Administrative Notice: Social Science and Common Sense

A long-standing issue in administrative law is the extent to which decision-makers can take "judicial notice" of information about the world. Decision-makers are selected typically on the basis of their expertise. But this expertise is liable to be wide-ranging. Sometimes, they will drawn on their background knowledge to support a decision. In such circumstances, however, the individual who comes out on the losing side may well feel hard done by, for not having had a chance to prepare a considered response to the information relied upon.