statutory interpretation

• 3 approaches courts will use traditionally

  • Mischief rule
  • Literal rule
  • Golden rule
• Mischief rule

  Court tries to look at intention behind legislation or the problem parliament was trying to fix and then interprets it to give effect to what they want
• Mischief rule


  • Smith v Hughes - soliciting on a balcony, judges held that they were causing the mischief that parliament was trying to avoid by bothering people on the street
• Disadvantage of Mischief rule

  Judges' interpretation is subjective, potentially not enforcing parliamentary statute
• Advantage of Mischief rule

  Focuses on the good of the public by avoiding the mischief, more flexible than the literal rule
• Literal rule

  Interpreting law literally
• Literal rule

  • Lawton v Fleming - Brown, playing football in a park, literal meaning of football was applied
• Disadvantage of Literal rule

  Not flexible, may not consider the intention behind the words used
• Advantage of Literal rule

  Respects parliamentary law making and avoids judicial law making
• Golden rule


  Extension of the literal rule where judges interpret language literally unless it creates an absurdity
• Golden rule


  • R v Allen - prevented bigamy, interpreted 'marry' as 'going through a marriage ceremony'
• Advantage of Golden rule

  Respects parliamentary law making but avoids unjust outcomes
• Purposive approach


  Looking for the purpose behind the law, more wide-ranging than other approaches
• Intrinsic aids for statutory interpretation

  Looking into the statute itself, examining the document to figure out the purpose of the legislation
• Extrinsic aids for statutory interpretation

  Looking outside the statute itself, considering white and green papers, Law Commission reports, consultation, and parliamentary debates
• Use of extrinsic aids


  • Pepper v Hart - referred to Hansard for the case, R (Crown Rex/Regina) v Hinks - Lord Hutton looked at the way sections of the Theft Act are ordered to help define appropriation
• Statutory interpretation involves methods judges use to imply statutes