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Statute Law Revision Act 1874

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Statute Law Revision Act 1874[1]
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long titleAn Act for promoting the Revision of the Statute Law by repealing certain Acts which have ceased to be in force or have become unnecessary.
Citation37 & 38 Vict. c. 35
Introduced byRichard Baggallay MP (Commons)
Hugh Cairns, 1st Baron Cairns (Lords)
Territorial extent United Kingdom
Dates
Royal assent16 July 1874
Commencement16 July 1874[2]
Other legislation
Amends
Repeals/revokesSee § Repealed acts
Amended byStatute Law Revision Act 1894
Relates to
Status: Partially repealed
Text of statute as originally enacted

The Statute Law Revision Act 1874 (37 & 38 Vict. c. 35) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that repealed for the United Kingdom statutes from 1801 to 1837. The Act was intended, in particular, to facilitate the preparation of the revised edition of the statutes, then in progress.

Section 2 of the Statute Law Revision Act 1874 (No. 2) (37 & 38 Vict. c. 96) provided that the Act was to be read and construed as if, in the entry in the Schedule to this act relating to the Piracy Act 1837 (7 Will. 4 & 1 Vict. c. 88), the words "Section Six" and "Section Seven" had been substituted for the words "Section Four" and "Section Five" respectively.

Background

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In the United Kingdom, Acts of Parliament remain in force until expressly repealed. Blackstone's Commentaries on the Laws of England, published in the late 18th-century, raised questions about the system and structure of the common law and the poor drafting and disorder of the existing statute book.[3]

In 1806, the Commission on Public Records passed a resolution requesting the production of a report on the best mode of reducing the volume of the statute book.[4] From 1810 to 1825, The Statutes of the Realm was published, providing for the first time the authoritative collection of acts.[4] In 1816, both Houses of Parliament, passed resolutions that an eminent lawyer with 20 clerks be commissioned to make a digest of the statues, which was declared "very expedient to be done." However, this was never done.[5].

At the start of the parliamentary session in 1853, Lord Cranworth announced his intention to the improvement of the statute law and in March 1853, appointed the Board for the Revision of the Statute Law to repeal expired statutes and continue consolidation, with a wider remit that included civil law.[4] The Board issued three reports, recommending the creation of a permanent body for statute law reform.

In 1854, Lord Cranworth appointed the Royal Commission for Consolidating the Statute Law to consolidate existing statutes and enactments of English law.[4] The Commission made four reports. Recommendations made by the Commission were implemented by the Repeal of Obsolete Statutes Act 1856 (19 & 20 Vict. c. 64).

On 17 February 1860, the Attorney General, Sir Richard Bethell told the House of Commons that he had engaged Sir Francis Reilly and A. J. Wood to expurgate the statute book of all acts which, though not expressly repealed, were not in force, working backwards from the present time.[4] In 1861, the Statute Law Revision Act 1861 (24 & 25 Vict. c. 101) was passed, which repealed or amended over 800 statutes. In 1863, the Statute Law Revision Act 1863. (26 & 27 Vict. c. 125) was passed, which repealed or amended over 1,600 statutes for England and Wales. In 1867, the Statute Law Revision Act 1867 (30 & 31 Vict. c. 59) was passed, which repealed or amended over 1,380 statutes. In 1870, the Statute Law Revision Act 1870 (33 & 34 Vict. c. 69) was passed, which repealed or amended over 250 statutes. In 1871, the Statute Law Revision Act 1871 (34 & 35 Vict. c. 116) was passed, which repealed or amended over 1,060 statutes. In 1872, the Statute Law Revision Act 1872 (35 & 36 Vict. c. 63) was passed, which repealed almost 490 statutes. In 1872, the Statute Law Revision Act 1872 (No. 2) (35 & 36 Vict. c. 97) was passed, which repealed almost 260 statutes. In 1873, the Statute Law Revision Act 1873 (36 & 37 Vict. c. 91) was passed, which repealed almost ? statutes.

