Statutory Interpretation

Rules of Interpretation

Literal Rule

The literal rule should always be used first by judges. The literal rule means that the words in a statue are given their plain and ordinary meaning by the judge. Words are given their meaning the time the Act has passed. In DPP v Chessman the judge looked at the meaning of the word ‘passengers’ in 1847.

In the case of Whiteley v Chappell the defendant was charged with impersonation ‘any person entitled to vote. However, the D was impersonating a dead person. Applying the literal rule, dead people are not entitled to vote.

In the case of LNER v Berriman the wife of a railway worker was unable to claim compensation for her husband who has been killed whilst working on a rail way line. The literal rule was applied and it stated that because the husband had simply been maintaining the line and the Act had stated that compensation would be given if he was repairing the line, which he was not.

Golden Rule

The golden rule is an extension of the literal rule, it gives judges the ability to add a second meaning, where interpreting a word literally would produce an absurd result. It can be used where a word can have multiple meaning, or where it has only one meaning but would produce and absurd result.

In the case of Allen, the law stated that it was an offence to marry someone if you were already married to someone else. The court held that the word marry had to meaning, it could mean to be married to someone, or to go through the ceremony of marriage. Taking the word in its literal meaning would have produced an absurd outcome so they judge used a secondary meaning.

In the case of Adler v George under the Act it made it an offence to be in the vicinity of a prohibited place. The D was arrested inside of the prohibited base and therefore argued he could not be convicted. The judge used the golden rule and said that in the vicinity of could also mean being in or in the vicinity of the prohibited place as being inside posed a greater danger. 

Mischief Rule

The mischief rule was established in Heydons case 1584…