Aids Of Interpretation

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Joe Hughes Describe any two aids that can be used by judges when interpreting acts of Parliament. The types of aids that can be used when interpreting acts of parliament include intrinsic and extrinsic aids and the rules of language. Intrinsic aids are found within the Act itself and may help to make the meaning clear. These include the interpretation section, defining the terms used in the particular Act, e.g. ss. 735-44A of the companies Act 1985 defines amongst other things ‘accounts’ and ‘directors’. The preamble and long title/short title, which sets out the beginning scope of the Act, Lord Simon in Black Clawson International 1975 said ‘the long title provided the plainest of all guides to the general objectives of the statute. Schedules, which are additions to the main body of the Act, in some cases it will be necessary to refer to schedules to understand the Act, e.g. Hunting Act 2004. Marginal notes and headings summarise the effect of sections of an Act where the wording or either a marginal note or heading seems to contradict the main body of the Act. A margin note was referred to in R v Tivnan 1999 to clarify if it was Parliament’s intention to deprive drug dealers of assets equivalent in value to the proceeds obtained from the drug dealing. The objective section, this sets out objectives that the Act is intended to achieve, for example the purposes section of the Climate change and sustainable energy Act 2006 gives 3 statements of purpose of the legislation. Finally; punctuation. This is now recognised to have an effect on the meaning of words and can be taken into account in determining the meaning of statutory provisions. Extrinsic aids are materials found outside the Act which the judge may consult. It has always been accepted that some external sources can be allowed and these include; previous acts of parliament on the same topic, the
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