Passage

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The Statute Law Revision Bill had its first reading in the House of Lords on 21 May 1874,[6] introduced by the Lord Chancellor, Hugh Cairns, 1st Baron Cairns.[7] The Bill had its second reading in the House of Lords on 15 June 1874 and was committed to a Committee of the Whole House,[8] which met on 16 June 1874[9] and reported with amendments on 18 June 1874.[10][7] The Bill had its third reading in the House of Lords on 18 June 1874,[11] with amendments.[7]

The Bill its first reading in the House of Commons on 22 June 1874,[12] introduced by the Attorney General, Richard Baggallay MP.[13] The Bill had its second reading in the House of Commons on 29 June 1874 and was committed to a Committee of the Whole House,[14] which met and reported without amendment on 2 July 1874.[15] The Bill had its third reading in the House of Commons on 3 July 1874.[16]

The Bill was granted royal assent on 16 July 1874.[17]

Legacy

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The Act was intended, in particular, to facilitate the preparation of a revised edition of the statutes.[18]

The Act was partly in force in Great Britain at the end of 2010.[19]

Section 2 and the Schedule of the Act was repealed by section 1 of, and Schedule 1 to, the Statute Law Revision Act 1894 (57 & 58 Vict. c. 56).

The enactments which were repealed (whether for the whole or any part of the United Kingdom) by the Act were repealed so far as they extended to the Isle of Man[20] on 25 July 1991.[21]

This act was retained for the Republic of Ireland by section 2(2)(a) of, and Part 4 of Schedule 1 to, the Statute Law Revision Act 2007.

Repealed acts

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Section 1 of the Act repealed almost 260 Acts, listed in the Schedule to the Act, across six categories:[22][a]

  • Expired
  • Spent
  • Repealed in general terms
  • Virtually repealed
  • Superseded
  • Obsolete

Section 1 of the Act included several safeguards to ensure that the repeal does not negatively affect existing rights or ongoing legal matters. Specifically, any legal rights, privileges, or remedies already obtained under the repealed laws, as well as any legal proceedings or principles established by them, remain unaffected. Section 1 of the Act also ensured that repealed enactments that have been incorporated into other laws would continue to have legal effect in those contexts. Moreover, the repeal would not revive any former rights, offices, or jurisdictions that had already been abolished.

Section 2 of the Act provided that the Criminal Costs (Dublin) Act 1815 (55 Geo. 3. c. 91), which had been repealed by the Statute Law Revision Act 1873, was revived, so far as it related to the county of the city of Dublin.

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ The Note of the Bill, unlike the Schedule, gives commentary on each Act, noting any earlier repeals and the reason for the new repeal

References

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  1. ^ The citation of this act by this short title is authorised by section 3 of this act
  2. ^ The Acts of Parliament (Commencement) Act 1793
  3. ^ Farmer, Lindsay (2000). "Reconstructing the English Codification Debate: The Criminal Law Commissioners, 1833-45". Law and History Review. 18 (2): 397–425. doi:10.2307/744300. ISSN 0738-2480.
  4. ^ a b c d e Ilbert, Courtenay (1901). Legislative methods and forms. Oxford: Clarendon Press. p. 57. Retrieved 9 September 2024. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  5. ^ Gerald Gardiner, Baron Gardiner (5 June 1967). "Consolidation Bills". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 283. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Lords. col. 179.
  6. ^ "Minutes". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 220. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Lords. 22 June 1874. col. 221.
  7. ^ a b c Parliament, Great Britain (1874). Hansard's Parliamentary Debates. pp. 266, 273–274, 613.
  8. ^ "Minutes". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 219. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Lords. 15 June 1874. col. 1566.
  9. ^ "Minutes". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 219. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. 16 June 1874. col. 1666.
  10. ^ "Minutes". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Lords.
  11. ^ "Minutes". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 220. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Lords. 18 June 1864. col. 65.
  12. ^ "Minutes". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 220. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. 22 June 1874. col. 221.
  13. ^ Parliament, Great Britain (1874). Hansard's Parliamentary Debates. Hansard.
  14. ^ "Minutes". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 220. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. 29 June 1874. col. 604.
  15. ^ "Minutes". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 220. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. 2 July 1874. col. 870.
  16. ^ "Minutes". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 220. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. 3 July 1874. col. 995.
  17. ^ "Minutes". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 221. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Lords. 16 July 1874. col. 89.
  18. ^ Great Britain (1866). The public general statutes : with a list of the local and private acts passed in the ... years of the reign of ... : being the ... session of the ... Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Harvard University. London : Printed by G.E. Eyre and W. Spottiswoode, printers to the Queen's most excellent majesty. for W. Clowes and Sons, printers to the Council of Law Reporting. pp. 183–224.
  19. ^ The Chronological Table of the Statutes, 1235 - 2010. The Stationery Office. 2011. ISBN 978-0-11-840509-6. Part 1. Page 482, read with pages viii and x.
  20. ^ The Statute Law Revision (Isle of Man) Act 1991, sections 1(1) and 2(2) and Schedule 1
  21. ^ The Interpretation Act 1978, section 4(b)
  22. ^ Lords, Great Britain Parliament House of (1874). Public Bills.
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