English Law (Application) Act 1962
| English Law (Application) Act | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Gibraltar Legislative Council | |
| |
| Citation | Act. No. 1962-17 |
| Territorial extent | Whole ofGibraltar |
| Enacted by | Gibraltar Legislative Council |
| Enacted | 31 May 1962 |
| Assented to by | 31 May 1962 |
| Commenced | 1 June 1962 |
| Status:In force | |
TheEnglish Law (Application) Act 1962,originally known as theApplication of English Law Ordinance,is an Act of theGibraltar Legislative Councilconcerning the applicability ofEnglish lawinGibraltar.[1]
Law
[edit]The Ordinance affirmed that Gibraltar would followEnglish Common Lawand defined in schedules which specific statutes of English law would apply in Gibraltar.[2][3]The list of statutes would be updated infrequently.[4]It was also done to confirm in statute, rather than implied common automatic supersession, that Gibraltar would continue with English law.[5]
Though the Ordinance did not clarify whether Gibraltar would follow English case lawprecedents,it was later interpreted by Gibraltarian legal practitioners as meaning that they were not binding but were useful starting points for the consideration of judgments, due to the low amount of case law that originated in Gibraltar.[6]
The Ordinance was later used as a model in other British colonies for similar ordinances. InBritish Hong Kong,it was used as the basis for the Application of English Law Ordinance 1966. It is believed that the Hong Kong ordinance was drafted based upon Gibraltar's due to theAttorney General of Hong KongDenys Robertssupplying a copy of Gibraltar's ordinance which he had from when he was theAttorney General of Gibraltarin 1962.[7]In 2012, theNational Assembly for Walesinvestigated the possibility of creating a system ofWelsh lawseparate from English law, and a barrister responding to the proposal referred to the English Law (Application) Act 1962 and found it ambiguous.[6]
Repeals
[edit]While the Act confirmed many English offences, others were not confirmed, and the Act also made provision for theGibraltar Parliamentto amend or disapply any relevant legislation. As a result, some common law criminal offences have been abolished in Gibraltar, such as being acommon scold,cheating the public revenue,champerty,andlarceny.And atcivil law,adulteryandseductionwere no longer to becauses of action.[8]
References
[edit]- ^"The reception of English law".Alberta Law Review. p. 56.Retrieved7 October2020.
- ^"Brexit and Gibraltar"(PDF).Parliament of the United Kingdom.Retrieved7 October2020.
- ^Marshall, HH (1982)."The future of" received "English law in the countries of the Commonwealth".The Comparative and International Law Journal of Southern Africa.15(1): 81–91.JSTOR23245285.
- ^"Gibraltar – The Dispute Resolution Review – Edition 10".The Law Reviews.9 March 2018.Retrieved7 October2020.[dead link]
- ^Omar, P. J."Ghost in the machine"(PDF).Jersey Law.Retrieved7 October2020.
- ^ab"Re a separate Welsh jurisdiction"(PDF).Welsh Assembly.Retrieved7 October2020.
- ^Wesley-Smith, Peter (1994).The Sources of Hong Kong Law.Hong Kong University Press. p. 115.ISBN9622093639.
- ^"English Law (Application)".Government of Gibraltar.Retrieved7 October2020.