Interpretation Act 1978

Last updated

Interpretation Act 1978 [1]
Act of Parliament
Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (variant 1, 1952-2022).svg
Long title An Act to consolidate the Interpretation Act 1889 and certain other enactments relating to the construction and operation of Acts of Parliament and other instruments, with amendments to give effect to recommendations of the Law Commission and the Scottish Law Commission.
Citation 1978 c. 30
Dates
Royal assent 20 July 1978
Commencement 1 January 1979 [2]
Other legislation
Repeals/revokes
Status: Amended
Text of statute as originally enacted
Revised text of statute as amended
Text of the Interpretation Act 1978 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk.

The Interpretation Act 1978 [1] (c. 30) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Act makes provision for the interpretation of Acts of Parliament, [3] Measures of the General Synod of the Church of England, Measures of the Church Assembly, [4] subordinate legislation, [5] "deeds and other instruments and documents", [6] Acts of the Scottish Parliament and instruments made thereunder (added 1998), [7] and Measures and Acts of the National Assembly for Wales and instruments made thereunder. [8] The Act makes provision in relation to: the construction of certain words and phrases, words of enactment, amendment or repeal of Acts in the Session they were passed, judicial notice, commencement, statutory powers and duties, the effect of repeals, and duplicated offences.

Contents

The Act repealed the whole of the Interpretation Act 1889, except for sections 13(4) and 13(5) and 13(14) in their application to Northern Ireland. [9]

The Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954 [10] applies in the same way to Acts of the Parliament of Northern Ireland or Acts of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

The Interpretation Act 1978 applies to itself and to any Act passed after the commencement of the Act (section 22) and, to the extent specified in Part I of Schedule 2, to Acts passed before the commencement of the Act.

The Interpretation Act 1978 binds the Crown. [11]

Section 4

This section replaces the corresponding provision of the Acts of Parliament (Commencement) Act 1793. See Coming into force.

Section 5

Section 5 and Schedule 1 provide definitions of certain words and phrases.

Section 6

Unless it is clear there is a contrary intention, wherever in any Act of Parliament or Statutory Instrument there are words importing the masculine gender, the words should be construed to incorporate the feminine and vice versa. Also, words in the singular include the plural, and as with the interchangeability of words importing gender so it is with the plural and singular. [12]

Section 7

This section, concerned with service of documents by post, replaced section 26 of the Interpretation Act 1889. [13] It states that

Where an Act authorises or requires any document to be served by post (whether the expression "serve" or the expression "give" or "send" or any other expression is used) then, unless the contrary intention appears, the service is deemed to be effected by properly addressing, pre-paying and posting a letter containing the document and, unless the contrary is proved, to have been effected at the time at which the letter would be delivered in the ordinary course of post. [14]

Interpretation of the words unless the contrary is proved is discussed in the case of Calladine-Smith v Saveorder Ltd, as to whether the "contrary" means the contrary of the allegation that the letter was properly addressed, prepaid and posted, or whether it refers to the contrary of the deeming provision that the letter in question was delivered in the ordinary course of post. In this particular case, a letter was shown to have been properly addressed, pre-paid and posted, but not received. On a balance of probabilities the court accepted that the "contrary" to the deemed provision had been proved, the letter was not received, and therefore the deemed provision could not hold. [15]

Section 8

Section 8 specifies that, in general, a measurement of distance refers to measurement in a straight line on a horizontal plane. [16]

Section 16 – General savings

The following cases are relevant to this section:

Section 18 – Duplicated offences

Section 18 provides:

Where an act or omission constitutes an offence under two or more Acts, or both under an Act and at common law, the offender shall, unless the contrary intention appears, be liable to be prosecuted and punished under either or any of those Acts or at common law, but shall not be liable to be punished more than once for the same offence. [17]

This section replaces section 33 of the Interpretation Act 1889. [18] Humphreys J. said that that section did not add anything to the common law, or detract anything from it. [19]

"... shall not be liable to be punished more than once for the same offence"

The words "same offence" at the end of section 18 do not mean "same act" or "same cause". A person may be punished more than once for the same act. [20] Two prosecutions for a single false statement in a brochure is not oppressive. [21]

See also Williams v Hallam (1943) 112 LJKB 353, (1943) 59 TLR 287, (1943) 41 LGR 165.

"Act"

The word "Act" means Act of Parliament. [22] It includes a local and personal or private Act. [23]

A reference to an Act in this section is a reference to an Act to which this section applies. [11]

This section applies to Acts whenever passed. [24] It applies to Measures of the General Synod of the Church of England, and, so far as it relates to Acts passed before 1 January 1979, to measures of the Church Assembly passed after 28 May 1925, as it applies to Acts. [25] It applies to an Act of the Scottish Parliament as it applies to an "Act". [26]

For the application of this section to subordinate legislation, see section 23. And see also section 23A(2)(b).

Section 19

For section 19(1), see Citation of United Kingdom legislation § Interpretation of citations by year, statute, session, chapter, number or letter.

Section 23A

This section was inserted by section 125 of, and paragraph 16(2) of Schedule 8 to, the Scotland Act 1998.

