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Thread: Q19. Discuss various principals of interpretation of enacted law.

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    Yelp 32 Q19. Discuss various principals of interpretation of enacted law.

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    1. Introduction:
    A statute has to take effect through the interpretation of the Courts. So one of the most important functions of the Court is the construction of statute. In statute law the words Litera Scripta forms the law and hence meaning to the words are important. There are certain rules of interpretation of statute, which Courts follows while interpreting it.
    2. Meaning Of Interpretation:
    I. According To Salmond:
    “By interpreting or construction is meant the process by which the Courts seek to ascertain the meaning of legislation through the medium of authoritative forms in which it is expressed.”
    3. Rules Of Interpretation:
    I. Grammatical Interpretation:
    In grammatical interpretation only the verbal expression of law is taken into consideration and the Courts do not go beyond the literal egis.
    “Sussex Peerage Case”
    It was observed that “if the words of statute are in themselves precise and unambiguous, then the words themselves alone can best declare the intention of the law-giver.”
    (i) Defects in Grammatical Interpretation:
    Prof. Salmond refers to three logical defects by which grammatical interpretation may be affected.
    (a) The language of the statute may be ambiguous.
    (b) The language may be inconsistent with each other and thereby destroy and nullify their meaning.
    (c) The law may be incomplete so the grammatical interpretation may not be possible.
    II. Golden Rule:
    The literal interpretation is a means to ascertain the general purport of the statute or ratio legis. In difficult cases, the Court may go beyond the words of the statue and take help from other sources. This rule is called the Golden Rule.
    III. Mischief Rule:
    It is maintained that when the true intention of the legislature cannot be determined by the language of the statute in question, the judges may look at the law before the Act and the mischief in the law which the statue was intended to remedy. The Act is to be construed in such a manner as to suppress the mischief and advance remedy. This rule of interpretation is knows as mischief rule.
    “Heydon’ s Case”
    This mischief rule takes its origin from the above cited case in which four things were observer.
    (i) What was the common law before the making of the Act.
    (ii) What was the mischief and defect for which the common law did not provide.
    (iii) What remedy the parliament hath resolved and appointed to cure the disease.
    (iv) The true reason of the remedy and judges shall suppress the mischief and advance the remedy.
    IV. Logical Interpretation:
    In logical interpretation, the Courts are allowed to depart from the letter of the law and try to find out the true intention of the legislation. It only applies when grammatical is not possible.
    (i) According to Gary:
    “Logical interpretation calls for the comparison of the statute with other statutes and with the whole system of law and for the consideration of the term and circumstances in which statute was passes.”
    V. Strict And Equitable Interpretation:
    When to possible meanings could be given to statute because of its ambiguity and the adoption of a meaning which is more obvious and consonant with the popular use of the language the interpretation will be strict.
    Equitable:
    When Court rejects the natural and most knows interpretation in favour of another which conforms better too the intention of the legislation, though it may not fit for the ordinary us of language, the interpretation is equitable interpretation.
    VI. Restrictive And Extensive Interpretation:
    Equitable interpretation is either restrictive of extensive. The rule of restrictive interpretation is applied to penal and fiscal statutes. In such cases, Courts applied a construction which imposes a lesser penalty on the subject. In extensive interpretation judge may stretch the word from narrower to the wider sense of which it is inherently capable of.
    VII. Historical Interpretation:
    The method of historical interpretation is adopted when language of a statute gives no clue to the intention of the legislation however the Courts cannot travel out of the language used in the statute.
    VIII. Sociological Interpretation:
    The jurists of the sociological school are prepared to give a lot of freedom to the judges while interpreting a statute. The view of the Kohler is that for the determination of the correct interpretation, Court can properly refer to the history of social movements and require into the social needs, objects and purposes which were agitating the society at the time of legislation and which the statute had in view.
    IX. Equity Of A Statute:
    The principle of a equity of a statute is defined by coke in these words.
    “Equity is a construction made by the judges that cases out of the letter of a statute yet being within the same mischief or causes of making the same, shall be within the same remedy that the statute provideth; and the reason therefore is for that the law makes could not possibly set down all cases in express terms.”
    “Riggs Vs Palmer:
    “It was held that a murdered could not be permitted to take under the will of his victim and transmit rights to his own heirs, although the statute did not benefiting by the testamentary disposition of his victim.”
    X. Rule Of Cases Omissus:
    It is not the business of the Court to fill up the gaps in a statute. That is the function of a legislation.
    According to Lord Wright:
    “It may be that there is a Cases Omissus, but if so, that omission can only be supplied by a statutory action. That would be the work of legislation, not of construction, and outside the provide of the Court.”
    XI. Whole Construction:
    The statute must be read as a whole and construction should be put on all parts of the statute every clause of the statute should be construed with reference to the context and other clauses of the Act.
    XII. In According With Policy Of Statute:
    The interpretation of a statute be in accordance with the policy and object of the statute in question.
    XIII. Plain Construction:
    If the language of the statute is clear, it must be enforced although the result may seem harsh or unfair or inconvenient
    XIV. Rule Of Ejusdem Generis:
    It is the genera rule of construction that where a broad class is spoken of and general words follow, the class first mentioned is to be taken as the most comprehensive and the general words treated as referring to matters ejusdem generis with such class. It implies the exclusion of other persons or things of the same class which are not mentioned.
    XV. No Retrospective Effect:
    The general rule of interpretation is that no law is to have retrospective effect i. e., not deal with the past events, unless a specific intention to that effect is given in the statute itself.
    Xvi. Rules Of Presumptions:
    While interpreting a statute, certain presumptions have to be taken into consideration by the Courts.
    (i) Legislation not make mistaken:
    It is always to be presumed that the legislature dose not make mistaken, and if it dose make a mistaken, it is not for a Court to correct the same.
    (ii) Legislation knows the practices:
    Another presumption is that legislation knows the practice.
    (iii) Legislation not intended inconvenience:
    Another presumption is that the legislation does not intend what is intend what is inconvenient or unreasonable. If an enactment is such that by reading in its ordinary sense, it produce injustice whereas by reading in a sense which is not ordinary, but does not produce injustice then it must be assumed that the legislation intended that it should be so read as to produced no injustice.
    (iv) Legislation not intend alteration in existing law:
    Another presumption is that the legislation dose not intend any alteration in the existing law except what is expressly declares. A statute should not be interpreted as affecting a fundamental alteration in the general law unless it uses words which point to that conclusion.
    (v) Legislation not interfere with vested rights.
    It is a proper rule of construction not to construe an Act of Parliament as interfering with or injuring persons rights without compensation unless one is obliged to so construe it.
    (vi) Statute not violate International law:
    Another presumption is that statutes d not violate the Principles of International law. The judges may not pronounce an Act ultravires as contravening International Law.
    XVI. Technicalities To Be Deprecated:
    The Courts must look at the substance and not the form and techincalities must be deprecated.
    XVIII. In Favour Of Accused:
    All penal statutes must be construed in favour of the accused.
    4. Conclusion:
    To conclude, I can say, that it is the duty of the legislation to enact and make laws and it is the duty of the Courts to interpret it and apply it, according to certain well knows rules of interpretation. Where once certain words in an Act of Parliament have received a judicial construction in one of the superior Courts, it uses in the same meaning unless the legislation alter it in the subsequent statute.



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