SYMBIOSIS INTERNATIONAL (DEEMED UNIVERSITY)

(Established under section 3 of the UGC Act 1956)

Re - accredited by NAAC with ‘A’ Grade
Founder: Prof.Dr. S. B. Mujumdar, M.Sc.,Ph.D. (Awarded Padma Bhushan and Padma
Shri by President of India)

(Established under section 3 of the UGC Act 1956, by notification No.F.9-

12/2001-U3 Government of India)
Accredited by NAAC with ‘A’ Grade
Founder: Prof. Dr. S. B. Mujumdar, M.Sc.,Ph.D. (Awarded Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri
by President of India)
___________________________________________________________________________
Sub Committee - Specialization for Curriculum Development

Under Graduate

Course Title: Judicial Process and Interpretation of Statutes

Course Code: T1536

Number of Credits: 2

Level: 4

Learning Objective:

 To describe the components of judicial process

 To identify the factors which affect judicial process and decision making such as
social, political and cultural
 To discuss the outcomes of Judicial Decisions and relate it with ontological study of
Judicial Process and Judicial Behavior.
 To identify the epistemological foundations of legal interpretation and to discuss
various jurisprudential accounts that seek to justify legal interpretation in its varied
forms.
 To illustrate the various methods of interpretations and rules of interpretations

Learning Outcome (s):

Towards the end of the course the student will be able to

 Analyze the components of judicial process

 Analyze the factors affecting judicial process and decision making

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  Examine the outcomes of Judicial Decisions and relate it with the Judicial Process
and Judicial Behavior.
 Understand the epistemological foundations of legal interpretation and the various
jurisprudential accounts that seek to justify legal interpretation in its varied forms.
 apply the various methods of interpretations and rules of interpretations

Pre-learning:

1. To have read suggested reading as per session plan and other resources such as
films, documentary, as provided by the course instructor

Course Outline

Sr.No. Topics Hours

1 Nature of Judicial Process 2
1.1 Judicial Process : Instrument of Social
Order
1.2 Judicial Activism
2 Role of Judiciary in Constitutional Structure 3
1.3 Judicial Reasoning and Growth of
Law
1.4 Judicial Review and Creativity
1.5 Accountability and Judicial Law
making
3 Ontology of Judicial Process and Judicial 5
Behaviour
1.6 Judicial Decisions and Philosophy
1.7 Socio-ethical Dimensions in Judicial
opinions
1.8 How judges decide? The Method of
Philosophy; The Method of Sociology
4 Interpretation 5
1.9 Why Interpret? The need for
interpretation; Divergence an
convergence between legal and non-
legal interpretation; Intention in
interpretation; Why original intent is
important
1.10 Debunking the intention thesis;
Questions of impracticability in light
of the nature of legislative history
1.11 Text and meaning; Expression,
purpose and intent; Pragmatism in
interpretation
1.12 Making sense of Precedent;
Determining ‘ratio decidendi’
5 General Clauses 4
1.13 General Clauses Act, 1897
1.14 Law Commission of India –

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 60thReport on the General Clauses
Act, 1897
1.15 Law Commission of India – 183rd
Report on ‘A continuum on the
General Clauses Act, 1897 with
reference to the admissibility and
codification of external aids to
interpretation of statutes’
6 Canons of Statutory Interpretation 6
1.16 On the holistic reading of statutes
1.17 Literal construction
1.18 Golden Rule
1.19 Mischief Rule of construction
1.20 Rule of purposive construction
1.21 Construction Ut res magisvaleat
quam pereat
1.22 Rule of strict interpretation (Tax
and penal statutes)
1.23 Harmonious construction
1.24 Principles of Ejusdem generis and
Nocitur a sociis
1.25 Internal and external aids to
statutory interpretation
7 Self-Learning including projects,
presentations, moot courts, simulation, 5
exercises, film review, news review, field visit,
experiential learning, guest lectures
8 Total 30

Pedagogy:

1. Lecture
2. Discussion
3. Self-Study
4. Projects

Books/Articles/Papers Recommended:

 Judicial Process for LLB & LLM by Dr. G. P. Tripathi, Central Law Publication's, 2018.
 Scalia, A., A matter of interpretation: Federal courts and the law: Federal courts and the
law. Princeton University Press.2018.
 Scalia, A., 2018. A matter of interpretation: Federal courts and the law: Federal courts
and the law. Princeton University Press.
 Berk-Seligson, S., 2017. The bilingual courtroom: Court interpreters in the judicial
process. University of Chicago Press.
 Sharma, A.K., 2017. Use of Parliamentary Debates for Statutory Interpretation in England
and India: A Comparative Jurisprudential Critique. Indon. J. Int'l & Comp. L., 4, p.475.