Section 12

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Islands</span> Term within the law of the United Kingdom

The British Islands is a term within the law of the United Kingdom which refers collectively to the following four polities:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sexual Offences Act 2003</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Sexual Offences Act 2003 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

In law, coming into force or entry into force is the process by which legislation, regulations, treaties and other legal instruments come to have legal force and effect. The term is closely related to the date of this transition. The point at which such instrument comes into effect may be set out in the instrument itself, or after the lapse of a certain period, or upon the happening of a certain event, such as a proclamation or an objective event, such as the birth, marriage, reaching a particular age or death of a certain person. On rare occasions, the effective date of a law may be backdated to a date before the enactment.

The law of Northern Ireland is the legal system of statute and common law operating in Northern Ireland since the partition of Ireland established Northern Ireland as a distinct jurisdiction in 1921. Before 1921, Northern Ireland was part of the same legal system as the rest of Ireland.

Citation of United Kingdom legislation includes the systems used for legislation passed by devolved parliaments and assemblies, for secondary legislation, and for prerogative instruments. It is relatively complex both due to the different sources of legislation in the United Kingdom, and because of the different histories of the constituent countries of the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Official Secrets Act 1911</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Official Secrets Act 1911 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It replaced the Official Secrets Act 1889.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Official Secrets Act 1989</span> United Kingdom intelligence law

The Official Secrets Act 1989 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that repeals and replaces section 2 of the Official Secrets Act 1911, thereby removing the public interest defence created by that section.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Offences at Sea Act 1799</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Offences at Sea Act 1799 is an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain. It is still in force. It extended the jurisdiction of British courts to crimes committed by British subjects on the high seas. It does not apply to foreign citizens. Jurisdiction over piracy on the high seas already existed before 1799, whether committed by British subjects or not.

Obtaining pecuniary advantage by deception was formerly a statutory offence in England and Wales and Northern Ireland. It was replaced with the more general offence of fraud by the Fraud Act 2006. The offence still subsists in certain other common law jurisdictions which have copied the English criminal model.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Infanticide Act 1938</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Infanticide Act 1938 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It creates the offence of infanticide for England and Wales.

In British law and in some related legal systems, an enactment is spent if it is "exhausted in operation by the accomplishment of the purposes for which it was enacted".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Official Secrets Act 1920</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Official Secrets Act 1920 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Interpretation Act 1889</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Interpretation Act 1889 was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 1976</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 1976 is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It made provision in relation to rape and related offences. Except for subsections (1) and (2) and (4) and (6) of section 7, the whole Act is repealed. Section 7(2) now provides the definition of the expression "a rape offence" in relation to court martial proceedings. The other remaining provisions are purely supplemental.

Removing article from place open to the public is a statutory offence in England and Wales and Northern Ireland.

The Statutes of the Realm is an authoritative collection of acts of the Parliament of England from the earliest times to the Union of the Parliaments in 1707, and Acts of the Parliament of Great Britain passed up to the death of Queen Anne in 1714. It was published between 1810 and 1825 by the Record Commission as a series of nine volumes, with volume IV split into two separately bound parts, together with volumes containing an alphabetical index and a chronological index.

Obtaining a money transfer by deception was formerly a statutory offence in England and Wales and Northern Ireland.

Assault with intent to resist arrest is a statutory offence of aggravated assault in England and Wales and Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maintenance and Embracery Act 1540</span> English legislation

The Maintenance and Embracery Act 1540 was an Act of the Parliament of England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Genocide Act 1969</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Genocide Act 1969 was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It gave effect to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide approved by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 9 December 1948.

References

  1. 1 2 The citation of this Act by this short title is authorised by section 27 of this Act.
  2. The Interpretation Act 1978, section 26.
  3. The Interpretation Act 1978, section 22(1)
  4. The Interpretation Act 1978, section 22(3)
  5. The Interpretation Act 1978, section 23(1)
  6. The Interpretation Act 1978, section 23(3)
  7. The Interpretation Act 1978, section 23A
  8. The Interpretation Act 1978, section 23B
  9. The Interpretation Act 1978, section 25 and Schedule 3
  10. The Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954
  11. 1 2 The Interpretation Act 1978, section 21(2)
  12. The Interpretation Act, section 6
  13. Archbold Criminal Pleading, Evidence and Practice , 1999, para 4-209
  14. "Interpretation Act 1978: Section 7", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, 1978 c. 30 (s. 7)
  15. Calladine-Smith v Saveorder Ltd [2011] EWHC 2501(Ch) , [2011] 44 EG 108(5 July 2011), High Court (England and Wales)
  16. The Interpretation Act, section 8
  17. Copy of section 18 from Legislation.gov.uk
  18. Archbold Criminal Pleading, Evidence and Practice , 1999, para 4–123
  19. R v Thomas [1950] 1 KB 26 at 31 to 33, 33 Cr App R 200 at 204, CCA
  20. R v Thomas [1950] 1 KB 26, 33 Cr App R 200, [1949] 2 All ER 662, CCA
  21. R v Thomson Holidays Ltd [1974] QB 592, [1974] 2 WLR 371, [1974] 1 All ER 823, 58 Cr App R 429, CA
  22. The Interpretation Act 1978, sections 5 and 22(1) and Schedule 1 (as amended by the Scotland Act 1998, section 125 and Schedule 8, paragraph 16(3))
  23. The Interpretation Act 1978, section 21(1)
  24. The Interpretation Act 1978, section 22(1) and Schedule 2, Part I, paragraph 1
  25. The Interpretation Act 1978, sections 22(3) and 26
  26. The Interpretation Act 1978, section 23A(2)(a) (as inserted by the Scotland Act 1998, section 125 and Schedule 8, paragraph 16(2))