• Source: Statute Law Revision Act 1861

The Statute Law Revision Act 1861 (24 & 25 Vict. c. 101) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that repealed for the United Kingdom enactments from 1771 to 1853 which had ceased to be in force or had become necessary. The act was intended, in particular, to facilitate the preparation of a revised edition of the statutes.




Background


In the United Kingdom, acts of Parliament remain in force until expressly repealed.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.
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. From 1810 to 1825, The Statutes of the Realm was published, providing for the first time the authoritative collection of acts. In 1816, both Houses of Parliament, passed resolutions that an eminent lawyer with 20 clerks be commissioned to make a digest of the statutes, which was declared "very expedient to be done." However, this was never done.
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. 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. The Commission made four reports.
An alternative approach, focusing on expunging obsolete laws from the statute book, followed by consolidation, was proposed by Peter Locke King MP, who was heavily critical of the expenditure of the Commission and the lack of results. This approach was taken by the Repeal of Obsolete Statutes Act 1856 (19 & 20 Vict. c. 64), considered to be the first Statute Law Revision Act.
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he had engaged Sir Francis Reilly and A. J. Wood to expurgate the statute book of all acts which, though not expressly repealed, were not in force, working backwards from the present time.




Passage


The Statute Law Revision Bill had its first reading in the House of Lords on 24 August 1860, introduced by the Lord Chancellor, Robert Rolfe, 1st Baron Cranworth. The bill did not progress in that parliamentary session.
The re-introduced Statute Law Revision Bill had had its first reading in the House of Lords on 11 February 1861, introduced by the Lord Chancellor, Robert Rolfe, 1st Baron Cranworth. In his speech introducing the bill, the Lord Cranworth explained that the bill aimed to repeal outdated laws to simplify and consolidate the legal code, allowing for a more manageable and up-to-date statute book by cutting it down to one-fourth of its original size.
The bill had its second reading in the House of Lords on 28 February 1861 and was committed to a committee of the whole house, which met and reported without amendment on 7 March 1861. The bill was criticised by the former Lord Chancellor, Frederic Thesiger, 1st Baron Chelmsford, who voiced concerns about the process, particularly regarding the heavy reliance on two legal experts without further scrutiny by the House and by Richard Hely-Hutchinson, 4th Earl of Donoughmore, who suggested the bill ought to be referred to a select committee. The bill had its third reading in the House of Lords on 8 March 1861, with amendments.
The bill had its first reading in the House of Commons on 11 March 1861, its second reading in the House of Commons on 15 April 1861, and was and committed to a select committee. The Select Committee was discharged and the bill was committed to a committee of the whole house on 26 July 1861, which met and reported on 30 July 1861, with amendments. The amended bill had its third reading in the House of Commons on 31 July 1861. The amended bill was considered and agreed to by the House of Lords on 2 August 1861.
The bill was granted royal assent on 6 August 1861.




Legacy


The act as intended, in particular, to facilitate the preparation of a revised edition of the statutes. Whereas James Williams called this the first of the Statute Law Revision Acts, it was predated by the Repeal of Obsolete Statutes Act 1856 (19 & 20 Vict. c. 64, which Courtenay Ilbert considered to be the first.
Sir Francis Reilly and A. J. Wood would go on to draft the Statute Law Revision Act 1863 (26 & 27 Vict. c. 125).
The act was repealed for the United Kingdom by Group 1 of Part IX of Schedule 1 to the Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1998.
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 on 25 July 1991.
The 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


Section 1 of the act repealed or amended over 883 enactments, listed in the schedule to the act, across six categories:

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.




See also


Statute Law Revision Act




Notes






References






External links



List of amendments and repeals in the Republic of Ireland from the Irish Statute Book.
The Statute Law Revision Act 1861, as applicable to New Zealand, from the Parliamentary Counsel Office.

Kata Kunci Pencarian:

• Statute Law Revision Act 1861
• Statute Law Revision Act
• Statute Law Revision Act 1863
• Statute Law Revision Act 1867
• Tea Act
• Statute Law (Ireland) Revision Act 1872
• Statute Law Revision Act 1892
• Statute Law Revision Act 1890
• Statute Law Revision Act 1873
• Statute Law Revision Act 1878