The law of public properties is very closely linked to the birth of the State and that’s why I want to take this one as a comparative point. E. Kantorowicz analysed how the image of the King’s Two Bodies, in the Middle Ages, gave a justification for the separation of the King from its properties. This evolution is key for the creation of States in Europe, with the idea that the King’s powers are limited. S/he cannot alienate some properties because they belong to a third party, be it the people, the State, the nation (in France). In other words, State’s law becomes different from private law. In the United Kingdom and the United States, the idea of public trust has given a foundation for public properties’ inalienability but the principle has become very weak indeed. Similarly, Germany has not developed a theory of the public domain such as the one we have in France. This assessment questions the theory elaborated by Kantorowicz in the Two bodies of the King 23 that traces the elaboration of a public sphere at the same time in Western Europe. Why? We would like to understand how Germany resolves the questions at the core of public property law (mainly the rule preventing the alienation of public goods) and understand the sociological and historical factors that explain the differences. Also, the fact that a part of Germany was communist for some time
makes this question all the more intereting. This question raise issues concerning the frontiers of public and private law and on the different conception of the State. Why has France developed a comprehensive theory of administrative law that comprise also property? There are certainly some differences in the legal academia, common lawyers not being ready to push for a reform
of the common law. There are also differences in the conception of the State that I would like to unearth. The research project will be about using all the research available in social sciences to explain the different attitudes towards redressing administrative wrongdoing.