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Simple English definitions for legal terms
liberal construction
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A quick definition of liberal construction:
Liberal construction is a way of interpreting a law or document that tries to understand its purpose and apply it to the situation at hand. It looks at the bigger picture and tries to make sure the law is being used to fix the problem it was meant to solve. This is different from strict construction, which only looks at the exact words of the law and doesn't consider the bigger picture. Liberal construction tries to make sure the law is being used in a fair and helpful way.A more thorough explanation:
Definition: Liberal construction is the act of interpreting a writing, such as a constitution or statute, in a way that applies it to the situation presented and tends to achieve the spirit and purpose of the writing. It is also known as equitable construction, broad interpretation, or loose construction.
Example: If a statute is designed to protect consumers from fraudulent business practices, a court may use liberal construction to apply the statute to a new type of fraudulent practice that was not explicitly mentioned in the statute. This is because the court believes that the spirit and purpose of the statute is to protect consumers from all types of fraudulent practices, not just the ones explicitly mentioned.
This example illustrates how liberal construction expands the meaning of a writing to embrace cases that are within the spirit or reason of the writing, as long as the interpretation is not inconsistent with the language used. It resolves all reasonable doubts in favor of the applicability of the writing to the particular case.