Chapter 5- Statutory interpretation Flashcards
What is statutory interpretation
This occurs at times when the COA or Supreme Court has to interpret a particular law for it to give clarity
what are the reasons for statutory interpretation
1)A broad term may be used
2)Drafting errors
3)Ambiguity
4)New development
5)Changes in Language
What are the 3 common law rules of interpretation
1- The literal rule
2-The golden rule
3-The mischief rule
The literal rule:
This is when judges give the ordinary and plain meaning of words in the judgements
example case of the literal rule
Fisher V Bell - 1961
a flick knife was displayed in a shop as an offer however the weapons Act so it as an offence. The judge decided to take ‘offer’ as an ‘invitation to treat’
Evaluate the literal rule
2 strengths
3 weaknesses
+Gives certainty to the law as these were the exact word written in the judgement
+Follows the exact words that parliament has used
-Some words may have more than one meaning
-Can lead to unfair decisions
-assumes every Act is perfectly drafted.
The golden rule:
This is an interpretation of the literal rule however does not interpret to absurd results
The two ways of how the golden rule is applied and give a case example
Narrow application-The judge choses between the possible meanings of that word
e.g case R v Allan
Wider Application -Here when there is only one meaning, the judge can modify the statute to avoid the problem
E.g Re Sigsworth
Evaluate the Golden rule
2 strengths
2 weaknesses
+Gives respect to parliaments exact words except in limited situations
+Avoids absurd decisions to occur and instead leads to a sensible outcome
-It can be used in limited situations
-It is quite rare to do the golden rule
The mischief rule
It gave more liberty to judges when interpreting laws compared to the other two by questioning;
>What was the common law back then
>What was the mischief that the law tried to cover
>What was parliament main intention/ remedy
>What was the true reason of the remedy
Give an example case of the Mischief rule
-Elliot V Grey
A car was on a road with a missing battery and suspended jacks. This affected the Roads Traffic Act and was charged with using an uninsured vehicle on the road, however argued that the vehicle was not driving. The judge used the mischief rule and concluded that he had still made an offence as it doesn’t matter whether it was driving or not, it was still on the road.
Evaluate the mischief rule
2 strengths
2 weaknesses
+It gives more liberty and flexibility allowing judges to look at the gap the Act was covering
+It achieves parliaments intention
-Can lead to uncertainty
-leads to ‘judicial law making’ rather than parliamentary law making
What does the purposive approach do?
It tries to find the MAIN intention of the law being created
What were Lord Denning’s views on purposive approach
-rather than destructive analysis we make sense of the enactment by filling in the gaps
How was Lord Denning’s views criticised
Lord Scarman said that instead of society being led by parliaments intentions it should be led by parliaments enactment as it is not under the historic principles of common law
give a case example of purposive approach
Jones V Tower Boot co.
A young fine black man was abused and discriminated at work by his co workers. It had to be decided whether the workers were working under the course of their employment of the Race relations Act and argued the abuse is not part of their job. However the COA ruled that parliament created this law in order for there to be no discrimination in the first place hence, the employers were held liable.
Evaluate the purposive approach
3 Strengths
3Weaknesses
+It gives justice at the end
+Judges are able to accommodate new technology after the act has passed
+Judges can fill any gaps in the law left by parliament when dealing with new situations
-It is Undemocratic
-time consuming to discover the intentions of parliament
-legal advice may be difficult as lawyers will not know the full judgement
What is the esjudem generis rule Give an example case
This shows that if there are a list of specific word in a judgement followed by general words then those words are only limited to the specific words listed.
Hobbs V CG Robertson Ltd
What does Expressio unius exclusio alterius (the mention of one thing excludes the other
Give an example case
When there is a list of specific words which is not followed by general word then the act applies only the items in the list.
Tempest V Kilner
What does Noscitur a sociis mean
Give an example case
This means that words are instead looked and interpreted accordingly. It involves looking for words in the same section or other sections
Inland Revenue Commissioners V Frere
Mention 3 types of intrinsic Aids to statutory interpretation
-Marginal notes
-Long titles
-A preamble for parliaments intentions
-Headings
-interpretative section
what are Extrinsic aids
These are aids OUTSIDE of the act which may help the judge explain a few meanings of the words.
What is Hansard
This is the official report made in Parliament when an act is being debated on
When can Hansard be considered
When the words are ambiguous
absurd and obscure
How do report law reform bodies aid
They are able to identify the mischief/ gap that the legislation was trying to cover
What are International conventions
These are treaties made between countries and are looked at when it came to International cases.
How has the Human rights convention act impacted statutory interpretation
In this act, the legislation must adhere to this convention
