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Distinction grade: BTEC business unit 23 English legal system assignment 2
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The English legal system unit 23 assignment 2 distinction grade.
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Unit 23 Assignment 2 ReportHow acts of parliament are created and applied to cases
The legislative process
1st consultation stage: green paper is issued to gauge public response followed by a white paper this is
the government firm proposal to change the law.
2nd drafting: parliament draftsmen who are lawyers draft the bill.
3rd first reading- MP stands and reads the name and purpose of the bill and usually there is no vote
taken
4th second reading- this is the main debate of the overall principles of the bill. At the end there is a
vote take and a majority is needed for the bill to continue.
5th committee stage- general committee is made up of 16- 50 MP’s, who are experts in the area being
discussed, they scrutinise the bill clause by clause and suggest amendments.
6th report stage- the general committee reports back to the House of Lords if any amendment are
suggested, otherwise this stage can be missed. The majority of the house needs to agree with the
suggested amendments.
7th third reading- this is the final debate and vote of the bill and this is now a formality.
8th other houses- if the bill starts in the House of Commons, it now goes to the House of Lords where
the above 5 stages (3rd to 7th). If the lords make amendment to the bill it will go back to the house of
common for it to consider those amendments. Parliament act 1911 & 1949 alls a bill to become a law
even if the HoL reject it. If the HoL reject a bill then it will be delayed for one year before the HoC
bypass the HoL and take the bill to the monarch for royal assent. These acts were used to pass the
hunting act 2004
9th royal assent- the monarch formally gives approval to the bill (this is not a formality) and it then
becomes an act of parliament.
Delegated legislation
Delegated legislation is the law that is made by some person or body other than parliament but with
parliament authority. The way that parliament passes on their authority… parliament passes a ‘parent act’. A
parent act gives someone else other than parliament the power to make laws. However, the parent act will set
out boundaries about how that power can be used.
There are 3 types of delegated legislation:
1. Order of the council: this is made by the queen and the privy council and it is used in times of
emergency for example when laws need to be passed quickly. This power comes from the emergency
powers act 1920 and the civil contingencies act 2004. This was used during the petrol strike and the
foot and mouth crisis. It is also used when parliament are not available to pass a law or when they are
too busy. Can also be used to amend an act of parliament e.g. the misuse of drugs act 1971 the
change of cannabis from a class b drug to a class c back to a class b
2. Statutory instrument: this is made by government ministers and parliament sets out the framework in
an enabling act e.g. gives them permission to make laws on a certain topic. This is the most common
form of delegated legislation and there are over 3000 passed each year. The road traffic act 1988-
parent, allows the Secretary of State for transport to pass more delegated laws. E.g. in 2003 statutory
instrument was used to an mobile phone while driving.
, 3. Bylaws: these are made by local councils and it allows them to make law regarding public behaviour in
the area. Some examples include law relating to littering, parking and dog fouling.
Statutory Interpretation
This is how judges have to interpret the meaning of an act of parliament. There are some problems with
interpretation and these are that acts of parliament may be overcomplicated and difficult to understand. Also
the words and terms used in statutes may be ambiguous, broad and unclear e.g. dangerous dogs act 1991 ‘any
dog of the type known as the pit bull terrier’. Also over time the meaning of a work may change and new
technology may mean that an old act of parliament may not cover present day situation.
Rules and Aids to Interpretation
There are 4 rules of interpretation-
1. Literal rule: under this rule judges will give words their plain, ordinary, literal meaning and they will
often use a fictional to discover the literal meaning of a word. The literal meaning of a word must be
followed, even if the result is absurd. Historically this was the most common rule and it respects
parliamentary supremacy.
2. Golden rule : this is an extension of the literal rule. The golden rule starts by looking at the literal
meaning of the work and if it can result in an absurd result they can avoid using it. There are two
approaches to the golden rule- narrow approach: if a word is capable of more than one meaning then
the court can choose between those meanings. Broader approach: if the words have one clear
meaning but following that clear meaning lead to a repugnant situation the literal rule can be
avoided.
3. Mischief rule: both the literal and golden rule only pay attention to the actual words of the legislation.
The mischief rule gives judges much more flexibility as they are allowed to look at why parliament
passed the legislation in the first place- what mischief were they trying to remedy.
4. Purposive approach: this is very similar to the mischief rule for example it gives judges more flexibility.
Judges look to see what was the purpose of the act and they can decide what they believe parliament
intended or meant to achieve. This approach must be used by our courts when interpreting EU law
and the Human rights act 1998.
Evaluation and application
Literal rule: Case example: Whitley v Chappell (1868)- it was a offence to ‘impersonate any person
entitled to vote’. The defendant had pretended to be a person who had died in order to use their
vote. Under the literal rule the defendant was not guilty and this is because a dead person isn’t
entitled to vote. Advantages: the rule is quick and easy to use. Another advantage is that there is no
need to spend time researching what other possible meanings there may be. Another one is that it
respects parliamentary supremacy. Some disadvantages of this rule is that it can lead to absurd
results such as the case of whitely v Chappell. It can also lead to an unfair result such as the case of
LNER v Berriman.
Golden rule- narrow approach case example: R v Allen- it was an offence to ‘marry’ whilst still married
to someone else. The defendant argued that he was not guilty as it was impossible to legally marry
more than one person. Courts decided that the word ‘marry’ had 2 meanings: 1- to become legally
married 2- to go through a marriages ceremony. Courts choose to use the second meaning and found
the defendant guilty. Broader approach case example: Re Sigsworth- the administration of estates act
stated that if a person has not made a will the inheritance will automatically pass on the the next of
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