Implementation of the Pan-European General Principles of Good Administration in Bulgaria? It would be a really good idea

Abstract

This chapter canvasses the impact on the administrative law of Bulgaria of the pan-European principles of good administration developed by the Council of Europe (CoE) in the aftermath of socialism and in the shadow of EU integration. It zeroes in on each of the three channels of CoE influence—the direct effects of the CoE conventions ratified by Bulgaria, the indirect introduction of pan-European principles by the national legislator, and through application of the European Convention on Human Rights. It finds that the influence of all these channels has been limited although some progress has been made. Finally, it places the quest for pan-European principles and good administration in the context of Bulgarian legal culture and argues that the formalist character of the latter is a serious impediment to the actual effect that any legal principles (as opposed to rules) may have in the country.