Purposive Rule

• Purposive approach:


  The judge looks to the ‘spirit & purpose’ of the law and interprets the Act to reflect this (Lord Denning).
• Quintavelle 


  Act limited time that embryos created by fertilisation could be experimented on.  Courts used the PA to include embryos created by cloning as the aim of the Act was to regulate embryonic research.
• Charles Smith 


  CS wanted his birth certificate and would be able to see it under all the other rules.  Court refused as he had already killed a woman he thought was his birth mother and the purpose of the Act was not to expose anyone to danger.
• Jones v Tower Boot 


  young black employee being racially abused at work during breaks.  Employer claimed as it was happening in breaks it was not ‘during employment’ as stated in the Act.  Court said it was covered as the aim of the Act was to prevent this type of behaviour within the workplace.
• Advantages


  1. Flexible
  2. Avoids absurdity
  3. Unforeseen events
  4. Broader than the mishchief rule
• Flexible – even more so than the MR as the judges can look beyond the wording and consider the overall purpose.
• Avoids absurdity

  such as Jones where the employer tried to claim the abuse was happing in breaks so not ‘during employment.’
• Unforeseen events 


  as in Quintavelle where at the time of the Act embryos could only be created by fertilisation. 
• Broader than the mischief rule 


  can look beyond the aim of the specific Act and consider the purpose of the law and also what it was not intended to do as in the case of CS.
• Disadvantages


  1. Unpredictable
  2. Intent of parliament
  3. too much power to unelected judges
  4. does not respect parliamentary sovereignty
• Unpredictable 


  not clear when judges will use this and makes it difficult to advise clients.
• Intent of Parliament 


  judges are effectively deciding the intent and they could be wrong.
• Too much power to unelected judges 


  this impacts on democracy
• Does not respect parliamentary sovereignty 


  parliament are the supreme law makers and judges should simply apply the law created by parliament.  If there are any problems it should be dealt with by parliament.