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Golden Rule of Interpretation
Golden Rule of Interpretation
Golden Rule of Interpretation
Table of Contents
• Introduction
• What are the Rules of Interpretation
o The three rules of interpretation
▪ The Literal rule
▪ The Mischief rule
▪ The Golden rule
• What is the Golden Rule of Interpretation
• Advantages of the Golden Rule
• Disadvantages of the Golden Rule
• Methods of application of the Golden Rule
• Views of eminent jurists on the Golden Rule of Interpretation
• Important case laws related to the Golden Rule of Interpretation
o State of Punjab v. Qaiser Jehan Begum (1963)
▪ Facts of the case
▪ Issue of the case
▪ Judgement
o Ramji Missar v. State of Bihar (1962)
▪ Facts of the case
▪ Issue of the case
▪ Judgement
o Nokes v. Doncaster Amalgamated Collieries Ltd. (1940)
▪ Facts of the case
▪ Issue of the case
▪ Judgement
o State of Madhya Pradesh v. Azad Bharat Financial Company (1967)
▪ Facts of the case
▪ Issue of the case
▪ Judgement
o Lee v. Knapp (1967)
▪ Facts of the case
▪ Issue of the case
▪ Judgement of the Court
o Fitzpatrick v. Sterling Housing Association Limited (1999)
▪ Facts of the case
▪ Issue of the case
▪ Judgement
• Criticism of the Golden Rule of Interpretation
• Conclusion
• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
o Is the golden rule better than the literal rule of interpretation?
o Are the rules of interpretation followed compulsorily by the judges?
o Why the golden rule of interpretation and construction is an important part of interpretation?
o Why is the golden rule of interpretation criticised?
o What does uncertainty or absurdity mean in the context of the interpretation of statutes?
• References
Introduction
The judiciary in India plays a huge role in ensuring the just and fair treatment of the
people. Its decisions affect people in more ways than one. This is the reason that only
people with the required level of intellect and experience are chosen to be judges in
courts. We are aware of the regular judgements of the courts where they decide upon
cases involving statutory applications. Often, the wording of a particular Section of a
statute is challenged and it is the duty of the court to either expand, restrict or modify the
meaning of the term, in order to ensure justice in the case at hand. This power of the
It is important to note that judges do not get into the interpretation of statutes unless it is
necessary. If the language of a provision is unambiguous and clear as to the intention of
the maker, the courts do not try and modify it. Their duty to interpret arises only when the
language of the provision is unclear, vague or ambiguous. To guide the judges in using
this discretion appropriately, certain principles have been developed which we now refer
to them as ‘rules of interpretation’.
In the case of Duport Steel Ltd v. Sirs (1980), Lord Diplock observed that where the
meaning of the words in a statute is clear and unambiguous, there is no need for judges
to invent ambiguities to give them an excuse for failing to apply the plain meaning to the
case at hand because they presume it to be unjust.
This rule originated in Heydon’s case in 1584. It is also called Heydon’s rule as it was
given by Lord Poke in that case. It is the rule of purposive construction as the purpose of
the statute is most important while applying this rule. The focus of this rule is to cure the
mischief, which means to prevent the misuse of provisions of a statute. As per this rule,
the meaning of the statute should be interpreted in a way, where there is no room for
mischief. If there has been an attempt to add mischief to a statute, then it must be
weeded out using this rule.
In the year 1959, the Street Offences Act of the UK was enacted to prohibit prostitutes
from soliciting on the roads to the passing public. After the enactment, the prostitutes
started soliciting from their balconies and windows. As per Section 1(1) of the Act, it was
an offence for an adult to solicit in a public place for the purpose of prostitution. The
prostitutes were charged under this Section as their actions defeated the intention of the
legislation. When this was challenged before the Court, it was found that the meaning of
this Section was being misinterpreted and was being taken advantage of by the
prostitutes. It applied the mischief rule of interpretation and stated that the intention of
the Act was to prevent prostitution. Thus, it expanded the meaning of the word ‘street’
and included the balconies and windows of homes.
