Reading an Act of Parliament

Instructions


The aim of this exercise is to name and to understand the significance of the various parts of an Act of Parliament.

• Using the navigation bar on the left click on the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 and then scroll through the Act of Parliament noting the words highlighted; each highlighted part is a feature of an Act.
  
  
• Click on the text highlighted in a  peach colour  and the feature will be identified and an explanation given of its significance.
  
  
• Alternatively use the navigation bar on the left, which identifies the features of the Act eg long title, chapter number etc; click on the feature to be taken to the relevant section of the Party Wall Act 1996. The relevant part will be edged in  blue.

While the meaning of an Act is collected from the words of a section, some parts of an Act of Parliament may also be used as aids to interpretation. This means they may be used to find the meaning of an Act where the words of a section are unclear. Where a feature of an Act has been considered as a possible aid to interpretation you will find the words Aid to interpretation. Click on these words for an explanation.

Note the so called Intrinsic aids to interpretation are those features found within the Queen’s Printer’s copy of an Act of Parliament. The courts have drawn a distinction between those parts of an Act which have been debated by Parliament and those that have been added by a draftsman without being debated. Only those parts in the former category may, strictly speaking, be used as aids to interpretation.

 

Party Wall etc. Act 1996 - Crown Copyright material is reproduced with the permission of the controller of HMSO and the Queen's Printer for Scotland.