''Delegata potestas non potest delegari'' is a principle in

constitutional A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princip ...

and

administrative law Administrative law is the division of law that governs the activities of government agency, executive branch agencies of Forms of government, government. Administrative law concerns executive branch rule making (executive branch rules are gener ...

that means in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

that "no delegated powers can be further delegated." Alternatively, it can be stated ''delegatus non potest delegare'' ("one to whom power is delegated cannot himself further delegate that power").Mullan, D.J. (2001) Essentials of Canadian Law: Administrative Law. Toronto: Irwin Law. . p. 368 The principle is present in several

jurisdictions Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, areas of jurisdiction apply to local, state, and federal levels. Jur ...

such as that of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

and

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

as well as in

Catholic canon law The canon law of the Catholic Church ("canon law" comes from Latin ') is "how the Church organizes and governs herself". It is the system of laws and ecclesiastical legal principles made and enforced by the hierarchical authorities of the Catholi ...

Canada

The principle was first articulated in

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in 1943, in an article in the ''Canadian Bar Review'' by John Willis. While it is acknowledged as "the seminal articulation of the law governing the subdelegation of statutory and discretionary powers" and it is still often cited, it has not achieved the rigid standing that was originally intended. The maxim has had some success as an operating principle in the restriction of delegation of legislative and judicial powers, but the demands of modern governmental regulatory practices have inhibited its application in the delegation of administrative powers. Exceptions are rare and dependent on the statute conferring power.

India

, the principle is used in

Indian Contract Act, 1872 The Indian Contract Act, 1872 prescribes the law relating to contracts in India and is the key act regulating Indian contract law. The Act is based on the principles of English Common Law. It is applicable to all the states of India. It determi ...

Sec 190 which deals with agency. It was first applied in ''A K ROY v. State Of Punjab'', (1986) 4 SCC 326, that sub delegation of delegated power is ultra vires to the Enabling Act.

United States

In the United States, one of the earliest mentions of the principle occurred when it was cited by counsel for one of the litigants before the

Supreme Court of Pennsylvania The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Unified Judicial System. It also claims to be the oldest appellate court in the United States, a claim that is disputed by the Massachusetts Supreme ...

in 1794, in ''M'Intire v. Cunningham'', 1 Yeates 363 (Pa. 1794). The summary of the case reports, "Mr. Wilson had given no power to Noarth to transact his business; but if he even had, it is a maxim, that delegata potestas non potest delegari."''M'Intire v. Cunningham'', 1 Yeates 363 (Pa. 1794). The maxim was first cited by the

Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

in ''United States v. Sav. Bank'', 104 U.S. 728 (1881) in which the case summary reports that one of the litigants argued, "The duty imposed by statute on the commissioner cannot be delegated to a collector. Delegata potestas non potest delegari."
United States v. Sav. Bank
', 104 U.S. 728 (1881); ''see also'',

'', 276 U.S. 394, 405-406 (U.S. 1928).

Australia

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

the maxim has been largely superseded by

Statute A statute is a formal written enactment of a legislative authority that governs the legal entities of a city, state, or country by way of consent. Typically, statutes command or prohibit something, or declare policy. Statutes are rules made by le ...

and

common law In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...

. There is a long line of authorities applying the Carltona principles to Australia. Though courts have found that where a statute expressly requires a personal action, such delegation is not possible. In ''Dooney'' The

High Court of Australia The High Court of Australia is Australia's apex court. It exercises Original jurisdiction, original and appellate jurisdiction on matters specified within Constitution of Australia, Australia's Constitution. The High Court was established fol ...

( Callinan J), observed that'' "No permanent head of a department in the Public Service is expected to discharge personally all the duties which are performed in his name and for which he is accountable to the responsible Minister''." This case law has been backed up by

legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolled bill, enrolling, enactment of a bill, enacting, or promulgation, promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous Government, governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law i ...

. Section 34AA and 34AAB of the

federal government A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governin ...

s ''

Acts Interpretation Act 1901 The ''Acts Interpretation Act 1901'' (Cth) is an Interpretation Act of the Parliament of Australia which establishes rules for the interpretation of Australian Acts and other legislation. The Act applies only to Commonwealth legislation, with e ...

'' clearly create a statutory power to delegate, contrary to the maxim. The federal legislation is echoed in some state legislationInterpretation Act 1918 ( WA). Section 34AB(1)(b) however prohibits a delegate to further delegate, consequently a Minister delegating to Secretary does not allow the Secretary to delegate to Astt Secretary. The vestiges of maxim have therefore been preserved by the Act.

Catholic canon law

Canon 137 of the ''

1983 Code of Canon Law The 1983 ''Code of Canon Law'' (abbreviated 1983 CIC from its Latin title ''Codex Iuris Canonici''), also called the Johanno-Pauline Code, is the "fundamental body of ecclesiastical laws for the Latin Church". It is the second and current comp ...

'' states: :§ 1 Ordinary executive power can be delegated either for an individual case or for all cases, unless the law expressly provides otherwise. :§ 2 Executive power delegated by the

Apostolic See An apostolic see is an episcopal see whose foundation is attributed to one or more of the apostles of Jesus or to one of their close associates. In Catholicism the phrase, preceded by the definite article and usually capitalized, refers to the S ...

can be subdelegated, either for an individual case or for all cases, unless the delegation was deliberately given to the individual alone, or unless subdelegation was expressly prohibited. :§ 3 Executive power delegated by another authority having ordinary power, if delegated for all cases, can be subdelegated only for individual cases; if delegated for a determinate act or acts, it cannot be subdelegated, except by the express grant of the person delegating. :§ 4 No subdelegated power can again be subdelegated, unless this was expressly granted by the person delegating.

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