The Anatomy of Administrative Law

Bell concludes, as do I, that no attempt to render various doctrines coherent could be a purely descriptive exercise, but this is no bar to accounts that strive to promote intelligibility by explaining the causes and nature of doctrinal complexity, including by reference to values, and by helping readers to understand why the law is not coherent. Such intricacy and complexity, as revealed in The Anatomy of Administrative Law, is neither anaemic nor unsatisfying, and no less aesthetically pleasing than the red rose gracing the book’s front cover. -- Sarah Nason, Bangor Law School * Modern Law Review *
There are times when one has the pleasure of reading a scholarly book so clear and powerfully argued that the primary risk is of repetitive strain injury caused by nodding along so vigorously at its approach and conclusions. Dr Bell’s The Anatomy of Administrative Law is such a book … Dr Bell has made an invaluable contribution which deserves to be read widely by all those who spend their time dissecting the anatomy of administrative law. -- C J S Knight, 11KBW * Public Law *
This is an important book, with the grand ambition of persuading people not to search too hard for grand theories, and that works for me. -- Mark Aronson * Australian Journal of Administrative Law *
The Anatomy of Administrative Law is a major contribution to modern scholarship. It does not simply rake over familiar ground … Instead, it tells us how to approach the law, and how to approach scholarship. It is clear that Bell’s work reveals a real love for her subject, and an enthusiasm for best revealing it to others. -- Alistair Mills, Landmark Chambers * Cambridge Law Journal *
A must-read for administrative law scholars, as it offers a highly practical way in which to understand the work carried out in administrative adjudication ... this book is highly recommended. -- Richard Kirkham, University of Sheffield * UK Administrative Justice Institute Blog *
Scholarly and well-written, with plenty of valuable insights on topics of contemporary controversy … The Anatomy of Administrative Law will no doubt be seen as amongst the most important books on the topic of administrative law doctrine in first quarter of the 21st Century. -- Joe Tomlinson, Public Law Project * Administrative Law in the Common Law World Blog *
The fundamental virtue of this book is that Bell is making an argument for a distinctive scholarly method in the study of administrative law adjudication … Bell shows the benefits of studying legal structures and legal reasoning in more detail. -- Liz Fisher, University of Oxford * Administrative Law in the Common Law World Blog *
An important book, well worth reading from front to back and with care … Dr Bell’s excellent book is … an important reminder to those of us who seek a coherent set of values capable of unifying the general principles of administrative law that our search must have careful regard to the heterogeneity of contemporary administrative law. To understand the subject, we must first understand its anatomy. -- Paul Daly, University of Ottawa * Administrative Law in the Common Law World Blog *