The rules of statutory interpretation 2 translegal. Federal rules of statutory interpretation by nicholas. Ios2601 notes to be printed autosaved ios2601 november 2005. Through these statutes, certain acts which would otherwise be illegal are validated by curing the illegality and enables a particular line of action. There is a tremendous output of federal, state and territory legislation. Rules of interpretation literal or grammatical rule. In construing statutes the cardinal rule is to construe its provisions literally and grammatically giving the words their ordinary and natural meaning. But in many cases, there is some ambiguity or vagueness in.
Many few peoples are aware about the existence of such rules even in india. Rules of statutory interpretation linkedin slideshare. They are purely guidelines for the judiciary to solve problems with statutory interpretation. Some of the important rules of statutary interpretation are. Federal rules of statutory interpretation by nicholas quinn. It is extremely important and infact necessary also that the courts interpret the law in such a manner that ensures access to justice to the maximum. Interpretation of statutes importance of the words and and or to ensure that justice is made available to all, the judicial system has been evolved in all nations. Remedial is used to mean either the converse of penal or procedural rather than substantive rights. In santi swarup sarkar v pradeep kumar sarkar, the supreme court held that if two interpretations are possible of the same statute, the one which validates the statute must be. An evaluation of the rules of statutory interpretation. The interpretation of statutes is one of the most important subject usually taught in law. The act is read by its plain meaning exactly as the words are written, the assumption being that parliament has said what it means. Indian historical rules of interpretation of statute have not got the due recognition in the present study of rules of interpretation. Some amount of interpretation is often necessary when a case involves a statute.
Rules of presumption and statutory interpretation instructions 1. The enumeration below is being substantiated with the relevant case laws of indian jurisprudence but before that, it is important to analyze. Pdf interpreting tax statutes a shift away from the. Some judges also feel that their role is to fill the gaps and ambiguities in the law whilst others think that it should be left to parliament as the supreme lawmaker. Interpretation of statutes is the correct understanding of the law. Beside these sources, there are certain rules and principles of interpretation developed both through case laws and academic scholarship in pakistan and also under other civilized legal systems of the world. One of the three basic rules of interpretation, construction is golden rule. Thus the romandutch approach was replaced by the literal textual approach of english law. Interpretation act s1 n 2 any laws, proclamations, ordinances, act of parliament, all bylaws, rules, regulations or orders and 2 any other enactment having the force of law the interpretation acts definition if law. Statutory interpretation refers to the process by which a court looks at a statute and determines what it means.
This basically involves an act of discovering the true meaning of the language which has been used in the statute. It is extremely important and infact necessary also that the courts interpret the law in such a manner that. In the complex area of interpretation, recourse can be had to the rules and aids of statutory. Interpretation of statutes is a very important issue which is not made easy due to varying factors. Principles of interpretation of statutes 205 process of ascertaining the meaning at an act of parliament or of a provision of an act. Interpretation must be as near possible to the intention or purpose of framer s as the law would permit. Feb 12, 2012 literal rule of interpretation is the primary rule. Beginning with a discussion of this rule, the paper moves on to focus on the dilutions to the rule of strict construction. The classic statement of the mischief rule is that given by. Remedial statutes are to be given a liberal interpretation and construction to remedy the defects in the law for which purpose the statute was enacted. Romandutch rules of interpretation hold that the purpose.
But in actual, there are many modern rules whose foundation has been laid down in ancient rules of interpretation. Interpretation of statutes and principles of legislation book pdf. In todays video let us understand the rules of interpretation. Aug, 2018 the object of interpretation of statutes is to determine the intention of the legislature conveyed expressly or impliedly in the language used. Internal aid of interpretation introduction statute generally means the law or the act of the legislature authority. Chapter xi principles of interpretation of statutes rules of interpretation generally t h e. But if the words are vague and ambiguous then internal aid may be sought for interpretation. Rules of interpretation which govern the tax laws are being dealt in this series of articles. As stated by salmond, by interpretation or construction is meant, the process by which the courts seek to ascertain the meaning of the legislature through the medium of authoritative forms in which. Iii basic rules under the modern purposive approach to interpretation of statutes. For this rules which help to get the right interpretation of law are discussed below. Download interpretation of statutes and principles of legislation book pdf for 2nd year students. Chapter 1 introdution to interpretation of statutes.
Judicial interpretation of the meaning of a statute is authoritative in the matter before the court. A statute, which is a bill or law passed by the legislature, imposes obligations and rules on the people. This then makes the interpretation of statutes not as simple as one would think. Interpretation of statutes is a craft rather than a science. Primary rules of interpretation are discussed hereunder. Important questions of interpretation of statutes the. Jun 23, 2005 federal statutes do not come with instructions, but maybe they should. Rules of interpretation provide strong base for the super structure of judicial reasoning. The two sets of rules cannot always be clearly differentiated, for the operation of a statute may depend upon the meaning of its language, and the ascertainment of.
