The principle of legitimate reliance in administration´s actions as a limit to the power of governmental authorities to declare their acts void

Abstract

Public administration has the power to review its own acts and invalidate those that are illegal. Such power has been questioned by Chilean authors and administrative case law. However, after the enactment of Law Nº 19.880 the discussion has turned on the limits of the exercise of this invalidating power. The principle of legitimate reliance -today embodied in German administrative procedure law- is the main limit to the invalidating power and its origins should be traced to authors´ opinions and case law. The protection of legitimate reliance has its sources in the constitutional principles of the rule of law and legal certainty. The principle of legitimate reliance provides the conceptual frame to define the limits of the governmental power of invalidation. The acknowledgement of this principle in Chilean administrative law may be a useful resource to explain and justify the limits of the administration´s invalidating power.