Principle of Continuity of Administrative Proceedings

The article discusses the essence, sources, content and meaning of the principle of continuity of administrative proceedings. The objective of administrative proceedings is to settle an individual case consisting in determining the legal situation of an individual in terms of rights and obligations in the public law sphere. This objective is achieved by the public administration authority by carrying out a series of orderly procedural actions consisting in the recognition and consideration of the case which is the subject of the proceedings. Continuity of proceedings is considered to be a universal principle inherent in any modern legal procedure. The principle of continuity is a directive that the proceedings should constitute a compact, uninterrupted course of procedural actions. The continuity of the proceedings is expressed by two features organising its course: uninterruptible character and integrity. The relevance of the continuity of administrative proceedings can also be determined through procedural facts and situations that interrupt the course of proceedings. Continuity of proceedings, expressed in the form of a procedural principle, can also be recognised as a procedural value.