When may an administrative agency cancel an unlawful or improper disposition that grants rights or interests, and when is it limited to cancelling it for the future only?
General information · Not legal advice
Material to check
In a practice file of this kind, we read the disposition itself, to see whether it granted the party a right or interest, and any correspondence or record showing that the party relied on it, alongside the agency's reasoning for cancelling it.
These are types of material to look for, not evidence already verified by PRO SE.
Where readings differ
One reading states that an administrative agency may cancel an unlawful or improper disposition in whole or in part retroactively, but where there is a legitimate reason, such as the party's reliance deserving protection, the cancellation operates toward the future instead.
Another reading notes that where the disposition granted rights or interests, the agency must first weigh the disadvantage the party suffers from cancellation against the public interest the cancellation achieves, and the provision removes that weighing only where the disposition was obtained by falsehood or other improper means, or where the party knew of its unlawfulness or did not know of it through serious negligence.
Your judgment
If the party relied on the disposition but also knew of its unlawfulness, how could the agency show which of these grounds should govern the cancellation?
PRO SE does not make this decision or keep a case record on this public site.When to reconsider
We look at this again if the provision is amended to change the grounds for prospective-only cancellation, or if a court decision explains what counts as a legitimate reason to protect a party's reliance.