MODULE 1 Related legal principles
Statutory Construction – Construction is the art or process of discovering
and expounding the meaning and intention of the law of authors the law
with respect to its application to a given case, where the intention is
rendered doubtful to a given case, amongst others, by reason of the fact
that the given case is not explicitly provided for in the law
When is it necessary?
- Construction and interpretation come only after it has been
demonstrated that the application is impossible or inadequate
without them. It is not within the power of the court to set aside
the clear and explicit mandate of a statutory provision
- A statute which is clear and unambiguous on its face need not to
be interpreted
Characteristics of Construction
1. Art or Process
2. Involves determination of legislative intent
3. Necessary when legislative intent cannot be readily ascertained
from the words used in the law
4. Judicial function – Defining and interpreting the law is a judicial
function and the legislative branch may not limit or restrict the
power granted to the courts by the constitution
Purpose of construction; limits on the power of construction
1. Purpose of construction
2. Limitations on the power of courts to construe
- Courts cannot have judicial legislation or in other words the court
does not have power to legislate.
- The determination of legislative intent is the primary
consideration. That legislative intent must be determined form
the language of the statute itself. To depart from the meaning
expressed by the words is to alter the statute, is to legislate not to
interpret. Courts are bound to follow the plain words of the
statute as to which there is no room for construction, regardless
of the consequence.
1. Separation of powers - an act of vesting the legislative, executive,
and judicial powers of government in separate bodies.
2. Checks and balances - is used to keep the government from
getting too powerful in one branch. For example, the Executive
Branch can veto bills from the Legislative Branch, but the
Legislative Branch can override the veto.
3. Hierarchy of laws – the highest law of the land is the constitution,
then statutes, then executive issuances.
4. Stares Decisis – judicial decision shall form part of the Philippines
legal system.
MODULE 2: Subject matter of construction
TYPES OF LAWS SUBJECT TO CONSTRUCTION
- Constitution - Fundamental law of the land
- Statutes - is a formal written enactment of a legislative authority
that governs a city, state, or country. Typically, statutes command
or prohibit something, or declare policy.
- Executive issuances - Acts of the Chief Executive of the
Philippines, whether in the exercise of the executive power or
broader powers conferred by emergency or at particular periods.
- Ordinances - a piece of legislation enacted by a municipal
authority
PARTS OF A STATUTE
1. Title
- ARTICLE 6 SECTION 26. Every bill passed by the Congress shall
embrace only one subject which shall be expressed in the title
thereof.
- The requirement that the subject of an act shall be expressed in
its title should receive a reasonable and not a technical
construction(Carter County v. Sinton).
- Avoid provision that it does not want to pass.
2. Preamble
 - The intent of the law, as culled from its preamble and from the
situation, circumstances and conditions it sought to remedy, must
be enforced.
3. Enacting Clause - is a short phrase that introduces the main
provisions of a law enacted by a legislature. It usually declares the
source from which the law claims to derive its authority.
4. Body – Contains the operative provision that either is substantive
or procedural.
5. Repealing clause
- Expressed Repeal – When a law expressly states a law to be
repealed
- Implied Repeal – when a new law is inconsistent with an old law
then and the new law repeals the old one.
6. Separability clause - In case any provision in this Indenture or in
the Securities shall be invalid, illegal or unenforceable, the
validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining provisions
shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby.
7. Effectivity clause – Must follow article 2 of the Civil Code.
MODULE 3: Legislative Intent, Verba Legis and Ratio Legis
When is construction Necessary?
Test of multiple interpretations - As a rule, a statute or act may be said to
be vague when it lacks comprehensible standards that men "of common
intelligence must necessarily guess at its meaning and differ as to its
application." It is repugnant to the Constitution in two respects: (1) it
violates due process for failure to accord persons, especially the parties
targetted by it, fair notice of the conduct to avoid; and (2) it leaves law
enforcers unbridled discretion in carrying out its provisions and becomes
an arbitrary flexing of the Government muscle.
Test of impossibility - Where a literal interpretation of any part of a statute
would operate unjustly, or lead to absurd results, or is inconsistent with
the meaning of an act as a whole, it should be rejected.
