Statutory Interpretation
Discuss the rules and other aids used in statutory interpretation which the judges could use to help them arrive at a decision in each of the appeals. You should also pay attention to judicial precedent and assess whether the case that the appellants wish to use may be binding on the Court of Appeal.
This case study will investigate how certain rules or aids in statutory interpretation can affect the decision of an appeal in court due to the different circumstances involved in a case. There will be three main cases that will be discussed in order to gain an insight into how different rules used in law; such as the mischief rule, literal rule and golden rule can affect how certain legislation can be interpreted within various cases. It’s important to consider judicial precedent and how it can influence the decisions made by a judge in a court of law, along with looking at the way in which laws can be misleading due to the way they are worded and interpreted by an individual.
When looking at statutory interpretation it’s vital to understand that some statutes can be straight forward and have a simplistic meaning, however this is not always the case as there can be confusion over the true meaning of various statutes; words can become ambiguous, meaning that there can be misperceptions made about whether or not individuals are right in their appeals. When in court it is usually the judge that will apply and interpret the legislation given to them, thus making their decision based on what is seen as the most likely meaning of an original statute when it was processed.
The use of judicial precedent is significant when dealing with a majority of court cases as it is based on the rule of stare decisis, meaning ‘let the decision stand’. This shows that what is decided by a court in the past should not be disregarded when looking into similar cases in lower courts. Although when any decision is made it is vital that Ratio decidendi is applied, this means that any points
This case study will investigate how certain rules or aids in statutory interpretation can affect the decision of an appeal in court due to the different circumstances involved in a case. There will be three main cases that will be discussed in order to gain an insight into how different rules used in law; such as the mischief rule, literal rule and golden rule can affect how certain legislation can be interpreted within various cases. It’s important to consider judicial precedent and how it can influence the decisions made by a judge in a court of law, along with looking at the way in which laws can be misleading due to the way they are worded and interpreted by an individual.
When looking at statutory interpretation it’s vital to understand that some statutes can be straight forward and have a simplistic meaning, however this is not always the case as there can be confusion over the true meaning of various statutes; words can become ambiguous, meaning that there can be misperceptions made about whether or not individuals are right in their appeals. When in court it is usually the judge that will apply and interpret the legislation given to them, thus making their decision based on what is seen as the most likely meaning of an original statute when it was processed.
The use of judicial precedent is significant when dealing with a majority of court cases as it is based on the rule of stare decisis, meaning ‘let the decision stand’. This shows that what is decided by a court in the past should not be disregarded when looking into similar cases in lower courts. Although when any decision is made it is vital that Ratio decidendi is applied, this means that any points
Bibliography: Akhtar, A. and Ward, R. (2011) Walker & Walker’s English Legal System. 11th Edition. New York: Oxford University Press Inc.