Administrative and Constitutional Law

Working With Us, Step by Step

1. Initial consultation and understanding the facts: We listen to the details of your dispute with the administrative body and identify its nature: a decision to be annulled, compensation for harm, or a dispute over salary, promotion or an administrative contract. This classification shapes the whole path, because each type of claim has its own conditions and route. At this stage we give you our candid assessment of your legal position, strengths and weaknesses alike, so that your decision to pursue the dispute rests on a clear picture.
2. Reviewing the decision and the date you learned of it: We read the decision and its stated reasons, if any, verify which body issued it, and pin down exactly when it was notified to you, published, or when you gained definite knowledge of its content. Deadlines in administrative cases are short and run from notification or knowledge, not from when you discovered the harm, so calculating the deadline comes before any other step.
3. Filing a grievance where the law requires one: For certain decisions, particularly those concerning public employees, the law requires a grievance to the administrative body before a case is filed, failing which the case is inadmissible. We draft the grievance around the decision's clear defects and submit it to the competent body in a way that preserves proof of the filing date, then follow the administration's reply or silence and its legal consequences.
4. Preparing the statement of claim before the Administrative Circuit: If the grievance is rejected or was not required, we prepare and file the case before the Administrative Circuit of the Court of First Instance established by Decree-Law No. 20 of 1981, adding a request for a stay of execution where its conditions are met, together with the supporting documents and precise final requests that serve your actual goal.
5. Pleading and written submissions: We attend the hearings, respond to the administrative body's defence and documents, request the joinder of files or referral to an expert where needed, and examine your service file or the tender file where it is in dispute. The decisive documents are often held by the administration itself, so we ask the court to order their production and build on what they contain, or on the refusal to produce them. We keep you informed of developments and decisions at every hearing.
6. Following up the judgment, appeals and enforcement: Once judgment is issued we explain its effect, assess whether an appeal and then a cassation challenge are worthwhile if it goes against you, and track the appeal deadlines afresh. If the judgment is in your favour, we follow its implementation with the administrative body until it takes practical effect.

When Do You Need an Administrative Law Lawyer?

• When a decision terminates your service or dismisses you from a government post, or retires you against your wishes.
• When you are passed over for promotion in favour of a more junior colleague or one rated less competent, or denied an assessment or allowance you are entitled to.
• When a disciplinary penalty is imposed on you without an investigation, without hearing your statement, or out of proportion to the alleged violation.
• When your company is excluded from a government tender or practice, or the contract is awarded to a competitor in breach of the published tender terms.
• When you are transferred or seconded to a lower body or post as punishment or to sideline you, rather than in the interest of the work.
• When a licence is refused or withdrawn, or an administrative decision closes your commercial premises.
• When you suffer material or moral harm because of a wrongful administrative decision, or because a government body failed to take action the law requires of it.
• When you believe the legal provision applied to you is unconstitutional and want to raise that before the court hearing your dispute.

Documents to Bring to Your Consultation

• A complete copy of the disputed administrative decision, or any letter or message by which the body informed you of it.
• Proof of the date you were notified of or learned of the decision, such as a receipt, an email or a service record.
• A copy of any grievance you filed, with proof of its filing date, and any reply from the administration.
• For employees: the appointment decision, the latest performance reports, previous promotion and transfer decisions, and any summons or minutes relating to an administrative investigation.
• For companies in tenders: the tender documents, a copy of the bid submitted, the exclusion letter or award decision, and correspondence with the tendering body.
• For compensation claims: everything that proves the harm and its value, such as salary certificates, invoices, and medical or financial reports.
• A copy of your civil ID, your contact details, and any previous judgment or case on the same subject.
• A short chronology of events written by you; it saves consultation time and reveals deadline and evidence issues early.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is a grievance to the administrative body a precondition for filing a case?

Not for every decision. The law requires a grievance before an annulment case for a category of decisions, most notably public-employee matters such as appointment, promotion, disciplinary penalties and termination of service, and a case filed without one is dismissed on procedural grounds. For other decisions a grievance is optional rather than mandatory, but it can still be useful because it interrupts the time limit for challenge and gives the administration a chance to correct its decision without litigation. That is why we determine at the first consultation whether your decision is one that requires a grievance.

What if the administration does not reply to my grievance?

If the administration stays silent on a grievance for a certain period, that silence is treated as a rejection, and the time limit for filing the case starts to run. Many people wait for a reply and miss the deadline without realising it. So from the day the grievance is filed we calculate when the reply period ends and when the case must be filed, without making the next step depend on a written answer.

Can execution of an administrative decision be stayed until the case is decided?

Yes, a stay of execution can be requested in the annulment statement of claim itself. The court considers it urgently where two conditions are met: execution would lead to consequences that cannot be remedied, and the grounds of challenge appear serious on the face of the papers. The request is tied to the annulment case and is not accepted on its own. Typical examples include termination decisions that cut off an employee's livelihood and closure decisions that halt an ongoing business. Whether both conditions are met remains for the court to assess in the circumstances of each case.

My employer passed me over for promotion. Can I challenge it?

Yes, if you were passed over in breach of the promotion rules that apply in your body, such as seniority, merit or the conditions set by the regulations. We request access to the promotion decision and the details of those promoted and compare them with your career record and reports. The claim may seek annulment of the decision insofar as it passed you over, together with the resulting financial effects. The court does not substitute its own view of an employee's merit for the administration's, provided that assessment rests on sound grounds, but it does review its lawfulness and whether it is free of misuse of power or the omission of essential factors.

A disciplinary penalty was imposed on me without an investigation. Does it fall away?

The Court of Cassation has consistently held that investigating the employee, hearing his statement and enabling him to defend himself is a fundamental safeguard before any penalty is imposed, except in cases the law expressly exempts. If that safeguard is ignored, the decision is defective and open to annulment. A penalty can also be challenged if it is out of proportion to the alleged violation. For more, see our article on disciplinary proceedings in the civil service.

My company was excluded from a government tender. What can be done?

The first step is to request the reasons for exclusion in writing and compare them with the tender terms and the documents you submitted. You may then have a grievance before the body competent to hear tender complaints, followed by recourse to the courts to annul the exclusion or award decision, or a claim for compensation if the contract has already been signed and performed. Acting quickly is decisive here because award procedures do not wait, and once the contract is signed with a competitor the dispute may shift from annulment to a claim for compensation only. Our article on public tenders and government contracting goes into more detail.

Can I claim compensation from a ministry for harm caused by a wrongful decision?

Yes, the administration is liable for its unlawful decisions once fault, harm and a causal link between them are established. A compensation claim is not bound by the short annulment deadline but by the rules of limitation, which opens a door for those who missed the chance to challenge the decision itself. The judge assesses compensation for material and moral harm according to the evidence the claimant provides, which is why we take care from the outset to document the harm and link it directly to the decision. If judgment is issued and the body refuses to comply, see our article on enforcing judgments against administrative bodies.

Does the Administrative Circuit hear every government decision?

No. Decree-Law No. 20 of 1981 excludes a category of decisions from the Administrative Circuit's jurisdiction, including decisions on nationality and on the residence and deportation of non-Kuwaitis. This does not mean such matters have no remedy, as other routes may be available, such as an administrative grievance or pursuing the matter before the competent authority, which we assess case by case. And where the dispute turns on a legal provision that conflicts with the Constitution, its unconstitutionality can be raised before the court hearing the case, which assesses the seriousness of the plea and refers it to the Constitutional Court.