This book examines the effects of different legal and political administrative systems and models on public governance in terms of organizational frameworks, operational activities and the manifestation of the rule of law. It also analyses instrumental and normative constitutional legal perspectives on government and bureaucracy as it pertains to law as an instrumental tool for government, public administration and bureaucracy. The book adopts a comparative approach, discussing Western traditions and their influence in the world, as well as systems in Africa, Asia and Latin America. In bridging the gap between law and public administration, the book provides an important interdisciplinary and comparative perspective to help understand this complex relationship. It is essential reading for scholars and students of public administration, governance and law, as well as practitioners.

Frits M. van der Meer holds the Chair ‘Comparative Public Sector and Civil Service Reform’ at the Institute of Public Administration, Leiden University, The Netherlands.

Heinrich B. Winter is Professor of Public Administration at the University of Gronigen, The Netherlands.