The ultra vires doctrine

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When a power vested in a public authority is exceeded, acts done in excess of the power are invalid as being ultra vires. The ultra vires doctrine serves to control those who exceed the powers, which an Act has given. E.g. where a local council, whose capacity to act and to regulate private activities is derived from statute, acts outside the scope of that authority. In many fields parliament has provided no right of appeal against administrative decisions. Nonetheless the superior courts still exercise a supervisory jurisdiction on matters such as limits of an authority's powers, which affect the legality of official decisions.

In exercising this jurisdiction, the courts take account of the principles of administrative law that have developed from judicial decision, and also the specific legislation that applies to the subject matter.

The legislation that applies to public authorities is made up of many separate Acts, varying widely in the powers conferred, the agencies in whom they are vested, and the extent of protection for private interests. The legal solution to many administrative disputes inevitably involves some form of judicial discretion. Even if the relevant principles are clear, their application to a particular dispute is