Nature of Public Law

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1. INTRODUCTION Public law is that area of constitutional, administrative, criminal, and international law that focuses on the organization of the government, the relations between the state and its citizens, the responsibilities of government officials, and the relations between sister states. It is concerned with political matters, including the powers, rights, capacities, and duties of various levels of government and government officials. Public law refers to an act that applies to the public at large; as opposed to a private law that concerns private individual rights, duties, and liabilities. Sedley J "Public law is not at base about rights, even though abuses of power may and often do invade private rights; it is about wrongs - that is to say, misuses of public power." Public Law Definition “A general classification of law concerned with the political and sovereign capacity of a state.” Public law is that part of law which governs relationships between individuals and the government, and those relationships between individuals which are of direct concern to the society. Public law comprises constitutional law, administrative law, tax law and criminal law, as well as all procedural law. 2. WHAT IS PUBLIC LAW? A. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND The idea that the administration of the state should be controlled by a set of laws was originated in France, Germany and Austria in the 18th century. It is related to the strong position of the central government in the era of enlightened absolutism, and was inspired by the French Revolution and enlightenment. It developed hand in hand with the creation of civil codes and criminal codes. As late as at the beginning of the 20th century, United Kingdom had no public law. Not only was this theoretical category absent, there was no body of law governing the administration of public affairs.
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