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stat interp Flashcards

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1
Q

literal rule

A

judges give words in statutes their plain ordinary grammatical meaning whatever the consequences

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2
Q

who summed up the literal rule in what case

A

LORD ESHER IN R V JUDGE OF CITY OF LONDON

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3
Q

what did lord esher state in r v judge of city of london

A

‘if the words of an act are clear, you must follow them even though they lead to a manifest absurdity’

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4
Q

which cases illustrate the literal rule

A
  • whitely v chappell
  • lner railway co v berriman
  • fisher v bell
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5
Q

whitely v chappell

A

the court held that d was not guilty since a dead person is not ‘entitled to vote’

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6
Q

lner railway co v berriman

A

his widow was not entitled to compensation because the court held that maintaining was not covered by ‘repairing/relaying’

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7
Q

fisher v bell

A

the court used the literal rule and applied the technical legal meaning of offer for sale from contract law, meant that d not guilty of making an offer for sale

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8
Q

advantage/disadvantage of literal rule? separation of powers

A

advantage

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9
Q

how is separation of powers an advantage of literal rule

A

resects SOP and ensures judges carry out will of parliament as stated in wording of legislation. judges not seen to make law

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10
Q

how does the literal rule encourage certainty in the law

A

plain, ordinary, grammatical meaning used
judges not allowed to alter meaning of words in acts (can in mischief/purposive)
predictable result makes it easier to know what law is and how judges will apply it

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11
Q

how do some judges argue theyre doing parliament a favour by using the literal rule

A

drawing faulty legislation and loopholes to their attention

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12
Q

where was faulty legislation drawn to parilament’s attention after the literal rule had been applied

A

fisher v bell- parliament amended case shortly afterwards

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13
Q

when can the literal rule hardly be said to carry out the intention of parliament

A

where it leads to an absurd conclusion- parliament unlikely to have intended absurdity/injustice

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14
Q

when can the literal rule be said to not have been carrying out the intention of parliament

A

LNER V BERRIMAN- cannot have been parliaments intention to leave workers maintaining railways unprotected

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15
Q

which case illustrates the disadvantage of the literal rule that words often don’t have one plain meaning

A

fisher v bell- most people would think a display in a shop window is an offer for sale- judge hearing case probably a minority

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16
Q

why does it save time to use mischief/purposive in some cases

A

to give meaning that parliament must’ve intended, fisher v bell clearly meant to cover advertisements

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17
Q

what is the golden rule a modification of

A

the literal rule

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18
Q

who explains the golden rule in which case

A

lord wenslydale in grey v pearson

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19
Q

who does lw describe golden rule in GVP

A

the grammatical ordinary sense of the word is to be followed unless it would lead to some absurdity/some repugnance- in which case the grammatical meaning of the words can be modified so as to avoid the absurdity, but no further

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20
Q

what are the two versions of the golden rule

A

narrow and wide

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21
Q

narrow version

A

where words are capable of having more than one meaning, the meaning that is least absurd should be used

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22
Q

which cases illustrate narrow version of golden rule

A

allen

adler v george

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23
Q

allen

A

d charged with bigamy- whosoever being married shall marry again
law stated that any second marriage void- literal rule used? no one could be convicted
court decided it would be absurd- marry could mean ‘go through ceremony of marriage’- d convicted

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24
Q

adler v george

A

held that to apply normal meaning of ‘in the vicinity of’ would be absurd and held that it could mean near to and within- chose second meaning to secure convictin

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25
Q

wide version

A

can be used to avoid a repugnant. doesn’t require that words have more than one meaning, just that court finds literal meaning unacceptable

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26
Q

case to illustrate wide version

A

re sigsworth

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27
Q

re sigsworth

A

there was no ambiguity in words of the act but it would be repugnant to let a murderer benefit from his crime, despite clear wording of act it was held that he couldn’t inherit mothers estate

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28
Q

when does the golden rule provide an escape route

A

when there is a problem with the legislation and using the literal rule would lead to an absurdity

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29
Q

when would the escape route by golden rule have been useful

A

fisher v bell
two meanings: one of which is display for sale

would’ve avoided need for time and expense

berriman
repairing/relaying could mean working on

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30
Q

how does the narrow version ensure not to breach the doctrine of the separation of powers

