Pepper v Hart is a landmark decision in English law on the use of legislative history in statutory interpretation. The House of Lords, by a majority, established the principle that when primary legislation is ambiguous then, under certain circumstances, a court may refer to statements made in Parliament in an attempt to interpret the meaning of the legislation. Before this ruling, such an action would have been seen as a breach of parliamentary privilege. Lord Mackay (pictured), dissenting, argued that Hansard should not be considered admissible evidence due to the time and expense involved in a lawyer having to look up every debate and discussion on a particular statute when giving legal advice or preparing a case. The decision met a mixed reception. While the judiciary were cautiously accepting, legal academics argued that it violated rules of evidence, damaged the separation of powers between the executive and Parliament and caused additional expense in cases. In 2000, a senior judge, Lord Steyn, delivered a lecture in which he attacked the logic and legal theory behind the decision, and several subsequent judicial decisions have considerably limited the use of Pepper by the courts.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepper_v_Hart
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
627:
A Byzantine army under Emperor Heraclius defeated Emperor Khosrau II's Persian forces, commanded by General Rhahzadh, near present-day Mosul, Iraq. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Nineveh_(627)
1915:
President Yuan Shikai of the Republic of China reinstated the monarchy and declared himself Emperor. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuan_Shikai
1939:
The Royal Navy destroyer HMS Duchess was rammed by the battleship HMS Barham she was escorting and sank with heavy loss of life. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Duchess_(H64)
1942:
World War II: German troops began Operation Winter Storm, an attempt to relieve encircled Axis forces during the Battle of Stalingrad. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Winter_Storm
1964:
Jomo Kenyatta became the first President of the Republic of Kenya. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jomo_Kenyatta
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
tin anniversary: The tenth anniversary (yearly recurrence) of an event, especially a wedding. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/tin_anniversary
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
With reasonable men, I will reason; with humane men I will plead; but to tyrants I will give no quarter, nor waste arguments where they will certainly be lost. --William Lloyd Garrison https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/William_Lloyd_Garrison