Judges look to see what the purpose of the law is when interpreting statues
R v Registrar-General, ex parte Smith: Charles Smith made an application to obtain his birthcertificate in the correctmanner and was prepared to see a counsellor Under the literal rule the Registrar General had to supply the information as the Act stated 'shallsupply'
Adoption Act 1976 S.1
1. Registrar General shall supplyadoptedpersonover18information to obtainbirthrecord
2. Registrar General must informapplicant of counsellingservice and attend interview if adoption was pre-
Embryo
Live human embryo where fertilisation is complete
The Embryology Act 1990 defined 'embryo' under S.1 (1)(a)
When the Embryology Act 1990 was introduced, there was only one way to create an embryo outside the human body
Cell Nuclear Replacement (CNR)
1. Nucleus from one cell of an unfertilised egg is removed
2. Nucleus from an adult cell is replaced
3. Divides to create an embryo
Cell Nuclear Replacement (CNR) is a method used to create an embryo, which does not involve fertilisation
Cell Nuclear Replacement (CNR) is a form of cloning
In 2003, due to medical advances another method was used to create an embryo called Cell Nuclear Replacement (CNR)
R v Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority
The House of Lords (now Supreme Court) had to consider the definition of 'embryo' under the Embryology Act 1990