ELS - Law making: statutory interpretation (C5)

Question 1

What are the 5 main reasons a statute may have an unclear meaning?

Answer 1

• A broad term
• Ambiguity
• A drafting error
• New developments
• Changes in the use of language

Question 2

What does ‘a broad term’ mean in relation to the unclarity of a statute’s meaning and give an example of a case that highlights this

Answer 2

Words may be designed to cover several possibilities; leading to problems with how wide this should go.
Brock v DPP 1993

Question 3

What does ‘ambiguity’ mean in relation to the unclarity of a statute’s meaning?

Answer 3

Where a word has two or more meanings; it may not be clear which meaning should be used

Question 4

What does ‘a drafting error’ mean in relation to the unclarity of a statute’s meaning and give an example of a case that highlights this

Answer 4

There may have been an error upon drafting the Bill that Parliament did not notice.
R v Burstow (1997)

Question 5

What does ‘new developments’ mean in relation to the unclarity of a statute’s meaning and give an example of a case that highlights this

Answer 5

New technology may mean that an old Act of Parliament does not cover present day situations.
Royal College of Nursing v DHSS (1981)

Question 6

What does ‘changes in the use of language’ mean in relation to the unclarity of a statute’s meaning and give an example of a case that highlights this

Answer 6

The meaning of words can change over the years.
Cheeseman v DPP (1990)

Question 7

What are the three rules of interpretation?

Answer 7

• The literal rule
• The golden rule
• The mischief rule

Question 8

What is the literal rule in legal terms?

Answer 8

A rule of statutory interpretation that gives the words their plain ordinary or dictionary meaning

Question 9

Give an example of a case that demonstrates the use of the literal rule

Answer 9

Whiteley v Chappell (1868)
London & North Eastern Railway Co. v Berriman (1946)

Question 10

What is the golden rule in legal terms?

Answer 10

A rule of statutory interpretation. It is a modification of the literal rule and avoids an interpretation that is absurd or repugnant

Question 11

Give an example of a case that demonstrates the use of the golden rule

Answer 11

Adler v George (1964)
Re Sigsworth (1935)

Question 12

What is the mischief rule
in legal terms?

Answer 12

A rule of statutory interpretation that looks back to the gap in the previous law and interprets the Act so as to cover the gap

Question 13

Give an example of a case that demonstrates the use of the mischief rule

Answer 13

Smith v Hughes (1960)
Eastbourne Borough Council v Stirling (2000)
Royal College of Nursing v DHSS (1981)

Question 14

What is the purposive approach in legal terms?

Answer 14

An approach to statutory interpretation in which the courts look to see what is the purpose of the law

Question 15

Give an example of a case that demonstrates the use of the purposive approach

Answer 15

R v Registrar-General, ex parte Smith (1990)
R (on the application of Quintavalle) v Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (2003)

Question 16

What are the advantages and disadvantages of the literal approach?

Answer 16

Advantages:
Leaves law making to Parliament.
Makes law more certain.
Disadvantages:
Assumes that every Act is perfectly crafted.
Words have more than one meaning.
Can lead to absurd results.
Can lead to unjust decisions.

Question 17

What are the advantages and disadvantages of the purposive approach?

Answer 17

Advantages:
Leads to justice in individual cases.
Broad approach covering more situations.
Allows for new technology.
Disadvantages:
Leads to judicial law making.
Can make law uncertain.
Difficult to discover the intention of Parliament.

Question 18

What are internal (intrinsic) aids?

Answer 18

Matters within the statute itself which help make its meaning more clear

Question 19

Give examples of internal (intrinsic) aids

Answer 19

• Long title
• Short title
• Preamble
• Interpretation section
• Headings before group sections
• Schedules attached to the Act

Question 20

What are external (extrinsic) aids?

Answer 20

Matters outside the Act such as sources that can help explain the meaning of an Act

Question 21

Give examples of external (extrinsic) aids

Answer 21

• Previous Acts of Parliament on the same topic
• Historical setting
• Earlier case law
• Dictionaries of the time
• Hansard
• Law reform reports

Question 22

Give an example of a case provided in this chapter that highlights the effectiveness of the extrinsic aid: using the dictionary of the time

Answer 22

Cheeseman v DPP (1990)

Question 23

What’s another word for intrinsic?

Answer 23

Internal

Question 24

What’s another word for extrinsic?

Answer 24

External

Question 25

What’s another word for internal?

Answer 25

Intrinsic

Question 26

What’s another word for external?

Answer 26

Extrinsic

Question 27

What case relates to the first use of Hansard?

Answer 27

Pepper v Hart (1993)

Question 28

What were the limitations upon the use of Hansard?

Answer 28

Hansard may be considered but ‘only where the words of the Act are ambiguous or obscure or lead to an absurdity.’

Question 29

What case related to the relaxation on the rule against the use of law reform reports in court?

Answer 29

Black-Clawson (1975)

Question 30

What are the advantages and disadvantages of the literal rule?

Answer 30

Advantages:
- Follows the wording of Parliament
- Prevents unelected judge making law
- Makes the law more certain
- Easier to predict how the judges will interpret the law
Disadvantages:
- Not all Acts are perfectly drafted
- Words have more than one meaning
- Can lead to unfair or unjust decisions

Question 31

What are the advantages and disadvantages of the golden rule?

Answer 31

Advantages:
- Respects the words of Parliament
- Allows the judge to choose the most sensible meaning
- Avoids the worst problems of the literal rule
Disadvantages:
- Can only be used in limited situations
- Not possible to predict when the courts will use it
- It is a ‘feeble parachute’ (Zander)

Question 32

What are the advantages and disadvantages of the mischief rule?

Answer 32

Advantages:
- Promotes the purpose of the law
- Fills in the gap in the law
- Produces a ‘just’ result
Disadvantages:
- Risk of judicial law making
- Not as wide as the purposive approach
- Limited to looking back at the old law
- Can make the law uncertain