aids to interpretation

What are intrinsic aids

Found within acts of parliament

• Headings

• Long title

• Interpretation sections

• Short title

• Explanatory notes

• Schedules

• Preamble (comprehensive long title)

What are the rules of language

• General rule

• Specific rule

• Context rule

What is the general rule

Where there is a list of words followed by general words, the general words include other things of the same kind as those on the list

‘Words of the same kind’

Case example for the general rule

Powell v Kempton Park Racecourse - “or other place” (betting act 1853) referred to bets taken in indoor spaces

D was not liable - Took bets in an open air enclosure

What is the specific rule

The express mention of one thing excludes another

Case example for the specific rule

R v Inhabitants of Sedgley - D didnt have to pay tax on his limestone mine as the express mention of coal mines excluded other types of mines

What is the context rule

The word is known by the company it keeps

(The meaning of the word can be known from the words around it i.e the context)

Case example for the context rule

Muir v Keay - entertainment included other forms of enjoyment (such as drinking coffee late at night)

D required a licence & committed an offence

Advantages of intrinsic aids

• Easy to use, as the judge only needs to look at the statute itself

• Quicker, saves time & money compared to extrinsic aids

• Upholds sovereignty by considering only what was enacted

Disadvantages of intrinsic aids

• May not provide the judge with a solution, particularly if parliaments true intention was not obvious

• Acts before 1999 do not contain explanatory notes

What are extrinsic aids

Found outside the act of parliament

• Hansard - record of everything said in parliament

• Law commission reports

• Academic textbooks & articles

• International treaties

• Oxford English Dictionary - from the year the relevant act was passed

What was stated in the decision of Pepper v Hart

Hansard should only be used where:

1. The words of the act are ambiguous, unclear, or absurd

2. The statements in Hansard are clear

3. The statement in Hansard is made by the Minster responsible for the bill

Advantages of extrinsic aids

• Give a more comprehensive view of parliaments intention

• Allow judges to consult a greater range of material than intrinsic aids

• Lord Denning in Davis v Johnson - to ignore Hansard would be “to grope in the dark for the meaning of an act without switching on the light”

Disadvantages of extrinsic aids

• Conflicts with sovereignty - allows judges to place their own interpretation on the words used by parliament, rather than sticking to their ordinary meaning

• Lengthy & costly process

• Lord Scarman - the use of Hansard can be “unreliable” & “promote confusion” which is contrary to the rule of law (law should be ascertainable)

What is stated in s3 & s4 of the Human Rights Act 1998

Judges must read & give affect to primary & secondary legislation in a way which is compatible with the convention rights so far as it is possible to do so

If an act of parliament breaches convention rights the higher courts can declare the legislation to be incompatible

(This is an extrinsic aid)

Case example for HRA

Mendoza v Ghaidan - A14 prevents discrimination, so the Rent Acts had to be interpreted in a way which did not discriminate against the property rights of same-sex couples

What is stated in s6(3) EU Withdrawal Act 2018

Retained EU law shall be interpreted in accordance with any relevant retained case law & retained EU law principles

Case law - pre-brexit domestic courts decisions & CJEU decisions interpreting EU law