If the respective officials have a certain relationship to the subject matter of the proceedings or to a party and are thus no longer objective and impartial, they are no longer entitled to make decisions. However, the grounds for bias do not apply to the authority itself. The law specifies various reasons, if present, that require the administrative organs to refrain from exercising their office.
These include:
- Matters in which they themselves, one of their relatives, or one of their dependents are involved;
- Matters in which they have been or are appointed as representatives of a party
- Presence of other important reasons that cast doubt on their full impartiality;
- Appeal proceedings in which they have participated in issuing the contested decision.
Parties do not have the right to challenge. However, each administrative organ must examine its bias ex officio. Only in case of imminent danger does the biased organ have to carry out the urgent official actions itself.