Test of Absurdity - All laws should receive a sensible construction, and
when if a literal interpretation of general terms would lead to injustice,
oppression, or absurdity, it must be presumed that the legislature intended
exceptions to its language which would avoid such results.
Where a literal interpretation of any part of a statute would operate
unjustly, or lead to absurd results, or is inconsistent with the meaning of an
act as a whole, it should be rejected.
Clerical Error –
Enrolled bill theory – enrolled bills are conclusive to the courts.
MODULE 4: Principles of Construction
Penal Laws - it is a well-entrenched rule that penal laws are to be
construed strictly against the State and liberally in favor of the accused.
They are not to be extended or enlarged by implications, intendments,
analogies or equitable considerations. They are not to be strained by
construction to spell out a new offense, enlarge the field of crime or
multiply felonies. However, it gives way for legislative intent.
Tax Laws - The rule is that taxes may not be imposed by implication; and a
tax statute is to be construed strictly and against the subjection to a tax
liability, especially where it carries penal provisions. Taxes are construed in
favor of the accused.
Social Legislation - Administrative rules of procedure should be construed
liberally in order to promote their object and assist the parties, especially
the workingman, in obtaining just, speedy, and inexpensive determination
of their respective claims and defenses.
Rules of Court - These rules shall be liberally construed in order to
promote their objective of securing a just, speedy and inexpensive
disposition of every action and proceeding. Avoid technicalities as much as
possible.
Law on Adoption - As often as is legally and lawfully possible, their texts
and intendments should be construed so as to give all the chances for
human life to exist with a modicum promise of a useful and constructive
existence. Promote and protect the best interest of the child.
Local Government/Local Autonomy - Where a law is capable of two
interpretations, one in favor of centralized power in Malacañang and the
other beneficial to local autonomy, the scales must be weighed in favor of
autonomy.
Constitution - Thus a constitutional provision is self-executing if the nature
and extent of the right conferred and the liability imposed are fixed by the
constitution itself, so that they can be determined by an examination and
construction of its terms, and there is no language indicating that the
subject is referred to the legislature for action. In case of doubt the
provisions of the constitution would be assumed as self-executing.
To the extent possible, words must be given their ordinary meaning; this is
consistent with the basic precept of verba legis
MODULE 5: INTRINSIC AIDS OF CONSTRUCTION
LAW CONSTRUED AS A WHOLE AND IN RELATION TO OTHER LAWS -
Legislative intent must be ascertained from a consideration of the whole
statute. Clauses and phrases of the statutes should not be taken as
detached and isolated expressions, but the whole and every part thereof
must be considered in fixing the meaning of any of its parts.
TITLE OF THE LAW - The office of statutory interpretation is to determine
legislative intent. When engaged in the task of construing an obscure
expression in the law or where exact or literal rendering of the words
would not carry out the legislative intent, the title thereof may be resorted
to in the ascertainment of congressional will.
PREAMBLE - While the preamble of a statute is not strictly a part thereof, it
may, when the statute is in itself ambiguous and difficult of interpretation,
be resorted to, but not to create a doubt or uncertainty which otherwise
does not exist.
PUNCTATION MARKS –
HEADNOTES OR EPIGRAPHS
CONFLICTING PROVISIONS
MEANING OF THE WORD QUALIFIED
WORDS CONSTRUED IN THEIR ORDINARY SENSE
GENERAL WORDS CONSTRUED GENERALLY
USE OF GENERIC WORDS
WHERE THE LAW DOES NOT DISTINGUISH - Well-recognized is the rule
that where the law does not distinguish, courts should not distinguish. Ubi
lex non distinguit nec nos distinguere debemos. No distinction is to be
made in the application of a law where none is indicated.
USE OF TECHNICAL TERMS
USE OF ASSOCIATED WORDS - Where a particular word is equally
susceptible of various meanings. Its correct construction may be made
specific by considering the company of terms in which it is found, or with
which is associated.
- Noscitor a sociis, the word should be given the same sense as the other
words with which it is associated.
-Under the well-known principle of ejusdem generis, the general words
following any enumeration being applicable only to things of the same kind
or class as those specifically referred to.
-The rule of ejusdem generis is to be resorted to only for the purpose of
determining what the intent of the legislature was in enacting the law. If
that intent clearly appears from other parts of the law, and such intent
thus clearly manifested is contrary to the result which would be reached by
