Interpretation of Statutes

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The Literal rule

The literal rule of statutory interpretation should be the first rule applied by judges.

Under the literal rule, the words of the statute are given their natural or ordinary meaning and applied without the judge seeking to put a gloss on the words or seek to make sense of the statute.

Examples of the literal rule:

R v Harris (1836) 7 C & P 446

The defendant bit off his victim's nose. The statute made it an offence 'to stab cut or wound' the court held that under the literal rule the act of biting did not come within the meaning of stab cut or wound as these words implied an instrument had to be used. Therefore the defendant's conviction was quashed.

Examples of the literal rule: Fisher v Bell [1961] 1 QB 394 

The defendant had a flick knife displayed in his shop window with a price tag on it.

Statute made it a criminal offence to 'offer' such flick knives for sale.

His conviction was quashed as goods on display in shops are not 'offers' in the technical sense but an invitation to treat. The court applied the literal rule of statutory interpretation.

Examples of the literal rule: Whitely v Chappel (1868) LR 4 QB 147

A statute made it an offence 'to impersonate any person entitled to vote.‘

The defendant used the vote of a dead man. The statute relating to voting rights required a person to be living in order to be entitled to vote. 

Held:

The literal rule was applied and the defendant was thus acquitted.

Problems with the literal rule There can be disagreement as to

what amounts to the ordinary or natural meaning

Creates loopholes in the law:

Leads to injustice:

Problems with the literal rule Creates awkward precedents which

require Parliamentary time to correct  Fails to recognise the complexities

and limitations of English language

Undermines public confidence in the law

Advantages of the literal rule Restricts the role of the judge

Provides no scope for judges to use their own opinions or prejudices

Upholds the separation of powers

Recognises Parliament as the supreme law maker

Case examples: R v Allen (1872) LR 1 CCR 367

Re Sigsworth [1935] 1 Ch 98

Adler v George [1964] 2 QB 7

The Golden Rule

The golden rule of statutory interpretation may be applied where an application of the literal rule would lead to an absurdity.

The courts may then apply a secondary meaning.

Problems with the golden rule 

judges are able to add or change the meaning of statutes and thereby become law makers infringing the separation of powers.

Judges have no power to intervene for pure injustice where there is no absurdity 

Advantages of the golden rule Errors in drafting can be corrected

immediately eg:

Decisions are generally more in line with Parliament's intention

Closes loopholes

Often gives a more just result

Brings common sense to the law

CONTRACT LAW

ADVERTISEMENTS - Sale Partridge v Crittenden (1968) 2 All ER 421

The defendant placed an advert in a classified section of a magazine offering some bramble finches for sale. S.6 of the Protection of Birds Act 1954 made it an offence to offer such birds for sale. He was charged and convicted of the offence and appealed against his conviction.

Held:

The defendant's conviction was quashed. The advert was an invitation to treat not an offer. The literal rule of statutory interpretation was applied.

ADVERTISEMENTS - AuctionHarris v Nickerson The defendant advertised that an auction of

certain goods would take place at a stated time and place. The plaintiff travelled to the auction only to find that items that he was interested in had been withdrawn. He claimed compensation for breach of contract, arguing that the advertisement constituted an offer, and his travelling to the auction, an acceptance by conduct.

HELD The advertisement was not an offer, merely

a declaration of intention.

AD = OFFER Carlill v Carbolic Smoke Ball Co A Newspaper advert placed by the defendant stated:-

£100 reward will be paid by the Carbolic Smoke Ball Company to any person who contracts the influenza after having used the ball three times daily for two weeks according to the printed directions supplied with each ball...

£1000 is deposited with the Alliance Bank, shewing our sincerity in the matter."

Mrs Carlill purchased some smoke balls and used them according to the directions and caught flu. She sought to claim the stated £100 reward.

DEFENSE ARGUMENTS

1. The advert was a sales puff and lacked intent to be an offer.

2. It is not possible to make an offer to the world.3.

There was no notification of acceptance.

4. The wording was too vague to constitute an offer since there was no stated time limit as to catching the flu.

5. There was no consideration provided since the 'offer' did not specify that the user of the balls must have purchased them.