A

judges must use a meaning that the words could reasonably have

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31
Q

how does the wide version allow to avoid unacceptable outcomes regardless of the wording

A

allows judges to work out what parliaments intention would’ve been and interpret the law to avoid unacceptable outcomes

sigsworth- unacceptable for son to benefit from his crime

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32
Q

when can the golden rule lead to uncertainty in the law

A

when it is decided that a literal interpretation produces an absurd result, requiring modification by the golden rule as different judges have different views

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33
Q

which case illustrates that golden rule can lead to uncertainty

A

adler v George- literal meaning of in vicinity not absurd because there was already a law governing trespassing in military bases

difficult for laywer to advise client on what result of a case may be

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34
Q

why is the narrow version limited

A

judges can only choose between possible meanings of words

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35
Q

what case illustrates that narrow version is limited

A

sigsworth- if narrow version had been used he would’ve inherited mothers estate despite killing her because meaning of words were clear

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36
Q

how can the wide version be said to be undemocratic

A

unelected judges beginning to make law as theyre not confining themselves to actual words in stature and instead are trying to work out what parliament intended

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37
Q

which case was the mischief rule laid down in

A

heydons case

38
Q

which factors does the mischief rule state should be taken into consideration when interpreting a statute

A
  • common law before statute
  • problem/mischief was statute trying to remedy
  • how parliament tried to remedy mischief
39
Q

in what way do judges interpret the statute using the mischief rule

A

in such a way as to put a stop to the mischief

40
Q

what do the courts look at when using the mischief rule

A

wording of act
also willing to look outside act to its social and historical context and extrinsic aids for meaning eg hansard and law reform reports

41
Q

examples of cases illustrating mischief rule

A
  • smith v hughs

- royal college of nursing v dhss

42
Q

smith v hughs`

A

court decided theyd been rightly convicted because mischief aimed at by statute was to enable people to walk along the streets without being harassed by prostitutes. thus, the statute was interpreted to stop this mischief. didn’t matter than women were not literally on the street- could be seen from street

43
Q

royal college nursing v dhss

A

on appeal, majority of judges interpreted relevant statute to stop mischief of illegal abortions where no medical care was available and allowed nurses to carry out abortions in hospital

44
Q

in which cases could the mischief rule/purposive approach have been used to avoid absurd outcomes to cases

A

whitely v chappell: mischief electoral fraud
berriman: mischief risk to life of railway workers

could’ve been used to recognise this and apply the law as parliament intended to produce a just result in a case

45
Q

what does the mischief rule/purposive approach attempt to follow

A

the will of parliament rather than the exact words written by it

berriman: parliament probably meant to cover all people working on railways- court could’ve interpreted statute this way

46
Q

how does the mischief rule promote flexibility in the interpretation of legislation

A

enables judges to interpret acts in the light of changing social, economic and technological circumstances

47
Q

which acts was interpreted in light of changing technological circumstances

A

RCN V DHSS- took into account changes in medical capabilities since legislation was passed

48
Q

what does the use of the mischief rule rely on

A

being able to find out what defect in the common law parliament was trying to remedy

49
Q

what does finding the defect in the common law involve

A

extrinsic aids- can be difficult, time consuming and expensive

50
Q

why does the mischief rule/purposive approach increase the law making power of unelected judges at the expense of parliament

A

parliament can never be asked what it meant

happened in dhss where judges hearing appeal disagreed on use of mischief rule

51
Q

what do the highly skilled draftsmen who write legislation try to ensure

A

that the meaning is absolutely clear so judges should accept clear words in statute

any injustices/absurdities are fault of parliament and should be dealt with by them

52
Q

what does the purposive approach require the court to work out

A

the general purpose of parliament passing the act and then interpret the act to fulfil that purpose. no articular mischief has to be found however

53
Q

which judge explains the purposive approach in which case

A

lord denning in magor and st mellons v Newport

54
Q

what did lord denning say in magor and st mellons v Newport

A

‘we do not sit here to pull the language of parliament to pieces and make nonsense of it, we sit here to find out the intention of parliament and carry it out, and we do this by filling in the gaps and making sense of the enactment

55
Q

which cases illustrate the purposive approach

A

coltman v bibby tankers

r v registrar general ex parte smith

56
Q

coltman v bibby tankers

A

the court held that the ‘equipment’ could include a ship because the general purpose of the act was to make the employer liable for harm caused by defects in anything provided by the employer

