Rules of Statutory Interpretation Flashcards
What is the primary goal of statutory interpretation?
A. To create new laws
B. To determine Parliament’s intention
C. To ignore unclear legislation
D. To apply judicial opinions
B – Statutory interpretation is the process of determining what Parliament intended when enacting legislation.
Which rule of statutory interpretation applies the plain, ordinary meaning of words?
A. Golden Rule
B. Mischief Rule
C. Literal Rule
D. Purposive Approach
C – The Literal Rule gives words their ordinary meaning, even if it leads to an unfair or absurd result.
Which rule of statutory interpretation allows judges to modify the meaning of words to avoid absurdity?
A. Literal Rule
B. Mischief Rule
C. Golden Rule
D. Expressio Unius
C – The Golden Rule allows judges to avoid absurd results by modifying the meaning of statutory words when necessary.
A law makes it illegal to “park a vehicle in a public park”. A man leaves his electric scooter in a park. Which rule would strictly interpret ‘vehicle’ using its plain meaning?
A. Literal Rule
B. Golden Rule
C. Mischief Rule
D. Purposive Approach
A – The Literal Rule would take ‘vehicle’ in its ordinary meaning, likely excluding an electric scooter if the law did not explicitly include it.
Which case is an example of the mischief rule being applied?
A. Adler v George
B. Smith v Hughes
C. Whiteley v Chappell
D. Powell v Kempton Park
B – In Smith v Hughes, the court interpreted ‘public place’ to include prostitutes soliciting from windows to prevent the mischief intended by the law.
Which approach is most commonly used by modern courts?
A. Literal Rule
B. Mischief Rule
C. Purposive Approach
D. Ejusdem Generis
C – The Purposive Approach is the dominant method, as it allows judges to consider the purpose behind the law.
A law states that “dogs, cats, and other animals” are banned from public transport. A passenger brings a pet snake. How would ejusdem generis apply?
A. The snake is banned
B. The snake is allowed
C. The law is invalid
D. The judge must rewrite the law
B – Ejusdem generis suggests that “other animals” must be of the same kind as dogs and cats (domesticated mammals), so a snake may not be included.
A law prohibits “selling alcohol in bars”. A man sells alcohol from a food truck. Which interpretation method would most likely convict him?
A. Literal Rule
B. Golden Rule
C. Mischief Rule
D. Noscitur a Sociis
C – The Mischief Rule would consider that the law was meant to prevent unregulated alcohol sales, even if a food truck isn’t a ‘bar’ under the Literal Rule.
A tax law states that “employees earning over £50,000 must pay a surcharge”. A worker earns £49,999.50. What rule would prevent rounding up their salary?
A. Golden Rule
B. Expressio Unius
C. Ejusdem Generis
D. Literal Rule
D – The Literal Rule would ensure that only those who earn over £50,000 are affected, preventing a broader interpretation that includes near-threshold earners.
A regulation bans the “import of weapons, ammunition, and explosives”. A company imports pepper spray. What rule would be used to determine if it applies?
A. Expressio Unius
B. Golden Rule
C. Ejusdem Generis
D. Noscitur a Sociis
D – Noscitur a Sociis means a word is understood by the context of surrounding words. Since “weapons” is listed with “ammunition and explosives”, it may include pepper spray.
