Annulment of Administrative Acts and Stay of Execution

It is a constitutional obligation that administrative acts established by the state or public institutions (administration) through unilateral declarations of will comply with the law. Lawsuits filed for the annulment of these acts in case of unlawfulness are called Annulment Lawsuits.

Elements of Administrative Acts and Unlawfulness

For an administrative act to be annulled, it must be unlawful in at least one of the following five elements:

• Competence (Authority): The authority or public official performing the act does not have the legal authority to do so.
• Form: Failure to comply with formal requirements such as written procedure, signature, or board decision prescribed by law.
• Cause (Reason): The legal or factual grounds on which the act is based do not match concrete reality.
• Subject: The legal result intended to be achieved by the act is contrary to the law.
• Purpose: The administrative act is performed for personal or political purposes other than the public interest.

Litigation Time Limits and Stay of Execution

Time limits for filing a lawsuit in administrative jurisdiction are preclusive. The general time limit is 60 days in the Council of State and Administrative Courts, and 30 days in Tax Courts.

Filing an administrative lawsuit, as a rule, does not automatically suspend the execution of that act. In order to prevent loss of rights, a Stay of Execution (SOE) must be requested together with the lawsuit. For a stay of execution to be granted, the following two conditions must be met concurrently:

1. The execution of the administrative act will cause damages that are difficult or impossible to compensate.
2. The administrative act is clearly unlawful.

Since lawsuits to be filed against unlawful administrative decisions are subject to technical time and procedural rules, it is vital to carry out the process with an attorney specializing in administrative law.