Intent: Touchstone of Interpretation

Legislative intent and its derivation is the part and parcel of interpretation as it shows the object of the statute and its purpose[blogger].As long ago as 1660 the Barons of the Court of the Exchequer said:

"And the judges of the law in all times past have so far pursued the intent of the makers of statutes that they have expounded Acts which were general in words to be but particular where the intent was particular.[Stradling v Morgan (1660) 75 ER 305 at 312.]

And added:

". . . the sages of the law heretofore have construed statutes quite contrary to the letter in some appearance, and those statutes which comprehend all things in the letter, they have expounded to extend but to some things, and those which generally prohibit all people from doing such an act, they have interpreted to permit some people to do it, and those which include every person in the letter they have adjudged to reach to some persons only, which expositions have always been founded upon the intent of the legislature which they have collected sometimes by considering the cause and necessity of making the Act, sometimes by comparing one part of the Act with another and sometime by foreign circumstances. So that they have ever been guided by the intent of the Legislature, which they have always taken according to the necessity of the matter, and according to that which is consonant to reason and good discretion.”[Stradling as above and also see: See also Bowtell v Goldsborough Mort b Co Limited, above n4, at 457- 458; Commercial Union Insurance Co Ltd v Colonial Carrying Co of New Zealand Ltd [I9371 NZLR 1041 at 1047-1049]

Matter cited from Statutory Interpretation: Identzhing the Linguistic Register byThe Honourable J J Spigelman AC *[Chief Justice of New South Wales. This article is an edited version of the 1999 Sir Ninian Stephen Lecture. The Sir Ninian Stephen Lecture was established to mark the arrival of the first group of Bachelor of Laws students at The University of Newcastle in 1993. It is an annual event which is to be delivered by an eminent lawyer at the commencement of each academic year.]