the appreciation of the rule of ejusdem generis, the latter must give way.
EXPRESS MENTION AND IMPLIED MENTION EXCLUSION - "The
fundamental principle of constitutional construction is to give effect to the
intent of the framers of the organic law and of the people adopting it. The
intention to which force is to be given is that which is embodied and
expressed in the constitutional provisions themselves." expressio unius est
exclusio alterius.
NECESSARY IMPLICATION - One of the rules of statutory construction used
to fill in the gap is the doctrine of necessary implication . . ., Every statute is
understood, by implication, to contain all such provisions as may be
necessary to effectuate its object and purpose, or to make effective rights,
powers, privileges or jurisdiction which it grants, including all such
collateral and subsidiary consequences as may be fairly and logically
inferred from its terms.
CASSUS OMISSUS -
EACH TO EACH - reddendo singula singulis: "referring each to each;
referring each phrase or expression to its appropriate object", or "let each
be put in its proper place, that is, the words should be taken distributively.
RELATIVE QUALIFYING TERMS - If the punctuation of a statute gives it a
meaning which is reasonable and in apparent accord with the legislative
will, it may be used as an additional argument for adopting the literal
meaning of the words of a statute as thus punctuated. But an argument
based upon punctuation alone is not conclusive, and the courts will not
hesitate change the punctuation when necessary, to give to the Act the
effect intended by the Legislature, disregarding superfluous or incorrect
punctuation marks, and inserting others where necessary
WORDS AND PHRASES
- PROVISO - The general rule is that the office of a proviso is to qualify or
modify only the phrase immediately preceding it or restrain or limit the
generality of the clause that it immediately follows. Thus, it has been held
that a proviso is to be construed with reference to the immediately
preceding part of the provision to which it is attached, and not to the
statute itself or to other section thereof. The only exception to this rule is
where the clear legislative intent is to restrain or qualify not only the
phrase immediately preceding it (the proviso) but also earlier provisions of
the statute or even the statute itself as a whole
-INCLUDING -
-NEGATIVE VS AFFIRMATIVE WORDS
-MANDATORY V. PERMISSIVE
-AND/OR if the law says “and” it means that it is conjunctive. If the law
says “or” then it would be disjunctive. If “and/or” then you may have an
option to choose both or one.
the word 'and' was defined as a 'conjunction connecting words or phrases
expressing the idea that the latter is to be added to or taken along with the
first'. Stated differently, the word 'and' is a conjunction pertinently defined
as meaning 'together with', 'joined with', 'along or together with', 'added
to or linked to' used to conjoin 'word with word', 'phrase with phrase',
'clause with clause'. The word 'and' does not mean 'or', it is a conjunction
used to denote a joinder or union, 'binding together', relating the one to
the other.
-PLURAL V. SINGULAR
MODULE 6: EXTRINSIC AIDS OF CONSTRUCTION
Contemporaneous Circumstance
Legislative history
Legislative Debates and Committee Reports -You may take account
deliberation from congress and previous congress.
Executive/ Contemporaneous Construction - While contemporaneous
construction is not decisive for the courts, yet where a construction of
statutes has been adopted by the legislative department and accepted by
the various agencies of the executive department, it is entitled to great
respect. Where legislative intent and executive purpose is evident, it
devolves upon the judiciary to give deferential attention to the attitude
assumed by the other two branches of the Government.
- If the literal application of the law results in absurdity, impossibility, or
injustice, then courts may resort to extrinsic aids of statutory construction,
such as the legislative history of the law, 31 or may consider the
implementing rules and regulations and pertinent executive issuances in
the nature of executive and/or legislative construction.
REFERENCE TO OTHER STATUTES – you must look at other similar statutes
to use as reference points to give the courts an idea similar to the congress
idea.

STATUTES BORROWED FROM FOREIGN JURISDICTION - For the proper

construction and application of the terms and provisions of legislative
enactments which have been borrowed from or modelled upon Anglo-
American precedents, it is proper and ofttimes essential to review the
legislative history of such enactments and to find an authoritative guide for
their interpretation and application in the decisions of American and
English courts of last resort construing and applying similar legislation in
those countries.

MODULE 7: CONSTRUCTION OF CONFLICTING STATUTES/ CONFLICTING

PROVISION

SPECIAL LAW V. GENERAL LAW

SUBSTANTIVE V. PROCEDURAL LAW
EARLIER V. LATER LAW
PROVISO V. BODY