• Narrow approach – This approach is taken when the words in the statute are
capable of multiple interpretations. Through this approach, the judge is able to
apply the meaning which is clear and properly portrays the true intention of the
statute. This approach was used in the R v. Allen, (1872) case.
• Broad approach – This approach is taken when there exists only one possible
interpretation of a word. In some cases, the meaning might cause absurdity. In
order to avoid this problem, the judges can use this approach to modify the
meaning of the word but this modification should be limited and shouldn’t deviate
Earl T. Crawford, in his book “The Construction of Statutes”, has written that the first
source of interpretation should be sought from the words of the statute. After that, the
meaning ascertained should be examined in the context and subject matter of the
enactment. If the legislative intent is still unclear, the various external sources of
assistance can be consulted. In this case, the external source of assistance shall be the
rules of interpretation.
Justice Holmes had stated that a word is not a crystal, transparent or unchanged. It is
the product of thought and has the ability to vary greatly in colour and content based on
the surrounding circumstances and the time in which it is used. Wherever the meaning
of the words is uncertain, there may be a requirement for the application of the golden
rule. The court’s main purpose is to supply justice and to do that, proper interpretation
has to be made. The literal rule should be used first but if it results in absurdity, the
ordinary meaning of the word then may be modified to avoid that absurdity, but no
further.
Lord Moulton in the case of Vacher & Sons v. London Society of Compositor,
(1912)emphasised the need for caution before applying the golden rule of interpretation.
He stated that there exists a danger that the rule may lead to mere judicial criticism of
the correctness of the Acts of legislature. We have to interpret the statutes based on the
language used in them. Although the result of two conflicting interpretations may guide
us in making a choice between them, we can be sure that the words used cannot be
attributed to the conflicting interpretation by taking the Act as a whole and viewing it in
the context of the existing State law at that time.
The Supreme Court in the case of State Bank of India v. Shri N. Sundara Money,
(1976) stated that the rights of the public are paramount and are to be considered
superior in comparison to individual rights. If the words of the statute are absurd in the
context of the case, they should be considered repugnant in order to apply the golden
rule of interpretation.
Judgement
• The Supreme Court held that the parties must first come to know the award in
order to make an application for reference under Section 18. The parties were not
informed of the award by notice.
• Since the parties got to know of the award on a later date, the limitation period for
Section 18 would start from this date and not the date on which the compensation
was awarded.
• In this case, the Court applied the golden rule to modify the meaning of the
provision to include the start of the limitation period from the date of receiving the
notice of award.
• The appellant contended that the younger brother’s age was under 21 at the date
of the offence and thus Section 6 of the Probation of Offenders Act, 1958 should
be applied.
Judgement
• The Supreme Court in this case decided that the age of the younger brother was
below 21 years of age and thus, Section 6 was applicable to him.
• The Court applied the golden rule to allow the accused to claim the benefit under
Section 6 of the Act by stating that the determination of age for this Section should
be done on the date of the guilty verdict and not the date of offence.
Judgement
• The House of Lords held that the benefits of the contract entered into by the
employee and the former company cannot be transferred without informing and
obtaining the consent of the employee.
• The notice of the amalgamation by the transferor or transferee company to the
appellant was essential.
•It was also stated that while using the golden rule, the words must be given their
ordinary meaning. If the legislature desired that workers could be transferred to
the new company without their consent then it would have specifically mentioned it
in the statute. But nothing of that sort could be found in the present case. Thus,
the golden rule was used in this case to modify the meaning of the term ‘property’
by restricting it. Viscount Simon, L.C. presented his reasoning by stating that an
interpretation should be avoided if it reduces the legislation to futility which would
fail to achieve the purpose of the legislation.
If the golden rule wouldn’t have been applied in this case, it would have led to injustice
as it would take away the consent of the workers. This would negatively affect the
workers who would be subject to frivolous penalties just like in this case.
