This article examines the institutional role of the administrative law judge (ALJ) within the American administrative state. Yoder analyzes how ALJs function as adjudicators inside executive agencies, distinguishing their responsibilities, authority, and constraints from those of Article III judges. The article situates ALJs within statutory and regulatory frameworks that govern agency adjudication rather than traditional judicial proceedings.
The work explains how administrative law judges are tasked with conducting hearings, developing records, and issuing findings or recommendations under governing statutes and agency rules. Yoder details the balance ALJs must maintain between decisional independence and their placement within executive branch structures, emphasizing that their authority derives from statute and delegated administrative power rather than constitutional judicial power.
The article further clarifies the procedural character of administrative adjudication, including evidentiary standards, record development, and the relationship between ALJ decisions and agency heads or reviewing bodies. By describing how administrative hearings operate as part of regulatory enforcement and governance, the work illustrates how adjudicative authority functions outside the conventional court system.
By presenting the administrative law judge as an institutional component of regulatory administration rather than a judicial substitute, the article provides insight into how modern legal systems resolve disputes, impose obligations, and enforce rules through administrative processes. The analysis reflects the structural reality of administrative adjudication as it is practiced within federal and state agencies.
Citation
Yoder, R. A. (2002). The role of the administrative law judge. Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judges, 22(1).
Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judges (PDF)