Globalization, Democracy, and the Need for a New Administrative Law

Abstract

This article argues that a new administrative law is emerging, characterized in part by the following factors: (1) new blends of public and private power at all levels of government; (2) a redefinition of what is public and what is private; (3) greater reliance on bargaining and negotiation models of power; (4) a diminution of public participation stemming from increased reliance on privatization and, in effect, the delegation of public function to private entities; and (5) a market discourse that arguably narrows the role of noneconomic values in decisionmaking processes. I will argue that these emerging trends are indicative of the ways globalization has changed the nature of the relationship of markets to the state, creating a democracy deficit and necessitating new roles for administrative law.