STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION

INTRINSIC & EXTRINSIC

INTRINSIC: EXTRINSIC:

1. Parts of the statute 1. Policy

2. Language 2. Purpose
3. What is found in the statute itself 3. Consequences/Presumption
4. Legal History
5. Contemporaneous
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INTRINSIC

PARTS OF THE STATUTE:

1. Title

According to Art 6 of the Consti : “Must contain only 1 subject and must be expressed thereof”
Indicative of legal intent
Resorted to when construing

2. Preamble

Known formerly as the “whereas clauses”

May be substituted by explanatory notes (Bills usually have these written by sponsor or
proponent of the bill)
Not an essential part of statute but state the reason why the enactment of such

3. Text

Words, phrase, sentences, clauses

Must be taken as a whole
Ambiguous phrases
Look at punctuation mark
-cannot prevail over the clear meaning of the language of the law. Useful in solving
certain ambiguities (same with capitalization)

4. Captions

-Also known as “headnotes”/”quotations” written at the beginning of the sections

-Not given value except statute is divided into different parts
(The headings may be controlling of the provisions under that heading)
-In case of conflict between Title of the Law and Caption. You choose TITLE.
 5. Statutory Directives

-Law itself shows how you must interpret it (E.g. Cooperative Code; E-Commerce Act)

-Guides the court on how to interpret law

LANGUAGE OF THE STATUTE:

Conflict in meaning with word, you go back to the ENGLISH VERSION (Original Language)

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EXTRINSIC

“Outside of the Law”

Look for aids to interpretation or construction outside of the law you are reading

Look for spirit of the Law (Legislative intent)

by analyzing what is expressed in the law itself and if necessary also its history (you look at the output of
the legislative branch e.g. journals or records) because the courts cannot speculate on the meaning
which is discernible from the law itself. Courts must really find out exactly what the legislature intended.

POLICY OF THE LAW ITSELF:

- A guide in deciding whether to construe strictly or liberally

(E.g in labor law and agrarian reform law, the policy is to level the plain field for those who
have less in life so the policy in interpreting such laws must be to liberally construe them in
favour of its beneficiaries. On the other hand Tax laws are construed strictly against the tax
payer because the policy of the law is to generate income for the Gov’t)

PURPOSE OF THE LAW:

- Must also be considered. What is the mischief that the law seeks to address? Almost the
same as looking at its policy (What is the objective, what does it seek to accomplish, what
evil does it want to remedy)

CONSEQUENCES AND PRESUMPTIONS:

- There are 2 ways in interpreting a provision of law. One may lead to bad consequences and
the other may lead to good consequences. You choose the one that will lead to good
 consequences. Because law is never intended to lead to evil consequences. It is always
intended to lead t justice, peace, equity and etc.

- Then look at certain presumptions (E.g. presumptions of constitutionality, completeness,

prospective application)

- Then consider the principles of RIGHTS AND JUSTICE in looking at its consequences and
presumptions

NOTE: Always keep in mind to avoid injustice and absurdity in interpretation.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

- Refers to all the antecedents before the law was finally enacted.
- Includes all bills filed on the subject, the president’s endorsements, sponsorship speeches,
debates, deliberations etc.
- Includes also looking at prior laws on the same subject

o If it’s an amendatory law, what did it amend? What did it delete? What did it add?
Then if you have determined what did it deleted, was it deleted on purpose, was
there a reason for the deletion and etc. You have to look at the history. The WHYs
and the WHEREFOREs of the Law (E.g. In the Code of Professional Responsibility, the
rule that says that a lawyer cannot acquire the property of his client in litigation was
deleted. It doesn’t mean that a lawyer can now acquire the property in litigation, it
was deleted because it is already covered by the civil code)

- If the law is adopted from foreign Jurisdiction, the foreign law becomes a part of its
legislative history. It doesn’t mean that we are bound to interpret it the way the foreign
court did it, it is just something to ‘consider’ when giving the law meaning. So it has
‘persuasive’ value
- Social, Historical, Economic conditions of the country when the law was enacted can also be
part of the Legislative History

CONTEMPORANEOUS CONSTRUCTION

- Interpretation of the law given by administrative office & executive office to enact laws
- Given great respect
- Courts assume that the executive have studied the law before implementation and that it is
its expertise and they are competent
- Gives you right experience & informed judgment
- Ensures stability of Laws
- However, this is not binding in courts especially if erroneous in nature