And then, there has been criticism made as to the utility of definition clause or the interpretation clause. The present essay entry focuses upon cardinal rules and general relevance of interpretation of statutes as being applied in indian context and as been evolved by indian judiciary with the passage of time. Get interpretation of statutes pdf notes, ebook for law llb students in llb law 3rd year pdf notes, projects, papers section at. Rules for interpretation of tax laws are to some extent different than the general principles of interpretation of common law. Various sources used are only limited to explore the written text and clarify what exactly has been indicated by the words used in the written text or the statutes. In santi swarup sarkar v pradeep kumar sarkar, the supreme court held that if two interpretations are possible of the same statute, the one which validates the statute must be preferred. Courts say what the law is34 by resolving legal disputes in individual cases. The normal way of interpreting or construing a statute is to seek the intention of legislature. Summary the exercise of the judicial power of the united states often requires that courts construe statutes to apply them in particular cases and controversies. Rules of statutory interpretation a lawyer must know ipleaders. They interpret the words of the statute in a way that is used commonly by all.
One of them is that words do not usually have static meanings. Federal statutes do not come with instructions, but maybe they should. The object of interpretation of statutes is to determine the intention of the legislature conveyed expressly or impliedly in the language used. There is a presumption that the enacted laws, rules, regulations etc. Literal rule of interpretation is the primary rule. Rules of interpretation of tax statutes p a g e 6 49 introduction 1. Explanations and provisos are inserted to expand or. The final rule of statutory interpretation is the mischief rule, under which a judge attempts to determine the legislators intention.
Apr 01, 2017 there are certain general principles of interpretation which have been applied by courts from time to time. Statutory rules are laid down either by the interpretation act 1978 applicable generally or by an individual act for that act only. Nov, 2015 and then, there has been criticism made as to the utility of definition clause or the interpretation clause. Mar 21, 2016 interpretation of statutes is a very important issue which is not made easy due to varying factors. Consequently, the superior courts had to give us the rules of interpretation to ease ambiguities, inconsistencies, contradictions or lacunas. The basic rule with regard to the construction of taxing statutes is that they should be strictly construed. No enactment has been enacted by the legislature for interpretation of statues including on tax laws. Note it is limited to enabled statutes only as law, that means no case law or common law is applicable.
Discuss the rules of statutary interpretation with the. Some judges prefer one rule, while other judges prefer another. To use paul finns expression, we were born to statutes. Interpretation of statutes summary lectures 1 15 studocu. There are four rules of statutory interpretation, these are the literal rule, the golden rule, the mischief rule and the purposive approach. As stated by salmond, by interpretation or construction is meant, the process by which the courts seek to ascertain the meaning of the legislature through the medium of authoritative forms in which it is expressed. Pdf interpreting tax statutes a shift away from the strict. Interpretation of statutes or particular part of it intention or purpose of framer s ordinarily to be sought for in the statutes itself or in elements. The paper is to equip the students with various tools of interpretation of statutes. The process of understanding expressions of the statute is called interpretation of statute. That situation led to the birth of principles of interpretation to find out the real intent of the legislature.
In course of time, courts have evolved a large and elaborate body of rules to guide them in construing or interpreting laws. Words are to be understood in their ordinary, everyday meaningsunless the context indicates that they bear a technical sense. A guide to reading, interpreting and applying statutes. If the words are clear, free from ambiguity there is no need to refer to other means of interpretation. These rules each take different approaches to interpretation of a statute. It is incumbent on the court to use the grammatical meaning.
By rules, of course, we dont mean that legal interpretation is mechanical or simplistic. Interpretation of statutes basic knowledge llb notes. Gradually, case by case, courts have developed assorted tools of interpretation. Over time, various methods of statutory interpretation and construction have fallen in and out of favor. For as long as there have been statutes, lawyers and laymen have puzzled over their inevitable ambiguities. Chapter xi principles of interpretation of statutes r u l e s of interpretation generally the interpretation of laws is confined to courts of law. There is no hierarchy of rules to be applied and neither is any court bound to follow a particular rule. There may be other errors unnoticed by parliament and statutes cannot cover every eventuality therefore. Although legislature makes the statute, it may be open to interpretation and have ambiguities. The rules of statutory interpretation are not rules in the strict sense, as each one may point to different solution to the same problem. Literal rule aka plain meaning rule it means that statutes are to be interpreted using the ordinary meaning of the language of the statute unless a statute explicitly defines some of its terms otherwise.
Statutes and statutory construction, second edition. Interpretation of statutes and principles of legislation. Jul 03, 2019 interpretation of statutes and principles of legislation book pdf. Rules of interpretation interpretation of statutes in. Statutory interpretation is the process by which courts interpret and apply legislation. Judicial rules are used to read unclear statutes and declare the law. Interpretation of statutes pdf notes, ebook for law llb. Here i am sharing two pdf ebooks containing detailed notes on the law llb subject interpretation of statutes.
Statutory rules cannot be modified or amended by administrative instruction. It is a readytouse gist for law students and the primary objective of this gist is to enable the reader to understand the indepths of the subject and to provide exam oriented information. Jan, 2017 the process of understanding expressions of the statute is called interpretation of statute. Literal rule aka plain meaning rule it means that statutes are to be interpreted using the ordinary meaning of the language of the statute unless a. There are some 1012 rules of interpretation, in this video i. The general rule of the interpretation is that statutes must prima facie be given this ordinary meaning. Words must be given the meaning they had when the text was adopted. Literal or grammatical rule, golden rule, purposive rule. Introduction statutory interpretation is the process of interpreting and applying legislation to decide cases. Under this rule of interpretation the courts interpret the statutes in a literal and ordinary sense. However, in many an acts, definition clause is inserted to mean a word or expression. Great judges tell us these are the fundamental rules of statutory interpretation. It fails to recognize that english language used in the statutes, itself is ambiguous and the english words contain different meanings from context to context.
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