, to avoid reading it as the English concept.
Related: Rechtsstaat, Judicial review, Standing (locus standi)
Updated October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
TheLawToKnow Tools’s glossary is an educational overview of the main differences between legal systems. It is not legal advice.
