MEANING OF INTERPRETATION OF STATUTES

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION

The term interpretation means “To give meaning to”. The government is made up of three branches,

The Legislature,
The Executive, and
The Judiciary.

These three branches perform different functions. The legislature makes the laws, the executive implements the laws that are made and the judiciary interprets the laws and makes them operational.

The most common rule of interpretation is that every part of the statute must be understood in a harmonious manner by reading and construing every part of it together.

This study relates to ‘Interpretation of Statutes, Deeds and Documents’ So, first of all we must understand what these terms and some other terms denote.

Statute

To the common man the terms ‘Statute’ generally means the laws and regulations of every sort without considering from which source they emanate. The term ‘Statute’ has been defined as the written will of the legislature solemnly expressed according to the forms necessary to constitute it the law of the State. Normally, the term denotes an Act enacted by the legislative authority (e.g. Parliament of India)

Document

Generally understood, a document is a paper or other material thing giving information, proof, or evidence of anything. The Law defines ‘document’ in a more technical form.

Section 3 of the Indian Evidence Act, of 1872 states that ‘document’ means any matter expressed or described upon any substance by means of letters, figures, or marks or by more than one of those means, intended to be used, or which may be used, for the purpose of recording that matter.

Instrument

In common parlance, ‘instrument’ means a formal legal document that creates or confirms a right or records a fact. It is formal writing of any kind, such as an agreement, deed, charter or record, drawn up and executed in a technical form. It also means a formal legal document having legal effect, either as creating liability or as affording evidence of it. Section 2(14) of the Indian Stamp Act, 1899 states that ‘instrument’ includes every document by which any right or liability is or purports to be created, transferred, extended, extinguished or recorded.

Deed

Deed as an instrument in writing (or other legible representation or words on parchment or paper) purporting to effect
some legal disposition. Simply stated deeds are instruments though all instruments may not be deeds. However, in India, no distinction seems to be made between instruments and deeds.

‘Interpretation

Interpretation is meant the process by which the Courts seek to ascertain the meaning of the legislature through the medium of the authoritative forms in which it is expressed. Simply stated, ‘interpretation’ is the process by which the real meaning of an Act (or a document) and the intention of the legislature in enacting it (or of the parties executing the document) is ascertained. ‘Interpretation’ signifies expounding the meaning of abstruse words, writings, etc., making out of their meaning, explaining, and understanding them in a specified manner. A person is thereby aided in arguing, contesting, and interpreting the proper significance of a section, a proviso, explanation or schedule to an Act or any document, deed, or instrument

Importance of Interpretation

Interpretation, thus, is a familiar process of considerable significance. In relation to statute law, interpretation is of importance because of the inherent nature of legislation as a source of law. The process of statute making and the process of interpretation of statutes take place separately from each other, and two different agencies are concerned. An interpretation of the Act serves as the bridge of understanding between the two.

Judicial determination of questions of law requires the use of materials of various types, depending on the nature of the question. In the interpretation of statutory provisions, the material used will naturally have a sharply legal character, as distinct from the application of a general common law doctrine where it may have a more diffused character. In statutes, greater accuracy is, therefore, required. The process of interpretation is more legalistic and makes more intensive use of the legal technique in statutory interpretation, as contrasted with the application of common law rules.

Need of Interpretation

Interpretation is needed because,

The complicated process of drafting laws leads to a variety of gaps and ambiguity in the statute.
The words, phrases, terms used in the statute can have varying meanings due to the multifaceted nature of the language.
A law is never drafted by a single person but rather by a group of people, this leads to incoherence in the language.
Some statues use technical language because of their complicated subject matter.
The applicability of law changes with new developments.

General Classification of Interpretation

Legal

Authentic
Usual

Doctrinal

Grammatical
Logical

Legal

When there is an actual rule of law that binds the Judge to place a certain interpretation of the statute.

‘Legal’ interpretation is subdivided into ‘authentic’ and ‘usual’. It is ‘authentic’ when rule of interpretation is derived from the legislator himself; it is ‘usual’ when it comes from some other source such as custom or case law. Thus when Justinian ordered that all the difficulties arising out of his legislation should be referred to him for decision, he was providing for ‘authentic’ interpretation, and so also was the Prussian Code, 1794, when it was laid down that Judges should report any doubt as to its meaning to a Statute Commission and abide by their ruling.

Doctrinal

When its purpose is to discover the ‘real’ and ‘true’ meaning of the statute.

‘Doctrinal’ interpretation may again be divided into two categories: ‘grammatical’ & ‘logical’. It is ‘grammatical’ when the court applies only the ordinary rules of speech for finding out the meaning of the words used in the statute. On the other hand, when the court goes beyond the words and tries to discover the intention of the statute in some other way, then it is said to resort to what is called a ‘logical’ interpretation