Characteristics of Principle of Legitimate Expectations in Administrative Law

Public expectations from governments is different with Principle of legitimate expectations in administrative law. Historically, Principle of legitimate expectations in administrative law has been regarded as a distinctive protective principle for protecting citizens against government and administrative authorities. Legitimate expectations in administrative law is not a consistent theory, but primarily is the product of judicial precedent. But as long as is concerned to England, this principle like other overview principles is a judicial reaction to discretionary powers of administration and (unlike Germany and EU) has been applied in various situations. This makes this principle not only in conflict with other principles but makes it difficult to find a distinctive justification for applying it. This article with a descriptive method tries to approach to and recognize legitimate expectation in negative way: from trying to find and recognize a separate justifying base for legitimate expectations in legal doctrine and judicial precedent especially in England to recognition of distinctions to discern interior elements of the principle (legitimate expectations from reasonable expectations, legitimate expectations from legally enforceable rights and interests, legitimate expectations and contractual expectations, emphasis on internalist approach to legitimacy in contradiction with externalist approach to legitimacy and lastly, recognition of legitimate expectations as an enforceable interest in public law) in order to prevent some possible misunderstandings to comprehend this comparably new found principle in our legal literature.