Statutory Interpretation Flashcards
What is the literal rule and name a case which uses it?
A rule which gives the words their plain, ordinary, dictionary meaning
Whiteley v Chappell -
Impersonated a dead person to vote, not guilty as dead person in the literal meaning of the words is not ‘entitled to vote’
What is the golden rule and name a case which uses it?
A modification of the literal rule to avoid an interpretation that is absurd
Sigsworth -
Son murdered his mother to claim inheritance as it would go to her next if kin, didn’t want him to benefit from the crime so used golden rule to prevent repugnant situation
What is the mischief rule and name a case that uses it?
A rule which looks back to the gap in the previous law and interprets the act so as to cover the gap
Smith v Hughes -
Prostitutes were in a house first floor balcony and bottom floor windows with the window half open, they argued they were not guilty as they were not literally in a ‘street or public place’
The court decided they were guilty since it was an act to clean up the streets, and people should be able to walk along the streets without being solicited by common prostitutes
What is the purposive approach and name a case that uses it?
Where the courts look to see what is the purpose of the law passed by parliament
R v Registrar-General ex parte Smith -
Someone who had been convicted of 2 murders and detained in Broadmoor as he had a psychotic illness wanted his birth certificate. They thought he might be hostile to his natural mother, the Registrar therefore didn’t have to supply any information as despite the act having plain language, it wasn’t to promote serious crime
What are the advantages and disadvantages of the literal rule?
Ads - - Makes the law more certain - follows the wording of parliament - easier to predict how judges will interpret the law Disads - - Not all acts are perfectly drafted - Words might have more than one meaning - can lead to unfair or unjust decisions
What are the advantages and disadvantages of the golden rule?
Ads -
- respects the words of parliament
- allows the judge to choose the most sensible meaning
- avoids the worst problems of the literal rule
Disads -
- can only be used in limited situations
- not possible to predict when the courts will use it
- Not always possible to define what is ‘absurd’ it’s subjective
What are the advantages and disadvantages of the mischief rule?
Ads - - deals with the mischief parliament was trying to deal with - fills in the gap in the law - produces a ‘just’ result Disads - - Risk is judicial law making - not as wide as the purposive approach - limited to looking back at old law - can make the law uncertain
What are the advantages and disadvantages of the purposive approach?
Ads - - Leads to justice in individual cases - allows for developments in technology - avoids absurd decisions Disads - - difficult to find parliaments intention - leads to uncertainty in the law - allows judges to make law
