Comment On a judgment of The Palestinian Court of Justice in Case No. 2016/43 "Direct and potential interest between the civil lawsuit and the administrative lawsuit"

Abstract

The decision subject to commentary represents special importance in the legal field specially that it addresses a controversial topic in both Civil and Administrative Laws. The essence of this comment focuses on the nature, scope, and controls on the interest in both lawsuits: the civil and administrative, which still subject to research and controversy as regards its extent in judicial applications.

The interest condition is the main core of accepting a lawsuit before all judicial authorities regardless the type of claim, but the scope of interest and its characteristics and motives differ between a civil lawsuit and the administrative one. In civil lawsuits, interest is based on a right that has been violated or threatened to be violated. These lawsuits are characterized by its objective of protecting a personal or individual legal positions, while interest in administrative lawsuits is based on the protection of the principle of legality or the protection of legal provisions, it protects the law in its wide concept. Based on this fact, the implementation of the interest definition is wider in administrative lawsuits than its implementation scope in civil lawsuits.

Jurisprudence agree that the interest condition is wide, flexible, and requires standards and controls in determining its definition, especially if it’s a potential interest, as in the case subject to commentary. Moreover, the legislator has avoided imposing these standards due to its objective nature that varies according to disputes and lawsuits, the appellant position, and the surrounding circumstances. This makes it imperative for the competent judiciary to address these standards and controls further than the discrepancy and contradiction in its rulings towards the definition of interest.

Given the importance of the concept of interest in both civil and administrative lawsuits as a condition for acceptance of the lawsuit, the importance of studying this condition in light of its judicial application in a comparative manner has emerged.