How do you do statutory interpretation?

How do you do statutory interpretation?

The basic principles governing statutory interpretation are repeatedly stated, without apparent disagreement, in decisions of the High Court of Australia. According to the author, they involve deriving meaning from close consideration of the text, context and purpose (policy) of any contested provisions.

How do judges approach statutory interpretation?

Judges use a variety of tools to help them interpret statutes, most frequently relying on five types of interpretive tools: ordinary meaning, statutory context, canons of construction, legislative history, and evidence of the way a statute is implemented. These tools often overlap.

What are the four main steps to statutory interpretation?

There are four main steps to statutory interpretation. They are: get the facts, locate a relevant statute, analyze the statute, conclude. This statute has four elements.

What is statutory interpretation used for?

What is statutory interpretation? Statutory interpretation may be required where complexity and uncertainty arises as to how the law applies in a given situation. Those who draft legislation do their utmost within their extraordinary experience and drafting skills to craft legislation that is clear and unambiguous.

What are the three main rules of statutory interpretation?

In the construction (interpretation) of statutes, the principle aim of the court must be to carry out the “Intention of Parliament”, and the English courts developed three main rules (plus some minor ones) to assist them in the task. These were: the mischief rule, the literal rule, and the golden rule.

What is the purpose of interpretation of statutes?

The purpose of Interpretation of Statutes is to help the Judge to ascertain the intention of the Legislature – not to control that intention or to confine it within the limits, which the Judge may deem reasonable or expedient.

What are the three rules of statutory interpretation?

The fundamental principle of statutory interpretation is that the words of a statute be read in their entire context and in their grammatical and ordinary sense harmoniously with the scheme of the Act, the object of the Act, and the intention of the legislature.

How do courts use statutory interpretation to create new laws?

When the judge says that the goal of statutory interpretation is to ascertain what the legislature intended, the judge is acknowledging her constitutional relationship with the legislature. So far as a judge is concerned, the concept of legislative intent provides the correct constitutional orientation.

How are presumption important in interpretation of statutes?

In the interpretation of statutes, certain so-called presumptions exist, which are not truly concerned with evidence at all, but are cannons of interpretation. To “presume” means to suppose that something is probably true. The legislature is presumed to use appropriate words to manifest its intention.

What is the necessity and importance of interpretation of statute?

How are the rules of statutory interpretation applied?

The rules of statutory interpretation are not rules in the strict sense, as each one may point to different solution to the same problem. There is no hierarchy of rules to be applied and neither is any court bound to follow a particular rule.

What are the presumptions in statutory interpretation?

In statutory interpretation courts rely on presumption, language, intrinsic and extrinsic aids. Presumptions are that common law has not been amended unless the Act shows intention to; Parliament cannot have retrospectively amended the law.

What was the purpose of the Interpretation Act 1978?

The Interpretation Act 1978 provides limited scope to assist judges with statutory interpretation in that it only provides standard definitions to common provisions such as a rebuttable presumption that terminology in the masculine gender also include the feminine, and that the singular includes plural.

When is a court called upon to interpret a statute?

Courts may be called upon to interpret a statute due to disputes over the meaning of a word or phrase contained within a statute. These disputes may arise through a variety of reasons.