# Supreme Court clarifies doctrine of ratification in administrative law 2026-08-08T06:54:00+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet The Supreme Court has ruled that when a competent authority ratifies an act initially performed without proper authority, the ratification relates back to the date of the original act. This means the act is validated as if prior authority had existed from the start. A Bench of Justice Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha and Justice Alok clarified the principles of the doctrine of ratification in administrative law. The judgment settles that ratification cannot cure an act that was void ab initio, but can validate acts that were merely unauthorised at the time. ## Coverage - livelaw.in Tags: administrative law, doctrine of ratification, Justice Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha, retrospective validation, Supreme Court Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/supreme-court-clarifies-doctrine-of-ratification-in-administrative-law/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/supreme-court-clarifies-doctrine-of-ratification-in-administrative-law/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes.