Roots and Diffusion of the Austrian Law on Administrative Procedure of 1925: Two forgotten Legal Transfers

Abstract

This article examines the development and diffusion of the Austrian General Law on Administrative Procedure of 1925 (AVG), highlighting two key legal transfers. The first is a movement across time from imperial case law in the Austro-Hungarian Empire to the codification in Austria’s republican system, with participatory rights and due process principles rooted in the Imperial Administrative Court’s (Verwaltungsgerichtshof – VwGH) case law. The second is a movement across space as the AVG became an influential archetype across Central and Eastern Europe, impacting countries such as Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Hungary. This diffusion, facilitated by former Austro-Hungarian scholars and judges, underscores the AVG’s significant yet often underrecognised role in shaping administrative law in diverse jurisdictions. The article argues that the AVG has been foundational in affirming procedural law as a cornerstone of good administration.