- up to the courts whether you meet the requirements - one requirement: it is a public law matter - exhaust your remedies, e.g you might want to go through a statutory appeal first, - strict time limits e.g. 3 months, fairly short, this is different to private law where it can be 3yrs to 6 yrs. This difference is because government actions have wide ranging effect, economic implication etc. Whereas in private court you are allowed to dwell on whether - has to be justiciable -requirement of standing: requirement that there has to be a connection to the matter