Statutory interpretation of the constitution relates to the procedure through which the courts elucidate and implement legislative decrees. Statutes, however, contain vague and ambiguous wording that requires some amount of explanation by the judge. In such instances, the judicial system may use various tools and other methodologies in interpreting statutes. Some of these methods include purpose, legislative history, and conventional statutory interpretation rules. The judiciary may exert or employ statutory interpretation canons to delegated amendments, e.g., administrative agency statutes and laws enacted by the legislature during common law jurisdictions.
According to Thombre, common law refers to a body of unwritten regulations based on legalized precedents developed by the U.S. courts, and it may be used to elucidate laws. It impacts the decision-making procedure in untypical cases/lawsuits where outcomes can’t be ascertained contingent on the written law rules or existing statutes. Common law typically originates from case law, i.e., decisions implemented by judges during court cases. A judge often has two primary responsibilities when determining a court case: to establish the facts related to the case and to ascertain how the law applies to the developed facts. Once judges come up with a decision on how the legislation applies to the presented set of facts, future cases with kindred facts must be treated in a similar manner (judicial precedent).
According to common law legislation, the elucidation of a statute often becomes binding, and, thus, it is necessary to establish or institute a consistent statutory interpretation approach. According to Thombre, a statute is assumed not to be in effect retrospectively, and on the other hand, common law is “declarative”. Legislation typically takes priority over the common rule in instances where inconsistencies exist. Because of the unpredictable nature of legislative debates, expected circumstances are unavoidable. Therefore, uncertainties, such as the need for compromise or to address the demands of special interest groupings, may be included in the statute/regulation during its enactment.