CA Intermediate · Corporate and Other Laws · Interpretation of Statutes
A municipal bye-law states: 'No person shall bring any vehicle into the public garden.' Ramesh pushes a wheelchair carrying his elderly mother into the garden, and the garden superintendent proposes to prosecute him for bringing a vehicle. Which rule of interpretation best supports the view that Ramesh has not violated the bye-law?
Purposive construction supports Ramesh. The bye-law exists to keep the garden safe and peaceful, and a wheelchair used by an elderly person does not defeat that objective. Ejusdem generis and harmonious construction need a list of items or conflicting provisions, which are absent here, so they do not apply.
- APurposive construction, because the bye-law aims to keep the garden safe and peaceful, and a wheelchair does not defeat that aimCorrect
- BRule of ejusdem generis, because the bye-law contains a list of specific words followed by general words
- CDoctrine of harmonious construction, because two conflicting provisions must be reconciled
- DRule of reddendo singula singulis, because plural words are distributed over plural objects
Explanation
The bye-law contains no list of specific items followed by general words, so ejusdem generis cannot apply. There are also no conflicting provisions to harmonise. The purpose of the bye-law is to keep the garden safe and peaceful, so reading 'vehicle' in light of that purpose excludes a wheelchair. Reddendo singula singulis applies to distributing plural words, which is not the case here.
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