Held:

The Court of Appeal held that Mrs Carlill was entitled to the reward as the advert constituted an offer of a unilateral contract which she had accepted by performing the conditions stated in the offer. :

ARGUMENTS FOR REJECTION1. The statement referring to

the deposit of £1,000 demonstrated intent and therefore it was not a mere sales puff.

2. It is quite possible to make an offer to the world

3. In unilateral contracts there is no requirement that the offeree communicates an intention to accept, since acceptance is through full performance.

4. Whilst there may be some ambiguity in the wording this was capable of being resolved by applying a reasonable time limit or confining it to only those who caught flu whilst still using the balls.

5. The defendants would have value in people using the balls even if they had not been purchased by them directly.

Rules relating to offer

An offer must be distinguished from an: Invitation to treat This is an offer to consider offers.

Look to the intention of the parties (Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain v. Boots Cash Chemists [1953] and Partridge v. Crittenden [1968]).

Auctions -- Where there is a 'reserve price', the auctioneer calling for bids is not making an offer but is asking for offers from prospective purchasers. -- If there is no 'reserve price' the auctioneer becomes the offeror and must sell the goods to the highest bidder.

Rules relating to offer

Tenders Tenders are not normally offers unless the tender states its exact needs, as distinct from what it may only require.

Requests for information A request for information is not a firm promise and so is not an offer. At the same time, it should not be seen as a counter-offer as it is only an attempt to elicit information (Harvey v. Facey [1893]).

Rules relating to offer

The offer must be communicated to the offeree. The offer may be directed to only one person, a

group of people, or to the world at large (Carlill v. Carbolic Smoke Ball Co. [1893]).

To keep an offer open for a specified time (an option), it must be supported by consideration (Goldsborough Mort & Co. Ltd v. Quinn (1910)).

Any terms contained in the offer must be brought to the notice of the offeree.

Any and all conditions must be strictly followed.

Termination of contract

Revocation To be effective, withdrawal by the offeror must be brought to the notice of the offeree before acceptance, although the offeree can learn of the withdrawal directly or indirectly (Dickinson v. Dodds (1876)).

Rejection or counter-offer Refusal by the offeree or a counter-offer by the offeree will terminate the offer (Hyde v. Wrench (1840)).

Termination of contract

Lapse of time Non-acceptance within a reasonable time (question of fact) or a stipulated time, or death of either party before acceptance will terminate the offer.

Lapse by death of either party If the envisaged contract is of a personal nature, the offer will lapse on the death of either party (Carter v. Hyde (1923)).

Termination of contract Lapse by failure of a condition 

If the offer is subject to a condition and the condition is not fulfilled, the offer will lapse. In the case of a condition precedent, the specified condition must be satisfied before the agreement can ripen into a contract. In the case of a condition subsequent the parties have agreed that the contract will fail as the occurrence of a particular event terminates the contract.

Rules regarding acceptance 

Acceptance It must be made in reliance of the offer R v.

Clarke (1927)).

It must be strictly in accordance with the terms of the offer.

It must be communicated to the offeror, either by words or by conduct. Mental acceptance, unless communication has been waived by the offeror, is insufficient (Felthouse v. Bindley (1862)).

The Termination of Offers

In order for there to be a valid acceptance there must be an offer to which that acceptance is a response.

This principle requires not only that an offer has been made but that it is in existence at the time of the acceptance.

An offer may come to an end in a number of ways. RevocationRejection (explicitly or by counter-offer) Termination (lapse of time)DeathCondition bringing an offer to an end.

By Revocation

The basic requirement is that a revocation requires communication to the offeree of the fact that the offer is no longer open.

Under the postal rule, although an acceptance is effective upon posting - a revocation is only effective UPON RECEIPT

Byrne v Van Tienhoven - revocation requires communication

Rules regarding acceptance It must be conveyed by someone

with authority (Powell v. Lee (1908)).

Cross-offers do not give rise to an agreement (Tinn v. Hoffman & Co. (1873)).

Only the person to whom an offer has been made may accept.

Rules regarding acceptance It must be absolute and unqualified

(Masters v. Cameron (1954)), or it may amount to a counter-offer.

If the offer requires acceptance in a special way, no other mode of acceptance will suffice.

