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AN EXAMINATION OF THE ROLE OF THE BOARD OF TRANSPORT COMMISSIONERS FOR CANADA AS A REGULATORY TRIBUNAL *
Author(s) -
Wright Arthur R.
Publication year - 1963
Publication title -
canadian public administration
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.361
H-Index - 26
eISSN - 1754-7121
pISSN - 0008-4840
DOI - 10.1111/j.1754-7121.1963.tb00803.x
Subject(s) - tribunal , impartiality , natural justice , law , economic justice , flexibility (engineering) , political science , order (exchange) , administrative law , business , law and economics , sociology , economics , management , finance
In order to comprehend fully the working of an administrative board or tribunal, it is first necessary to establish the principles which form the basis of its operations. The concept of justice and equanimity between parties has come down to us in the form or theory of “a rule of law.” In attempting to examine the role of the Board of Transport Commissioners insofar as it affects railways in Canada, the concepts of natural justice and impartiality form the test pattern in the light of which the history, development, and operation of transportation is examined and the procedure, practice and problems of the Board are discussed. An examination of the historical development, character, functions and practices of the Board, bearing in mind the evolution of the transport industry and the requirements of a “rule of law” even in administrative or quasi‐judicial bodies, leads to the conclusion that it cannot be described accurately by either “administrative” or “judicial” designation. It is, nevertheless, possible to devise a “rule of law” in the administrative sense. It is the central thesis of this paper that the Board of Transport Commissioners for Canada is a judicial body possessing those apects of administrative tribunals which are conducive to flexibility and informality in the discharge of its supervisory and regulatory functions.