Section 40 Ripeness

• Library: Administrative Law 2011

In the context of judicial review of administrative action, ripeness issues arise when “there is nothing further to be done at the administrative level and yet it is still premature for judicial intervention.” 20A Alfred S. Neely, Missouri Administrative Practice and Procedure § 13.5 (4^th ed. 2006). The basic rationale for the ripeness doctrine is to “‘prevent the courts, through avoidance of premature adjudication, from entangling themselves in abstract disagreements over administrative policies, and also to protect the agencies from judicial interference until an administrative decision has been formalized and its effects felt in a concrete way by the challenging parties.’” Mo. Soybean Ass’n v. Mo. Clean Water Comm’n, 102 S.W.3d 10, 26 (Mo. banc 2003) (quoting Abbott Labs. v. Gardner, 387 U.S. 136, 148–49 (1967)).

While some reported decisions treat ripeness and exhaustion of administrative remedies as doctrines of finality, ripeness is a distinct concept rooted in the constitutional justiciability requirement of Article V, § 14(a), of the Missouri Constitution. See State ex rel. Whiteco Indus., Inc. v. Bowers, 965 S.W.2d 203, 206 (Mo...