Politics and Administrative Justice
Postliberalism, Street-Level Bureaucracy and the Reawakening of Democratic Citizenship
By Nick O’Brien
Published
Jun 10, 2025Page count
168 pagesISBN
978-1529230598Dimensions
234 x 156 mmImprint
Bristol University PressPublished
Dec 20, 2023Page count
168 pagesISBN
978-1529230581Dimensions
234 x 156 mmImprint
Bristol University PressPublished
Dec 20, 2023Page count
168 pagesISBN
978-1529230604Dimensions
234 x 156 mmImprint
Bristol University PressPublished
Dec 20, 2023Page count
168 pagesISBN
978-1529230604Dimensions
234 x 156 mmImprint
Bristol University Press
Politics and Administrative Justice
In recent years, failures in health and social care, mental health services, public housing and education have dominated headlines and been the subject of much public debate. The means for addressing such concerns remain notably legalistic and subject to a particular brand of liberal legalism that stifles the possibility of transformational intervention.
This book argues that there is urgent need for a radical reassessment of the way the law mediates between citizens and the state. Drawing on historical and comparative research, literary, pictorial and cinematic treatments, and the insights of the disability rights movement, Nick O’Brien examines how the everyday regulation of street-level bureaucracy can play an integral part in reimagining postliberal politics and the role of the law.
“Nick O’Brien has made a typically thought-provoking contribution to the literature on administrative justice, powerfully arguing that democratic participation should be at the core of official responses to citizen grievances.” Paul Daly, University of Ottawa
“A highly original analysis of administrative justice. This is a must-read for anyone interested in street-level bureaucracy, and how to improve the everyday relationships between citizens and the state.” Marc Hertogh, University of Groningen
Nick O’Brien was Legal Director at the Disability Rights Commission from 2000 to 2007 and Honorary Research Fellow in the School of Law and Social Justice at the University of Liverpool from 2007 to 2022.
Chapter 1 Introduction
Chapter 2 Street-Level Bureaucracy and Response to Citizen Grievance
Chapter 3 The ‘Social Imaginary’ of Liberal Legalism
Chapter 4 The Promise of Postliberalism
Chapter 5 Citizen Grievance and the Spectre of Legalism
Chapter 6 Postliberal Response to Citizen Grievance: The Challenge of Disability Human Rights
Chapter 7 Responding to Grievance: The Mental Health System and Special Educational Needs
Chapter 8 Postliberal Administrative Justice
Chapter 9 Administrative Justice Beyond ‘Administrative Justice’
Bibliography
Index
