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Legal Language · Unit 4

External Aids to Interpretation, and the Rules of Interpretation

Unit 4 of Legal Language including Legal Writing and General English (syllabus: Module 4). Below: what the unit covers, the provisions it turns on, and the cases an examiner expects you to name.

What this unit covers

  • Where does a court start, and when may it depart from the words?
  • How does the mischief rule work, and what are Heydon's four questions?
  • What does a court do when two provisions collide?
  • When may the court look outside the Act, and what may it look at?

Treat that list as a self-test: recite each topic's rule from memory before you open its cases.

Leading cases

  • Kanai Lal Sur v Paramnidhi Sadhukhan
  • Bengal Immunity Co Ltd v State of Bihar
  • Commissioner of Income Tax v Hindustan Bulk Carriers (2003)
  • K.P. Varghese v Income Tax Officer

Exam questions on this unit