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 Sarkar, S., 2017. Changing Judicial Pronouncements on Impugned Discharge &
Dismissal under Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. Indian Journal of Industrial Relations,
53(2), p.201.
 Nonet, P., Selznick, P. and Kagan, R.A., 2017. Law and society in transition: Toward
responsive law. Routledge.
 Tushnet, M., 2017. New forms of judicial review and the persistence of rights-and
democracy-based worries. In Bills of Rights (pp. 265-290). Routledge.
 Jolly, S., 2017. International Parental Child Abduction: An Explorative Analysis of Legal
Standards and Judicial Interpretation in India. International Journal of Law, Policy and
the Family, 31(1), pp.20-40.
 Datar, A.P. and Unnikrishnan, R., 2017. Interpretation of Constitutions: A Doctrinal
Study. Nat'l L. Sch. India Rev., 29, p.136.
 BaxiUpendra, DhandaAmita and Indian Law Institute, Valiant Victims and Lethal
Litigation: The Bhopal Case, N.M. Tripathi Publishers, (1990).
 BaxiUpendra, Paul Thomas, Mass Disaster and Multinational Liability: The Bhopal Case,
N.M. Tripathi Publishers, (1986)
 Boston Gerald, Madden Stuart M. and Madden M. Stuart, Law of Environmental and
Toxic Torts: Cases, Materials and Problems, West Publishing Company, (2005)
 Cranor Carl F., Toxic Torts: Science, Law and the Possibility of Justice, Cambridge
University Press, (2006)
 Fowler Gregory L. and Aspatore Books, International Product Liability Law: A
Worldwide Desk Reference Featuring Product Liability Laws & Customs in 50+
Countries, Aspatore Books (2003)
 Harpwood Vivienne, Modern Tort Law, Rutledge, (2008)
 Menon N.R. Madhava, Documents and Court Opinions on Bhopal Gas Leak Disaster
Case, National Law School of Indian University, (1991)
 Pandey Jai Narain, Law of Torts: With Consumer Protection Act, 1986 and Motor
Vehicles Act, 1988, Central Law Publication, (2002)
 Pollock Frederick, The Law of Torts: A Treatise on the Principles of Obligations Arising
from Civil Wrongs in the Common Law: To which is Added the Draft of a Code of Civil
Wrongs Prepared for the Government of India”, Biblio Bazaar (2008)
 Winfield Percy Henry, Jolowicz J.A. and T. Lewis Ellis, Winfield on Tort, Sweet and
Maxwell, (1963)
 Salmond John William, Salmond on the Law of Torts, Sweet & Maxwell, 16th Edition,
(1973)
 Salmond Heuston, The Law of Torts, Universal Law Publishing Co. Ltd., (2004)
 Steele Jenny, Tort Law: Text, Cases & Materials, Oxford University Press (2007)
 RanchhoddasRatanlal and ThakoreDhirajlalKeshavlal, The Law of Torts, Lexis
NexisButterworthsWadhwa, Nagpur (2011)
 UpadhyayVideh, Public Interest Litigation in India: Concepts, Cases and Concerns,
LexisNexis Butterworths, (2007)
 Wahl Jenny B., Economic Analysis of Tort and Products Liability Law: A Collection of
Essays & Cases Law and Economics, Routledge, (1998)
 White Edward, Tort Law in America: An Intellectual History, Oxford University Press,
(2003).

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Suggested Assessment/ Evaluation Methods:

All external courses will have 40% internal component and 60% external component
[University] examination. Methodology of Internal Assessment will be at least 4 components
from the following list of assessment methods:

 Seminar Presentations
 One written test
 Viva Voce
 Essays
 Project, Group projects and Dissertations
 Cases and open problems
 Work based Assessment
 Multiple choice Questions
 Problems
 Short Answer Questions
 Learning logs/ diaries
 Computer based Assessment
 Single Essay Examination
 Reflective practice Assignments
 Modified Essay Questions
 Simulation
 Objective Structured Clinical Examination

Benchmarked against similar courses in other national/ international universities

/organizations

S. Name of the Course Name of University where it is

No. offered

1. Judicial Process and Interpretation of NLU, Delhi

Statutes

2. Interpretation of Statutes SPPU

3. Jurisprudence II (includes mainly NLSIU, Bangalore

Interpretation of Statute

4. Advanced Legislation: Theories of Harvard Law School, USA

Statutory Interpretation