Kırıkkale Hukuk Mecmuası

Öz

Administrative authorities must derive their authority from the legal framework to take administrative acts. These authorities are limited regarding person, subject, place and time. In principle, the order of administrative authority within the administration is determined by the Constitution and Codes in accordance with the principle of legality of the administration. Adhering to the doctrine of the legality of the administration, administrative acts are carried out by civil servants duly authorised by law. These individuals, known as administrative authorities, can delegate the authority vested in them for administrative acts based on the admissibility of such delegation. Following the 2017 Constitutional Amendment in Turkey, the introduction of Presidential Decrees as a novel category of public acts significantly sparked extensive debates within Turkish public law. Many of these decrees, emblematic of the primary regulatory authority of the executive, contain provisions permitting administrative authorities to delegate their powers. This study aims to scrutinise the competence element of the administrative act initially. Subsequently, it will evaluate traditional postulations concerning the delegation of authority in Turkish administrative law across four main domains: 'conditions for validity,' 'legal implications of legitimate delegation of authority,' 'legal ramifications of illegitimate delegation of authority,' and 'cessation of delegated authority.' This study posits that the legal framework governing the delegation of authority should be delineated through extant Codes and Presidential Decrees. Moreover, it contends that traditional doctrinal assumptions regarding the delegation of authority may not comprehensively elucidate the Turkish administrative law. In conclusion, it asserts that while administrative authorities may be empowered to take administrative acts through Presidential Decrees, the authorities stipulated in the Codes cannot be delegated solely based on Presidential Decrees. The provisions of the Presidential Decrees stating that the authorities stipulated in the Codes cannot be delegated by Presidential Decrees may prevent the unlawful delegation of the authority stipulated in the Codes.