Judgement
• The High Court held that it was unjust to confiscate the truck of a person if he had
no knowledge of the opium being carried on it.
• Since it is a penal statute, it should be construed in a way that no person who has
not committed any offence, shall not be penalised.
• After the death of the tenant, the claimant sought a statutory tenancy as the
spouse of the deceased.
Judgement
• The Court held that the claim could not be made as a spouse of the deceased as
homosexual partners did not come under the meaning of the word. The word
spouse included ‘husband or wife’ of the deceased.
• If the Parliament wanted to include same-sex partners, then it would have
expressly stated it.
• But the Court stated that the meaning of the word ‘family’ could be extended to
include same-sex partners. Thus the appeal was allowed.
In this case, the golden rule was applied to ensure justice for homosexuals when it came
to rights related to family law. The Court ensured that it doesn’t cross the line and
infringe upon the area of the legislature by using the literal rule.
The first point of criticism comes from the definition of the term ‘absurdity’. It is a vague
concept. Also, what is absurd depends on the person interpreting it. This leads to a lack
of uniformity while applying the already limited golden rule. Every judge is different and
is bound to interpret things differently. The purpose of this rule is to bring uniformity by
stating that interpretation of the provisions of a statute should not deviate from the
intention of the legislation. This rule is to be applied when the literal interpretation of the
text produces ambiguous or absurd results. This is where the problem lies. The
absurdity clause to some extent eliminates the uniformity provided by the rule.
Second, the literal, golden and mischief rules are called rules but are they really rule in
the true sense of the word? Certainly not. It is totally based on the discretion of the
judges. Although they’re called rules, none of them carries any authority independently.
The judges can choose not to follow the ‘rules’ when the need clearly exists. Also,
they’re all different solutions to the same problem. Thus, there is no hard and fast rule as
to which one to apply in the case at hand.
Third, due to the culmination of the above-mentioned reasons, the golden rule acts as
an excuse for the judge to deviate from the guidelines. It allows the judge to make
exceptions that do not align well with the policy behind the Act but are based on the
social and political views of the judge. So the bias of the judge can find a way to enter
the scene through this power of interpretation. For example, let’s take the prostitution
case that we discussed above. There is legislation banning the use of cigarettes in
public similar to the prostitution case. A case arises before the Court and it has to now
decide if the accused is guilty of violating a particular Section of the statute. Now, if the
judge personally believes that smoking is not all that bad, he could restrict the meaning
of ‘streets’ in this case. Thus, the application of the golden rule of interpretation is
dependent on the wisdom and integrity of the judges.
Conclusion
The golden rule of interpretation is one of the better ways to strike a balance between
statutory intent and evolving societal needs. It was best described in the case of
Fitzpatrick v. Sterling Housing Association Limited, (1999), that there are areas of law
where a clear demarcation lies between the judiciary and the legislature. When it comes
to interpretation, the intention of the legislature should always be kept in mind. If a
particular provision clearly mentions the parties concerned with it, the judiciary for the
sake of socio-legal development expands its meaning unless the intention of the
legislature says so. The judiciary cannot cross that line and perform the functions of the
legislature.
Due to the possibility of errors in interpretation, the golden rule is not a perfect tool. It
cannot always be used to eliminate absurdities in the plain meaning of the statute. Due
to this, several jurists have come up with their own procedure of application of the rule to
make it more efficient. The rule has been used and modified by judges in various cases
for decades and it is still in use to this date as it has stood the test of time.
apply these rules at all. These rules exist for the sole purpose of guiding the courts to
eliminate absurdity in statutes and arrive at a proper decision.
References
• Introduction To Basic Rules of Interpretation of Statutes – Aishwarya Sandeep
• GOLDEN RULE OF INTERPRETATION AND CASES – Social Laws Today
• Critical Analysis of the Literal, Golden, and Mischief Rules (lawteacher.net)
• https://advocatespedia.com/GOLDEN_RULE