Where the communication of acceptance is instantaneous, the contract is effective when the acceptance is received (Entores Ltd v. Miles Far East Corp [1955]) .

Rules regarding acceptance Acceptance must be made within the

time specified or a reasonable time.

Acceptance, once given, cannot be revoked unless they agree to release each other.

Contracts by post 

The post office is the agent of the offeror, whether by implication or expressly:

effective when received by the offeree; revocation of the offer is only effective when

received by the offeree; acceptance is effective on posting by the

offeree (Adams v. Lindsell (1818) and Byrne & Co. v. Leon Van Tienhoven & Co. (1880)).

TORTS

A negligent or intentional civil wrong not arising out of a contract or statute. These include "intentional torts" such as battery or defamation, and torts for negligence

A tort is an act that injures someone in some way, and for which the injured person may sue the wrongdoer for damages.

Legally, torts are called civil wrongs, as opposed to criminal ones. (Some acts like battery, however, may be both torts and crimes; the wrongdoer may face both civil and criminal penalties.)

Torts may be committed with force, as trespasses, which may be an injury to the person, such as assault, battery, imprisonment; to the property in possession; or they may be committed without force.

What kinds of situations does tort law deal with?

Tort law deals with situations where you have a defendant, someone who has wronged another, and a plaintiff, someone who is wronged.

The types of wrongs that are most common in torts are: situations where you have car accidents, truck accidents, slip and falls in a grocery store on liquid the manager knew or should have

known about.

Some situations include intentional torts such as assault and battery where someone is punched

But the most common are just ordinary negligence claims where someone simply wasn't paying attention and abiding by their social duty to act reasonably.

NEGLIGENCE

A failure to behave with the level of care that someone of ordinary prudence would have exercised under the same circumstances. 

The behavior usually consists of actions, but can also consist of omissions when there is some duty to act (e.g., a duty to help victims of one's previous conduct). 

Primary factors to consider in ascertaining whether the person's conduct lacks reasonable care: the foreseeable likelihood that the

person's conduct will result in harm,

the foreseeable severity of any harm that may ensue,

and the burden of precautions to eliminate or reduce the risk of harm

Five elements are required to establish a prima facie case of negligence:

  the existence of a legal duty to exercise reasonable care;

a failure to exercise reasonable care; cause in fact of physical harm by

the negligent conduct; physical harm in the form of actual

damages; and proximate cause, a showing that the harm is within the

scope of liability

COLLECTION OF CASESCASE ISSUE LEAGAL

REASONINGHochster v De La Tour

Expressed Anticipatory Breach

Omnium D’Enterprise v Sutherland

Implied Anticipatory Breach

Avery v Bowden Frustration

COLLECTION OF CASESCASE ISSUE LEGAL REASONINGDonoghue v Stevenson

Snail in bottle Case of negligence

Harvey v Facey Request for info not an offerPartridge v Critten Sale of a rare

birdInvitation to treat not an offer

Carlill v Carbolic Smokeball

Sale of smoke ball

Offer not an invitation to treat

Routledge v Grant Withdrawal of an offer prior to acceptance

Withdrawal of an offer

Dickinson v Dodd Sale of land Communication of revocation of offer

Hyde v Wrench Sale of a farm Counter -offerPowell v Lee Application for

position of headmaster

Acceptance

COLLECTION OF CASESCASE ISSUE LEGAL REASONINGWith v O’Flannagan

Partial /non-disclosure of change in circumstances in a term of contract

misrepresentation

Coturier v Hastie Sale of unfit corn in transit

common mistake of res extincta

Cooper v Phibbs Uncle sells fishery to nephew which is already owned by nephew

Common mistake of res sue

Raffles v Wichelhaus

Mutual mistake

Foster v McKinnon Unilateral mistake of Non Est Factum

QUESTIONS

Legal Issue: Minors in contractQUESTION ANSWER

John age 17 ordered 4 suits from

a taylor. Later he refused to pay

for them. Advise the taylor.

Minors do not generally have the capacity to contract. However minors can enter into valid contracts such as executed contracts for necessaries.

If it can be proven that the goods fulfils the definition for necessaries then the transaction would be a valid contract as seen in the case of Nash v Hillman.

If not there is no contact.