57
Q

r v registrar general, ex parte smith

A

despite the fact that smith was entitled to this info under unambiguous wording of statute, the court held that it could never have been the purpose of parliament to pass a law that could help a possible crime and upheld decision to refuse the info

58
Q

what is the purposive approach particularly suited to

A

the interpretation of European law and the human rights act

59
Q

how is the purposive approach suited to the interpretation of european law and the human rights act

A
  • written in broad terms

- general principles set out and judges having to interpret according to the spirit rather than the letter of the law

60
Q

what does the purposive approach enable unelected judges to do

A

take over the function of parliament in making new law as the judges did in the smith case

61
Q

what does the purposive approach go against

A

the sovereignty of parliament and the separation of powers

62
Q

why do critics of the purposive approach argue that it is impossible to discover the general purpose of parliament in passing legislation

A
  • only words of statute can show what parliament wanted

- not for judge to argue that parliament said one thing but meant another

63
Q

case to support not knowing what parliament intends

A

if hansard had been referred to in coltman, the court would’ve found parliament did not intend that ships should be included under ‘equipment’

64
Q

what is the purposive approach less suited to

A

the more precise and detailed structure of English legislation

65
Q

what are rules of language

A

rules to aid interpreting certain formats of words- if the particular format is not used then the rule has no relevance.

66
Q

latin for general rule

A

ejusdem generis

67
Q

general rule

A

where a list of words in a statute is followed by general words, then the general words are limited to the same kind of items as those in the list

68
Q

case for general rule

A

POWELL V KEMPTON PARK RACE COURSE

69
Q

POWELL V KEMPTON PARK RACE COURSE

A

court decided that the general words ‘other place’ had to refer to indoor places since all the words in the list were indoor places and so d was not guilty

70
Q

latin for the context rule

A

noscitur a sociis

71
Q

context rule

A

a word is known by the company It keeps, a word taken on the meaning from other words around it

72
Q

case for context rule

A

BROMLEY LONDON BOROUGH COUNCIL V GREATER LONDON COUNCIL

73
Q

BROMLEY LONDON BOROUGH COUNCIL V GREATER LONDON COUNCIL

A

they decided that ‘economic’ meant being run on business lines and so rules the cheap fares policy unlawful

74
Q

latin for specific rule

A

expression unius exclusion alterius

75
Q

specific rule

A

the mention of one thing excludes others. where there is a list of words which is not followed by general words, then the statute applies only to the items in the list

76
Q

case for specific rule

A

TEMPEST V KELNER

77
Q

TEMPEST V KELNER

A

it was held that the phrase ‘goods, wares and merchandise’ in a statute didn’t cover stocks/shares

78
Q

internal aids

A

clues within the statute itself that may help to make its meaning clearer

79
Q

short and long title of statute (intrinsic)

A
  • court can consider either

- long good for mischief/purposive- may give clues as to purpose of statute

80
Q

example of short and long title

A

LAW OF PROPERTY ACT

  • short: gives little away
    long: explains that statute is bringing together all previous statutes related to conveyancing
81
Q

preamble (intrinsic)

A
  • intro to statute
  • older statutes often have them
  • may provide useful indication of purpose of act/mischief in common law that act was designed to remedy
  • modern statutes don’t tend to have them/ are only brief
82
Q

definition sections (intrinsic)

A

set out lists of what meanings are intended for certain words used elsewhere in statute
-modern drafting technique

83
Q

schedules (intrinsic)

A
  • towards end of statute

- give extra detail required by earlier parts of statute

84
Q

external aids

A

materials which are outside a statute which judges may use, together with various approaches to interpretation to help them interpret that statute

85
Q

which specific authorised dictionary can be used (extrinsic)

A

of the year the statute was passed

86
Q

which specific law reports can be used (extrinsic)

A
  • eg law commission report

- on which statute is based

87
Q

when can the interpretation act 1978 be used (extrinsic)

A

if the word is covered by the 1978 act

88
Q

when can hansard be used (extrinsic)

A

where the word/phrase being interpreted was discussed in a parliamentary debate

89
Q

which case allowed hansard to be consulted

A

pepper v hart- in limited circumstances

90
Q

when can an international treaty entered into by the uk be used (extrinsic)

A

-if the word is defined there

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