LEGAL SELF-DEFENSE TIP: AN ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL vs. A COURT OF RECORD Administrative Tribunals are hybrid adjudicating authorities which straddle the line between government and the courts. Administrative tribunals are often referred to as Commission, Authority or Board. Between routine government policy decision-making bodies and the traditional court forums lies a hybrid, sometimes called a tribunal or administrative tribunal and not necessarily presided by judges. These operate as a government policy-making body at times but also exercise a licensing, certifying, approval or other adjudication authority which is quasi-judicial because it directly affects the legal rights of a person. An administrative tribunal hears evidence, makes findings of fact and applies policy. An administrative tribunal may act judicially, but still remain an administrative tribunal as distinguished from a Court. The distinguishing mark of an administrative tribunal is that it possesses a complete, absolute and unfettered discretion and, having no fixed standard to follow, it is guided by its own ideas of policy and expediency. Hence, acting within its proper province and observing any procedural formalities prescribed, it cannot err in substantive matters because there is no standard for it to follow and hence no standard to judge or correct it by. In common law jurisdictions, a court of record is a trial court in which a court clerk or a court reporter takes down a record of proceedings. That written record (and all other evidence) is preserved, at least long enough for all appeals to be exhausted, or for some further period of time provided by law. Most courts of record have rules of procedure, and therefore they require that most parties be represented by counsel lawyers (specifically, attorneys holding a license to practice law) before the specific tribunal. In contrast, in courts not of record, oral proceedings are not recorded, and the judge makes his or her decision based on memory. In most not of record proceedings, the parties can and usually do appear personally, without lawyers. For example, most small claims courts, traffic courts, a justice court presided over by a Justice of the Peace, many administrative tribunals that make initial governmental administrative decisions such as government benefit determinations, and the like are not courts of record.
Posted on: Tue, 16 Sep 2014 18:07:25 +0000
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