[STATCON] Chapter 3: Aids to Construction

A. Aids in General, B. Legislative History, C. Contemporary Construction

aids to construction

Where the meaning of a statute is ambiguous, the court is warranted in availing itself of all legitimate _________ in order that it can ascertain the true intent of the statute.

Intrinsic aids; Extrinsic aids

What are the 2 types of aids to construction?

Intrinsic Aids

• The aids to construction that are found in the printed page of the statute itself.

• When construing an ambiguous law, courts look first inside the text of the statute to determine legislative intent.

Intrinsic Aids

Aids to Construction

• Ex. Title of the statute, Preamble (“Whereas” clauses), Body of the Statute, Statutory Definitions, Punctuation Marks, Headnotes or Epigraphs, Lingual text (English, Spanish or Filipino)

Extrinsic Aids

• The aids to construction that are extraneous facts and circumstances outside the printed page.

• Courts resort to this only when the text of the law and intrinsic aids fail to resolve the ambiguity.

Extrinsic Aids

Aids to Construction

• Ex. Legislative history, Prior laws and antecedents, Contemporaneous Construction, Dictionaries, History of the Times and Conditions at Enactment, Adopted or Foreign Statutes

Title of the Statute

• It is used as an aid, in case of doubt in its language to its construction and to ascertaining legislative will.

• If the meaning of the statute is obscure, courts may resort to the ______ to clear the obscurity.

Title

There is a constitutional requirement in our provisions that state that “every bill shall embrace only one subject who shall be expressed in the _____ thereof.”

bill; title of the bill

Baguio v. Marcos held that “No ____ shall embrace more than one subject, which subject shall be expressed in the _________, the words and for other purposes’ when found in the title have been held to be without force or effect whatsoever and have been altogether discarded in construing the Act.”

When the text of the statute is clear and free from doubt

When is it improper for you to resort to the title to interpret the law?

remove; create doubt or uncertainty

The title may be resorted to in order to ______, but not to __________.

Preamble

• It is a part of the statute written immediately after its title, which states the purpose, reason, or justification for the enactment of the law.

• It is usually expressed in the form of “Whereas” clauses.

Philippine Commission, Philippine Legislature, National Assembly, the Congress of the Philippines, the Batasang Pambansa

What are the 5 legislative bodies that generally omit a preamble in statutes passed?

explanatory notes

In lieu of a preamble, legislative bodies like the Philippine Commission and the Philippine Legislature instead use _________ to explain the reasons for the enactment of statutes.

Presidential Decrees

The preamble is, however, extensively used in __________ issued by the _______ in the exercise of his legislative power.

The Preamble

What part of a statute is not essential?

The Preamble

Where the meaning of a statute is clear and unambiguous, the ________ can neither expand nor restrict its operation, much less prevail over its text. Nor can a ______ be used as basis for giving a statute a meaning not apparent on its face.

clarify the ambiguity

• When the statute is ambiguous, the preamble can be resorted to ___________.

• It may also decide the proper construction to be given to the statute.

key of the statute

The preamble is the _________, to open the minds of the lawmakers as to the purpose is achieved, the mischief to be remedied, and the object to be accomplished, by the provisions of the legislature.